Classic Accessories™ Clark Fork Pontoon 2025
CybrSlydr reply :
So, my brother and I were browsing Cabela's and saw this particular inflatable pontoon boat was on sale for $249.99. This is just about affordable for us, so I decided I'd ask you folks if anyone has experience with one of these?
http://www.cabelas.com/product/boating/canoes-kayaks-small-boats/pontoons|/pc/104794380/c/104710680/sc/104508180/classic-accessories-clark-fork-pontoon/1907270.uts
Personally, I think I want to save up for one of the Colorado XTs or something (with a transom mount for a trawling motor) than go for this guy. However, my brother has 0 issues with using oars to get around and has little to no interest in something with a motor.
So, my fine finned friends, anyone used the Clark Fork and willing to share their experience with it?
Scott F reply :
I've been using inflatable pontoons for years. For me, they were the perfect solution. They transport and store easily, they are very stable, very easy to get in and out of. I used mine primarily for river fishing. Put in upstream and float down to the take out point. Used the river current to move along and just used the oars for positioning. When you get to a shallow spot, you just put your feet down or stand up to hold you in place. For lakes and ponds, the oars are often enough to get you around.
No boat is perfect. The negatives are that you really can't row them upstream. If the wind is blowing, you can get pushed around. Even floating downstream, if the wind is against you, you have to keep rowing or you don't move. They are slower than a kayak, but are easier to store and transport. For use with a trolling motor, the usual positions for the motor mount are directly behind the seat. It is very awkward to have to twist yourself around to control the motor. For river floating, you do need a second person with a car for shuttling. Because they fold up so small, you never need a big vehicle for transportation. I get two of them with all our gear in some pretty small cars. There are a lot of modifications you can do to them to suit your needs. There are a few web sites showing clubs that run tournaments out of them along with all the mods.
At $250, that model isn't as sturdy as some others but it is a good price. The pontoons are pretty durable, they aren't pool toys. Pretty safe. Unless you do something really stupid, you aren't going to puncture one.
If you have any questions, shoot me a PM
CybrSlydr reply :
My main concern is comfort - something you can sit in for multiple hours without getting cramped or sore.
The ability to deflate and store in a small space is the main reason we're looking at those. A lot simpler than having to also buy a roof rack and all that stuff to slog a kayak along. Granted, in the future, we'd love to get a kayak, but for now we think this sort of device would serve our needs quite well.
J Francho reply :
@Paul Roberts uses a kick boat. I think he even has a graph rigged up on it.
CybrSlydr reply :
If you folks have followed my Fishing Reports, you see the kind of places we tend to fish - state park lakes are the vast majority of them. Not much in the way of fast currents or too deep, IIRC (60ft at Wolf Run by the dam is probably it). I figure something like this would be a bit small for larger lakes like Alum Creek Reservoir.
A fish-finder is also something I'd like to put on these. But, those are also quite expensive. lol
What kinds of watercraft do you folks have?
J Francho reply :
Three fishing kayaks and a 22' bass boat. I use the kayaks more than anything.
Scott F reply :
I replaced the seat on my pontoon with a seat that I can use from my Ranger. I've spent 12 hours on a float. The fact that you can put your feet up on the foot rests, let them hang down or just stand up (in shallow water) easily means you aren't stuck in one position. The comfort is one of the things I like best.
J Francho reply :
Nice rig!
CybrSlydr reply :
Do any of you have links for where folks mod these? I'm interested in what kinds of seats they suggest and would fit.
Scott F reply :
Just google personal pontoon. There are a bunch of you tube videos. Keep digging and you'll find out a lot of web sites.
DJinNC reply :
I have a creek company classic pontoon I purchased in 2005... I last used it in 20010. About to pull it out again this weekend, pump here up and see how she stands. I would highly recommend the basic model creek company over the Cabelas boat. I got to "put hands" on it this weekend. Not bad, but the creek company can get you a little more bang for the buck IMHO. Figure I can check on mine tonight and have it patched up by the weekend if necessary.
IndianaFinesse reply :
On 4/26/2017 at 1:17 AM, DJinNC said:I have a creek company classic pontoon I purchased in 2005... I last used it in 20010.
When you going back to the future again?
DJinNC reply :
On 4/26/2017 at 1:36 AM, IndianaFinesse said:When you going back to the future again?
You got me McFly..
CybrSlydr reply :
On 4/26/2017 at 1:17 AM, DJinNC said:I have a creek company classic pontoon I purchased in 2005... I last used it in 20010. About to pull it out again this weekend, pump here up and see how she stands. I would highly recommend the basic model creek company over the Cabelas boat. I got to "put hands" on it this weekend. Not bad, but the creek company can get you a little more bang for the buck IMHO. Figure I can check on mine tonight and have it patched up by the weekend if necessary.
Woof - those Creek Company boats are quite expensive! $500 for the cheapest one and the next one is $900!
I think that firmly places it out of our price range - but thanks for the idea! 
Anyone know of other inflatable pontoon brands?
Scott F reply :
On 4/26/2017 at 10:08 AM, CybrSlydr said:
Woof - those Creek Company boats are quite expensive! $500 for the cheapest one and the next one is $900!
I think that firmly places it out of our price range - but thanks for the idea!
Anyone know of other inflatable pontoon brands?
The Classic Accessories boats are the cheapest boats you can buy. Other brands are Outcast (the one in my picture above) Sea Eagle, and Bucks Bags. That boat you were looking at is 1/2 to 1/3 the price of any other boat. Bucks Bags and Sea Eagle are near $1,000. My Outcast, Fishcat 9IR was over $800 after I added a few accessories.
Just remember, you get what you pay for. If you start off with inexpensive gear, of any kind, You save money..at first. If you find you don't like pontoons, you got off cheap. If you do like them, you will soon be upgrading to a decent craft so you wind up buying twice. The cheap one and the one you should have bought in the first place.
CybrSlydr reply :
Just got back from Cabelas and got it put together. Bro got the copper version.
Setup was si.ple enough and we can fit it in the trunk of my car. But we can only get one if we get a second.
We're taking it out on the water tomorrow!
CybrSlydr reply :
Question: It says to not inflate past 2psi - how can you check that? It doesn't have a valve like a tire so what kind of gauge does it take?
Scott F reply :
Pump it up enough that it is firm, but not rock hard. I can tell from your picture, it still needs more air. Once it is blown up all the way, DON'T leave it in the sun! Get it on the water as soon as you can. The sun can cause the air to expand and burst the bladder. You'll get to know quickly if you have the right amount of air. I use an electric, low pressure, pump to start. Once it gets to the point where the pump isn't putting more air in, I switch to the hand pump to top it off.
A suggestion. Now that you have it assembled, when you are done, deflate the tubes, but leave them attached to the frame. Take the frame sections apart for storage, It will save a lot of time when you put it back together.
CybrSlydr reply :
On 4/30/2017 at 10:16 PM, Scott F said:Pump it up enough that it is firm, but not rock hard. I can tell from your picture, it still needs more air. Once it is blown up all the way, DON'T leave it in the sun! Get it on the water as soon as you can. The sun can cause the air to expand and burst the bladder. You'll get to know quickly if you have the right amount of air. I use an electric, low pressure, pump to start. Once it gets to the point where the pump isn't putting more air in, I switch to the hand pump to top it off.
Yeah, the point at which we took the pic was when the directions said to inflate it partially and attach the frame pieces. So we hadn't gotten it fully inflated.
It'd be nice if the valve adapter it comes with would close the valve when you unscrewed it.
Scott F reply :
Leave the valve closed when you pump it up with the hand pump. The hand pump will force the valve open as you pump it up and close it automatically when you stop. An electric pump isn't strong enough to force the valve open so you have to leave it open when using one..
CybrSlydr reply :
On 4/30/2017 at 10:24 PM, Scott F said:Leave the valve closed when you pump it up with the hand pump. The hand pump will force the valve open as you pump it up and close it automatically when you stop. An electric pump isn't strong enough to force the valve open so you have to leave it open when using one..
All we have is the electic pump we bought - it didn't come with a hand pump.
Scott F reply :
You have to get a hand pump. Which electric did you get? None of the low pressure/high volume pumps I've seen will fill the tubes all the way. Get the double action hand pump Cabela's sellls
http://www.cabelas.com/product/boating/canoes-kayaks-small-boats/float-tube-pontoon-accessories|/pc/104794380/c/104710680/sc/104334480/outcast-double-action-pump/2203703.uts
CybrSlydr reply :
On 4/30/2017 at 10:32 PM, Scott F said:You have to get a hand pump. Which electric did you get? None of the low pressure/high volume pumps I've seen will fill the tubes all the way. Get the double action hand pump Cabela's sellls
We got the $10.50 cig lighter one in the camping section.
http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=1168811&type=product&WT.ac=YMAL-1168811&WT.z_pg_ref=prd737234
Mostly because the one we were going to get specifically said to not use with a cigarette lighter.
http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=737234&type=product&WT.ac=YMAL-737234&WT.z_pg_ref=prd1168811
CybrSlydr reply :
So how does one fill these things without losing a bunch of air trying to close the valve?
CybrSlydr reply :
Am I correct in that with a hand pump, I can leave the valve in the "closed" position but still pump air in because the pump can force the valve open?
This way we're not losing air when removing the pump in the "open" position?
Dirt reply :
Welcome to the pontoon world! Yes a hand pump will fill the pontoons when the valve is in the closed position, it looks like he valves are Halkey-Roberts (HR) valves. They're simple mechanisms but work well. You can buy an air pressure gauge for them (search using the valve name) but due to slight differences sometimes you have to get creative to make a gauge work. For my gauge I simply replaced the rubber grommet with a thinner o-ring as it didn't go deep enough to open the valve. I can post a picture after work. I bought my pontoon used and it gets folded up into my car after each use, never clean or dry it. They're great cheap vessels
Scott F reply :
On 5/1/2017 at 9:08 PM, CybrSlydr said:Am I correct in that with a hand pump, I can leave the valve in the "closed" position but still pump air in because the pump can force the valve open?
This way we're not losing air when removing the pump in the "open" position?
That is correct.
CybrSlydr reply :
On 5/2/2017 at 11:03 PM, Dirt said:Welcome to the pontoon world! Yes a hand pump will fill the pontoons when the valve is in the closed position, it looks like he valves are Halkey-Roberts (HR) valves. They're simple mechanisms but work well. You can buy an air pressure gauge for them (search using the valve name) but due to slight differences sometimes you have to get creative to make a gauge work. For my gauge I simply replaced the rubber grommet with a thinner o-ring as it didn't go deep enough to open the valve. I can post a picture after work. I bought my pontoon used and it gets folded up into my car after each use, never clean or dry it. They're great cheap vessels
The instruction manual specifically states that they're "Boston Valves" but by description I'm finding they're called "Military Valves". Now you're saying they're a third type - lol
The case of the infinite valve!
Essentially they're 1/4 screw-in with a sprung stem in the middle that you press down and can turn to lock open.
The image below is exactly the kind of valve.
Dirt reply :
Well that could very well be why I had to mod my air pressure gauge to work with it, mine look exactly the same but maybe there's slight differences. There was a nice difference with float height and speed when fully inflated (2.5psi for mine)
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