Pontoon edging

[rogerwa]

I have a 25 foot pontoon that I am considering doing a rebuild on. It has an aluminum edging around the deck as normal toons have, but this one is welded at the corners instead of having bolt on aluminum or rubber covers.

Has any one removed this type of edging and how did you take it off and put it back on?

Also, my toon has a lot of flex in it. Stupid question, but does this mean that my decking is not providing the rigidity it once did or is there normally flex in the deck. When I say flex, if one of the toons hits a wave, I can see the deck flex.

 

[5150abf]

Re: Pontoon edging

that seems kinda funny since they woudl hav ehad to weld it after it was on the boat, is there maybe a brak in it somewhere else?

Short of cutting it I don't know how you could get it off unless you left it in one peice.

Yes bad wood will make a toon flex more, the deck is a big part of the structure, you could also have some loose bolts.

 

[VaGent]

Re: Pontoon edging

I had the same problem when I started the rebuild to my 1984 JC pontoon. The edging had been welded in 2 places on each side of the stern. I took a battery powered sawzall & cut it into & took it off. I had planned on re-installing it but I decided later to replace it with all new edging. I bought 4 24ft pieces of aluminum angle 1/8" thick by 3X4 from a local metal supplier for $150.00 delivered. I carefully cut 45 degree angles on each corner & installed that on the deck. Once I added new corner caps the miter joints where hidden from view.

If there are any soft spots in the deck & you can afford to install new decking then that is the best way to go. I had 3 in mine so I had already decided to re-deck mine & I'm glad I did. It was money well worth spending as the decking helps hold the logs & everything else together.

Now that I have all the "kinks" worked out on mine the next step is to underskin it to reduce drag & making for a quieter & softer ride.

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