Brian,

I don't own a VV but over the years I've heard very few complaints when it came to the pontoons. They are durable and will last a long time if cared for, easy to patch if you put a hook them, they are well balanced and preform well with a full livewell. The only complaints I have heard are if you do happen to run over your kick boat with your truck and break off the nose cone for instance, the customer service lags in response time.

For your situation I suggest keeping the pontoons and purchasing a frame from a different brand. Mitch has a trout unlimited frame on his VV pontoons and it works well. I have a south fork frame on my fish cat pontoons(with 4 straps you can McGyver any 2 brands together). Do some research and choose a frame that is light, has good balance, and is easy to customize. I recommend bucks bags or out cast frames and stay away from water skeeter(heavy) as well as creek company(poor balance when rowing).