Style & Speed

By Capt. Bob Smith

JC Pontoon’s 240 Evolution is more of a revolution in pontoon design. It marries the deckboat concept to the pontoon life. JC Pontoon has been known for over thirty years as the executive builder of top notch pontoons and has brought many revolutionary ideas to the market. They were the first to develop the tri-hull design in pontoons, so it should be no surprise they have produced this unique design.

Radical Design

Just walking up to the boat, you are struck by the radical looking bow. The fiberglass nose wraps around the bow leaving an opening for you to get to the bow lounges from the front. In the sole is an anchor locker for a folded Danforth style anchor and line. Most of the hardware JC uses is made of marine grade stainless steel. Even the docking light housings are stainless steel. The deck cleats are also stainless steel and have large center eyes that can handle large docking. This unusual design will also offer some level of protection from wind and water should you cross a large wake head-on.

The bow lounger has twin benches that face each other. Three stainless steel cup holders are on each side in the ends. Seat bases are roto-cast with hinged seat cushions. These seat bases are designed to drain water away and last a lifetime. Seat bases are vinyl covered and have a carpet strip to match the plush carpeting in the toe kick space. The seat bases have a ton of room to store your water toys and gear. JC Pontoon uses modular lounger end caps which creates options, such as the optional tip-out sink with hand-pump action my test boat had.

Another unique feature I found on this boat was the side-entry gate latching system. It had a magnetic catch to hold the gate open when you needed it, but it also had a magnetic latch system. With the gate open, the latch bolt remains retracted, but when it is fully closed, a magnet pulls the latch into the receiver and holds it closed. Very slick!

At the Helm

The helm features wood accents and a wood wheel. The driver’s cup holder is a flip out style in the side of the helm pod. The dash has lighted rocker switches with push-button circuit breakers and Beede analog gauges arranged across the top of the dash. A Hummingbird 727 Matrix fish locater is standard, but ours had the upgrade to the color 787 version. The Clarion marine stereo includes AM/FM/CD player with six months of Sirius Satellite service included. We had a MerCruiser sterndrive installed with the Digital Throttle and Shift controls. This is a “fly-by-wire” system that is easy to use. Turn the key and hit a button on the lever to start and to stop the engine all day long. The seat on our test model was also unique. It had a high back with mesh back and seat. It turned out to be one of the most comfortable and cool seats all day long.

Aft Seating

Aft seating was not a standard “L”, but a sculpted “L” taking advantage of the fiberglass topside design. Once again, we had the roto-cast seat bases that offered excellent storage capacity. More stainless cup holders were across the back of the stern seat and in the corner. Overhead was a custom bimini built in-house with thick gauge polished aluminum tubes and Sunbrella material. The tubes ran through pockets with zippers so you can easily remove a rod or pull the material off for storage or cleaning.

Through the stern gate and onto the back we had a swim platform and an optional ski tow rack and wakeboard storage rack. A telescoping swim ladder was tucked under the starboard side of the swim platform.

Specifications

The Evolution 240 measures 24’ length overall with a deck width of 8’6”. She weighs approximately 4250 lbs and can carry as much as 3650 lbs of people and gear. She can handle up to 320-hp sterndrive engines and has a standard 55 gallon fuel tank.

Test Results

I tested her in relatively calm conditions and found she had plenty of power and great handling. She is quick to plane in 3.5 seconds and up to 30 mph in 5.7 seconds. The Evolution 240 cruised most economically turning 2500 rpm at 19.7 mph and on test day reached a top speed of 43.8 mph.

If you like the idea of relaxing and cruising in the pontoon style, but wants some speed too, the Evolution 240 marries the style with the performance and ride you want.

• Top speed for the JC Pontoon Evolution 240 (2007-) is 43.8 mph (70.5 kph), burning 23.7 gallons per hour (gph) or 89.7 liters per hour (lph).


• Best cruise for the JC Pontoon Evolution 240 (2007-) is 19.7 mph (31.7 kph), and the boat gets 3.71 miles per gallon (mpg) or 1.58 kilometers per liter (kpl), giving the boat a cruising range of 184 miles (296.12 kilometers).


• Tested power is 1 x 300-hp MerCruiser 350 MAG MPI (sterndrive).