Scat Craft

Logo and additional history needed. Please contact us to edit or contribute to this page.

Scat Craft Boats

Scat-Craft Marine, Inc.

2300 McCoy Rd

Orlando, Florida

Scat Craft Boats is first known from July 27, 1960 ad in the Ocala Star-Banner. This was a classified ad by Wyatt Marine Center of 1922 Silver Springs Blvd. for a 16 ft. Scat Craft with all hardware and trailer for $395. On May 28, 1961, the Lakeland Ledger ran a classified ad for a $125 14 ft. Scat Craft for sale by the Lakeland Marine Supply Company at Auburndale Rd at East Underpass.

Bill Critchfield's name appears in a 1970 Scat-Craft Marine, Inc. ad in the July 30, 1970 issue of St. Petersburg Independent. His association with Scat-Craft Marine of Orlando is not quite clear since Critchfield Marine was based in Avon Park.

Bill Critchfield was a boat racer and builder based in Florida. His company, Critchfield Marine offered Sabre Boats according to a Feb. 24, 1967 article in the St. Petersburg Times. The dealer for Sabre boats in the St. Petersburg area was Van Bros Chris Craft Inc. It is unclear when Critchfield began manufacturing boats but a Critchfield Marine runabout appeared in a Mercury Outboard Test in 1958 which listed Critchfield Marine in Orlando, Florida.

Critchfield Marine was looking to expand into the Midwest market by advertising for salesmen in the Nov. 17, 1968 issue of the Chicago Tribune. In this ad, Critchfield Marine boasted of a new 110,000 sq ft. plant producing the "winning HOTSWIFTSLEEK CRITCHFIELD IDEA LINE" and the address listed was Municipal Airport, Avon Park, Florida. Critchfield Marine was around at least as early as 1965 when it was mentioned that year in a MerCruiser sterndrive ad in Yachting Magazine Vol. 118.

According to a Sept. 20, 1973 article in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, North American Products Corp. of Sarasota, Florida dropped its entire line of boats to instead produce five models from Critchfield Marine molds under their Lightning Boats label. William P. Farmer, president of North American, had bought some of the Critchfield molds from Wellcraft Marine Corp., also of Sarasota. Wellcraft had bought Critchfield Marine's property, some tooling and plant equipment in July 1973.

Scat Craft Boats in Use

Back to Main Page