I get a lot of calls for folks looking for pontoon bimini tops but these things were always one item I could never fabricate anywhere near a reasonable price in the eyes of the pontoon boaters since the online world has an edge on these things and I until recently, didn't have a good source to purchase the exact ones I wanted - solid 1 piece design frames without any bolted together 4-6 piece bows which in my opinion are dangerous.
Because Pontoon's were all 8' wide until the recently developed 8.5' models started appearing, they were the "easiest to mass produce" item for any boat essentially I imagine and why they are found on Overton's, Cabella's, etc. The problem with those items in my opinion is they come in a kit form meaning a bunch of nuts and bolts hold together each bow where as I'm a firm believer in 1 piece bow design. I've never been interested in using bolt together kits or competing with prices on products Overton's and the like sells at prices I can't touch because they're stitched in a country where the employees live in dirt huts unfortunately.
However, I've been getting request after request for pontoon bimini's so it had me wondering whether to venture into the market to build a great quality one without costing a fortune due to the frame. While shopping for someone to make my frames, I realized I don't know what the "most popular" combination of front / rear bimini tops are. You've got the standard 8' or 10' long rear frames then you can put another 8' up front or a 2 / 3 bow frame up front that connects to the main rear one but cannot stand up on its own like a seperate 8 footer can up front... this translates into a ton of combinations I'm not sure I'd want to stock to cover every angle possible basically.
So, if any of your pontoon folks here would like to help provide me with some feedback on whether you have / wanted a 8' rear top or a 10' rear top, and if you have a front frame did you use another 8' frame with a connector between them or go for a 2 bow or 3 bow front frame to just extend that 8' or 10' item a little further but not turn it into a monster. If you can't forsee the future, I'm going to be looking for a guniea pig pontoon later this summer once things slow down so if you don't mind contacting me to do a little market research I'd be more than happy to help you out with a guinea pig project I may start later in the season. For those who know me, these will be of the highest quality or I wouldn't be getting involved with them so I'll just say they're very promising and hopefully can be at a competitive price while being better than anything off the internet.
Thanks and I hope you guys realize I'm asking you want you want to be able to purchase here in Pittsburgh, not peddling goods that don't exist yet on here! Calls about pontoon bimini's always end up with two unhappy people on the phone, me because I can't compete with the cheap internet junk that has polluted the market and them because I have to explain why it costs a fortune to make a custom bent bimini frame for a pontoon up till now but I think that is about to change hopefully. Unfortunately most of those calls end before we get to the finer details about the top so I never get to ask what sizes they were looking for.
And Doug before you ask - yes it would be cool to make the "worlds largest" bimini top for the saloon if you don't have a hardtop design in mind already.
I dont see why fabricating bows would be all that hard, the tubing and ends are all readily available and you can bend the tubing with a condiut bender. I`ve replaced damaged bows this way for a lot les than buying all new custom fit ones. It seems to me that once the bows are in place you have the skills to cover them.
By the way, I`m going to be calling you, I need my rear motor hatch redone. I built too big of a motor and had to put a scoop on it.
I agree completely with the fabrication of the bows - to be honest the reason I'm asking these questions is so that I don't reinvent the wheel on a frame that exists, I'm purchasing "one of each" frame from a supplier to get the standard pontoon top shape since their crowns are not the same as a crown in a round tube frame which I bend already. With the "templates" here for the frames, I'm going to start manufacturing my own but to be honest time and wasted material are concerns in doing it without a pontoon here to use as a baseline and every pontoon customer I get never owns a trailer by luck...
Sounds good on the motor cover - sounds like my kind of interested job. Please don't wait too long to call though, I've got a tremendous backlog right now.
Sounds like you have a handle on the bows. If you need a long radius a tube roller would work for that, and for bending that type of tubing you could just build one yourself, but I doubt they cost much.
I`ll call you on the hatch, but if you are backlogged it wont keep me out of the water.... I can cobble the old one temporalily until you can swing it. We have a race this weekend in North Carolina so I cant get it ready for you until late next week anyways, I still have to finish the new motor and set it in and see how big of a hole I need to cut and mount the scoop. The way its built it has a separate flat peice of plywood that sits on the hatch, so when I get the scoop on it I`ll just cut the plywood (after I talk to you to see how much clearane around everything you need) and drop it off.
I also realized that my nasty torn up old cover wont fit over the scoop so a nice new on is going to be needed also. There is no rush on that either since my boat is a garage/trailer queen.
Greg- I have a '09 party barge 21 with the stock rear bimini. If you don't find a guinea pig to add a front top to attach to the rear or to stand free, let me know. I'd be happy to supply the funds and the boat to get it off the ground. I live in Butler area and camp/boat along the Allegheny. I would love to add a bimini and I wouldn't consider the internet junk you refer to. Mike
Help with Pontoon Bimmini Tops...
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