thunder wrote:
On Tue, 16 Aug 2005 07:59:02 -0400, Harry Krause wrote:

When I was a kid, hardly anyone we knew had a fishing/recreational boat
much larger than 20 or 21 feet. Most boats of that sort were 14' to 18',
with, by today's standards, modest horsepower outboards. The guy who took
me fishing several times a week when I was between 7 and 12 years old ran
a 14' dory with a 3 hp Evinrude and he later upgraded to a 5-1/2 hp
Johnson. I daresay he could outfish any non-pro fisherman who posts here.


LOL, you know, Harry, we are dating ourselves. When I was a kid, they
didn't have big rigs, because there weren't any big rigs. Hell, a 33 1/3
Scott A****er was a *big* motor. However, I will agree, unless you are
going offshore, a small boat will get you more fish.


The largest "modern" outboard Evinrude made for some years during the
1950s was the 25-hp BigTwin. My dad, an Evinrude dealer, had a couple of
50 hp monsters left over from the late 1940s, or maybe very early 1950s.

I remember when Evinrude jumped from 25 hp to I think 30 hp and then 33
hp and 40 hp.

Our neighbor at the beach had a beautiful 16' Lyman with a 25 hp
Evinrude. It was some boat.

Gasoline was about 19 cents a gallon in Connecticut, and you could get a
rebate on state taxes for boat use.

On Tue, 16 Aug 2005 08:31:09 -0400, Harry Krause wrote:


The largest "modern" outboard Evinrude made for some years during the
1950s was the 25-hp BigTwin. My dad, an Evinrude dealer, had a couple of
50 hp monsters left over from the late 1940s, or maybe very early 1950s.

Memory lane. I had an Elgin 7 1/2 on an old 13' rowboat, but what's
interesting, I found an old 1920s era Evinrude. 22 hp, I believe. It was
a monster, and as kids are, I got it running and put it on that same
rowboat. Fortunately, it blew up before I killed myself. Fortunate then,
unfortunate now, as I'd love to have that old engine.

thunder wrote:
On Tue, 16 Aug 2005 08:31:09 -0400, Harry Krause wrote:


The largest "modern" outboard Evinrude made for some years during the
1950s was the 25-hp BigTwin. My dad, an Evinrude dealer, had a couple of
50 hp monsters left over from the late 1940s, or maybe very early 1950s.

Memory lane. I had an Elgin 7 1/2 on an old 13' rowboat, but what's
interesting, I found an old 1920s era Evinrude. 22 hp, I believe. It was
a monster, and as kids are, I got it running and put it on that same
rowboat. Fortunately, it blew up before I killed myself. Fortunate then,
unfortunate now, as I'd love to have that old engine.


My first outboards were ones my father put together from parts salvaged
from motors he had in the shop for repair and I suppose some new parts.

My very first outboard had to be from the late 1940s. It was a 1-1/2 hp
Evinrude without a recoil starter and with an exposed fuel tank. Single
cylinder. Ran like a Swiss watch. I was about seven years old, I guess,
maybe six. Before my father would let me run the motor and boat by
myself, I had to show him I could swim 100 yards. I also had to wear a
lifejacket when I was in that boat. The one time I didn't, my mother saw
me and I was "beached" for a week.