TOPIC: Newbie and 1963 Span America

Hello all. I am new here and just wanted to share my Pawpaws old boat. It is a 1963 Span America runabout, not sure of the model yet, I am thinking either a Buccaneer or Pirate but not sure at this time. Pawpaw bought the boat new and it used to have a Mercury engine, but in 1966 it was changed to a Johnson Super Seahorse, that I actually have the owners manual for. The boat is in some old family movies that were made before I was born and they show the original engine set up. Mom said Pawpaw liked the power of the Johnson better. I like how the Johnson matches the boat better anyway. The boat was always registered each year and was last registered in 1984, which was the year Pawpaw passed away. After he passed, the boat sat in its tomb where it currently resides. It is in our boathouse which is built into the ground like a garage, and is sitting on its trailer. The boat was always covered with plastic and has been just sitting all these years waiting for me to clean her up and get her going again, which is what I plan to do in the very near future. Despite being inside and covered up, she still got kind of dirty over the years, but I cleaned a section of the starboard hull with just plain water and the dirt just comes right off. The inside is just as it has always been and I haven't even touched it, it somehow stayed clean and the seats are in great shape. The black and white Polaroid picture was taken in the summer of 1967 and shows the seats all facing forward and I plan on putting them back like that. By the way, that's me sitting in my Pawpaws lap, I wasn't quite 2 years old then. I have great memories of this boat and can't wait to clean her up. I have been trying to figure out what model it actually is, but I don't know where the data badge is located. I haven't climbed into the boat yet and thought that I would be able to see a data plate or badge from outside the boat, and I haven't seen anything about where the location of the data plate would be. I have read in some of the Span America literature here that some models had a model information badge located on the dash of the boat, but there is nothing there on this boat and doesn't look like there ever was anything there. I will find it I am sure and I hope to find an owners manual also. My grandparents always kept manuals to things so I feel certain that it will show up eventually. I hope you all like my boat, she will be a fun project over the next few months, and any advice will surely be welcome.
Happy Boating!!!

Okay, I don't see my pics so, how do you post pics on here?

Pawpaws Boat,

WELCOME ABOARD.

yours, satx

Thank you, now if I could just figure out how to post pics so I can show this boat of mine, that would be great. I was able to put pics in my profile but having problems posting them in the forum.

To post a picture you need to have the pic available on your desktop or whatever and the size should be around 1000 pixels, resize in MS paint if necessary. Go to the "browse " button at the bottom of your post, select your picture, open it and it will be placed in the browse space and then "submit". To add multiple pictures you need to read your post and click on the "edit" button on the bottom and then add another picture like above. You have to do this every time to add another picture. Cal[img]" button at the bottom of your post, select your picture, open it and it will be placed in the browse space and then "submit". To add multiple pictures you need to read your post and click on the "edit" button on the bottom and then add another picture like above. You have to do this every time to add another picture.
Cal

Looks like it just came from a time capsule. Some spit and polish should get you many years of boating.

Thank you for your help, looks like I've got the picture posting thing down now.

Time capsule for sure. She hasn't been in the water since 1983 or 1984, was last registered in 1984, but Pawpaw passed away in May of that year, so 1983 may have been the last time she was in the lake. She has been sitting on her trailer in that boathouse only a few feet away from the water all these years. When I get her cleaned up I will post some new pics.

This is the decal or logo that is on the boat. I have read that this logo was used on 1961 and 1962 boats, but my boat is registered as a 1963, so I'm a little confused about that. Also going to try to locate the data plate this weekend.

On a side note, this is my truck, was my Pawpaws as well, 1968 Dodge D100 Custom that he bought brand spanking new. This will pull the boat to shows one day.

Thanks for sharing. Your family story, your boat and Pick-up truck add up to priceless memories that can be shared for future generations thanks to your efforts. Very nice boat and great way to honor your family. I saw the original back seating (as you mentioned) facing forward (and now are back to back)...I just wonder if that change was done to help shift passenger weight forward to assist in planning off this boat since with a 40hp, gas, battery and adult back passengers, it may have been a bit of a challenge planning off. An added bonus of that would be the ease of a waterski "spotter" to watch the kids/grandkids ski signals. Some state's required water-ski spotters, while others allowed for the use of a mirror to track the skier (allowing for just the driver to be on-board...which helps with weight when towing skiers with a 40hp). All a great story and thanks for sharing...now you make me want to look for a 1965 pick-up to tow my rig...this site is an enabler

Thank you so much for the kind words. The truck is all original with only 63,000 miles on her, so all I have done is keep her cleaned and waxed. The boat will be in the same shape as the truck soon, and I will keep her clean and waxed as well. Interesting about the seat configuration. I know that the boat was used for skiing sometimes, but mostly Pawpaw used her for fishing, and cruising. There is also a mirror mounted just to the right of the steering wheel that I figured was for spotting while towing a skier. On another subject, I have always liked the top on this boat. When I was little, I always thought the top made the boat look like a sports car. The center of the top at the windshield also zips open, and the top and windshield are made by a company called Water Bonnet. Also, is 40hp enough power for this boat, or should it have had more hp?

Welcome aboard!

Great story. It is wonderful that you have this boat. KEEP IT in the family.

You can see old Span America Boat Co. and Span Boats, Inc. brochures in the Glassic Library here. The history of these companies and the people involved is nothing less than a tragic opera or soap opera. Almost everyone that touched the company had major problems. The companies were around for about ten years and they had four locations in that short time period (Ft. Dodge, IA; Red Wing, MN; Rice Lake and Cameron, WI) and numerous owners.

I have done a great deal of research into this history. The time period 1961 to 1964 they were very unstable and had several moves, receiverships, a bankruptcy, a company owner in jail, etc....

The hull decal logo you have could be from after the time period they apparently used it. If there was a stock of old decals, they may have continued to utilize them just to save money.

Andreas

Thank you for that info about the logo decal. I have indeed read the literature covering Span America boats that I found on this site and it is all very informative. This boat shall stay in my family for as long as I am on this earth that's for sure. Thanks again.
I was just thinking, even though I have always known this boat was sitting in our boathouse, I guess it could be considered something of a barn find.

Why not consider it a barn find. I read a car magazine where a retired fireman had forgotten he put away his '68 charger in the old fire engine storage house behind the fire trucks and eventually forgot he even owned it or had it...a few years back, they were pulling out the old fire trucks and there is was covered in dust. After washing, it looked almost new...VERY low mileage...he found his own car too. My 1958 Wilson boat company was bought out and became Del-Ray... and later somehow the Span America brand from Rice Lake, Wi.(Andreas knows the actual facts).
My original family boat is just a simple 14' 1956 StarCraft fishing boat with a 1955 Evinrude 15hp. When my son will eventually take his kids fishing, that will be 5 generations in that boat (and we have the picture back then of my dad and his 5 pound bass of which we have mounted in Mom's house). We also have movies, so I really liked your story. Thanks for the memory re-wind!

As to horsepower, depends what you want to do. Overall, I think you'll find the 40 does pretty well. If you want to have a full boat and waterski, may want to go higher. Beautiful boat and great story, Congrats!

Dr.Go! wrote:

My 1958 Wilson boat company was bought out and became Del-Ray... and later somehow the Span America brand from Rice Lake, Wi.(Andreas knows the actual facts).

Wilson Boat Company was bought by Ellis Hunzinger, the horseradish king, of Eau Claire. It became the "El-Rae" brand of boats made by Rice Lake Boat Company. Rice Lake Boat Company worked out a deal with Bart Hoekstra and his partner to make "Span" boats under contact about 1962-63. This was after Span American Boat Co. at Red Wing, MN was no longer in business. The molds and tooling were sold at auction and spread around. Hoekstra got ahold of a number of the molds and brought them to Rice Lake. Rice Lake Boat Company was purchased by Hoekstra and partners in 1964 and the name changed to "Span Boats, Inc."

Andreas

Thanks for that information. I had read something like that on this site. I understand that Span America Boats were made from 1958 to around the end of 1962, and weren't they made to be sold through Montgomery Ward or something like that? Wonder what that would've been like to go to a department store and buy a boat.

@whatsleft, I plan on just using the boat for putting around the lake, probably not pulling too many skiers but you never know. I haven't checked out the status of the engine yet, but hope it will be fine and not frozen up, as it hasn't been cranked up in so many years. If it does have some issues, I will have to fix it because I don't want to change it.

Thanks Andreas - I knew you had the facts! There are plenty of people (great mechanics/great people) who will help insure you can keep that original motor going with the best advice/help.
I DO remember going into Wards and Sears as a kid watching as motors and boats came and went. Though I was little, I looked at every detail...proof that Dad and Grandpa already had me hooked with boating. Your family story is still growing for future generations. I commend your efforts to keep this family tradition going! Good luck with getting it going!

Thank you, I will keep that in mind when I start getting into the engine.

Found this picture in the owners manual for the motor and thought it was great. I love the facial expressions.

Span America Boat Co. and Fort Dodge Boat Co. (both located at Fort Dodge, Iowa - side by side actually) combined forces to make boats for Montgomery Ward for a short time period. The boats were badged as Montgomery Ward's SEA KING brand. Both boat companies also made their own boats during that same time period.

Andreas

This is the badge that is on the aft end of my boats motor, I am assuming the "electric" is referring to electric start? I do have the manual so I will have to check it out.

Sorry late to this thread. Welcome aboard and great story about the boat. Excellent tow vehicle by the way, very cool. Plenty of expertise on this site when needed.

Bob

Thanks everyone for the kind welcome. When I start to get into this boat I am sure I will be asking lots of questions. I plan on starting the cleaning part in the next couple of weekends, Easter weekend to be exact. Kind of fitting I guess to start this boat's "resurrection" on that weekend. Updates will follow.

Marty - I am no restoration expert, so please ask others or other please comment on what I will say next. I bought a 50 year old boat that I felt was in good shape, but the finish was very hazy yet solid(not chalky or flakey). Experts know how to wet sand/polish/buff with all of the right tools, talent, correct products and skill. I am just a regular guy with limited talent, so I tried a product that I had gotten a sample of from a big sports show. It was Flitz. I only used a dishwashing sponge that had a scrubber back side that was NOT like steel wool...more like I believe a scotch bright or pot scrubber. I did the "wax on - wax off" by hand with not crazy pressure and only "over and back" coverage. It looked great to me...from haze to shine. I will try to attach a picture. If your boat is pretty nice, yet may be just a bit "weak" on original color, maybe this product will work for you. Others, please give advice if anyone has tried this, or if you have better advice for Marty.

Hey thanks so much for that. The first thing I will do is clean the boat with plain water and go from there. I don't want to put anything on the old girl that would damage the fiberglass and I don't have any experience in boat cleaning or restoration for that matter, so any and all advice is more than welcome. Thanks again.

Stop by a local auto parts store or Wal-Mart auto dept. There are several brands of POLISHING compounds, not wax. If the finish is just dull and hazy this might be all you need. Read the directions while your at the store. You could get away with just hand application or maybe get a cheap buffer from Harbor Freight. Turtle Wax makes a good one, Mothers is very good and so is Meguires. A little elbow grease and a final wax job and you might be good to go.

I agree with Cal. seems like the mildest approaches first and work your way only as far as needed to get that shine back so you can save as much of the original material as possible.
In my case, the PO had already used rubbing compound and buffer in a few spots (one spot was in the area of the picture I posted). I saw a live demonstration of that Flitz and also felt it between my fingers and I could not even feel abrasives. I took the tiny sample and then went to the web-site and also watched youtube videos of it being demonstrated. Since my boat had already had a few of these patchy spots, I had to try something and I was afraid of the buffers and compounds. Since I had no practice, I decided to try a spot next to where it was "buffed" with compound. I truly could not believe that the Flitz shined up better than the buffed area (keep in mind that perhaps the previous owner may also not have had the right skills to do that buffing part right). So since mine did not look as nice as yours, I decided to go forward for my particular condition and it worked. I had also use those 3M kits on my plastic headlights and the 3 or 4 stages worked well (but took 20 minutes with a drill)...I tried the flitz by hand and in minutes it did the same and never felt abrasive like the first few stages of 3M sanding grit - again, I was pretty surprised. Youtube has a video of that too. In your case, I would follow 63Sabre (Cal's) advice. Can't wait to see pictures of yours finished. I will get mine out and do most of it before a May 20th show. I may save some to do at the show just so people can see it in action.

Really good advice and I am very grateful. Thankfully, this boat has, since day one, been stored in the boathouse, which is like a dark cool cave. Can't wait to get started and will definitely post pics of the progress.

I have tried to email you twice now so do check for it. I have the largest collection of span boats and can help you id your model. I would be willing to bet its either a Rebel or Nomad. I am leaning to Rebel because of the seating. I have a vintage boat restoration business and can guide you on what materials to buy and how to get it polished to its glory again. Here is a picture of my span buccaneer after it was polished. Also the logo used on your boat was used in 1961 and 62 and I have those decals in stock. I make all the span decals except for the 1958 model. The first decal used on span boats in 63 was this one and was replaced with this one later in 63-64
To ID your boat you will find a tag in the back like this one. This tag is from a Pirate and is decoded like this
P=Pirate
463= 4th Month 1963
R= Rice Lake plant
145= 145th boat built in 63
If your boat tag starts with a N its a Nomad and if it starts with a R its a Rebel, P for Pirate, B for Buccaneer exc.
I will say that if its a rebel they are rare to find and the tan color was dropped in 63 to more desirable colors like Red, Butter Scotch, Black, Turquoise. in 65 they had a really cool royal blue too. I do own a 1961 VIP and the only one that has ever surfaced that is the same tan color. Now another thing about 63 boats is that they were made with the rubber rub rail and in 61 and 62 had a aluminum one. But 62 was a weird year for span america with them being made in Redwing MN so the rub rail could have changed then too. Because they also made Mariner boats in the same factory and they had the same rub rail. I do know for a fact that after the boat boys bought the molds in 63 Bart designed the new logo on a bar napkin lol Ya thats straight from his son. It was no secret that the Boat boys, Bart and Chet drank a bit.
This Pirate was made in 62 at red wing because that is when the pirate was a 14ft and in 63 they made the boat a foot longer and rated it for 100hp. I have a 64 pirate with a 62 100hp merc and it flies LOL. We call her the Black Pearl Arrrrrrrrr.
Last thing I am going to add here is this ID tag from a 1966 Buccaneer, wasnt crazy about the date code 6 month of 66 for that reason I never put it in the water. Plus shortly after the guy sold it to me he had a stroke and died. Bad gewgew

Last thing I am going to add here is that a few years ago Andreas and I went on a quest to find out everything we could about this company because it was tied to several others, or should I say people from it were, so in that time line and was of interest to us both. Well we both dug into it deep and found more than we bargained for. I have to commend him on being the kind of guy that digs up everything. What we found and agree on is that this 10 year run of this company ended up in everyone going broke, Its a true rages to riches to rags story worthy of a movie. Spies, Factorys burning to the ground, Opra singers, Mob money, People getting shot and everyone that stayed with it went broke, or was cursed in some fashion, plus much more. I was going to make these boats again and was about to go into production in 2008 but something told me not too. I am so glad I pulled back I don't think I would be alive today. I was working with the son of one of the owners from cameron wi. In talking with him about doing all this he was excited to revive the company again and had dreamed about it for years. About a year later after our first talk I find out he was in his span boat on a lake in texas when his motor dies for no reason and he is sucked though a DAM. When I saw him on opra I about crapped and he was on the news all over the country and was referred to Dam Lucky How he survived the 60ft drop is a mystery as he crawled from the water a 1/4 mild down stream stripped of his clothes and cut up real bad. As we got closer to producing the boats in 08 bad things kept happening to him. Home destroyed in a storm, Lost his job, lost his home. My health took a dive as well and I got super sick with heart problems, Liver and kidneys acting up, Even mayo clinic was baffled. once I abandoned the idea of producing the boats I got better. SO is the company cursed, maybe but I don't believe in all that stuff but the facts are what they are. Oh and for those that think ya right. go search Dam Lucky in Austin Texas and watch the video of Dirk going though the dam.
I still own 22 spans and love the boats. I have a respect for them more than most. Evil dam things.
Bob
Watch this!
www.cbsnews.com/news/lucky-to-be-alive-tells-his-tale/

Wow, Bob, thank you, that's a lot of information to take in for sure. Glad that you have that collection and thanks for telling me about the tag. I won't be able to mess around with the boat until next weekend, have to work this weekend or else I would look for that tag tomorrow. I checked my email, but I didn't see anything, should be This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. oh and my boat does have the rubber rub rail also. The color is like a salmon color, sorta in between tan and pink. I am really interested in the story of this company, sounds like it really could be a movie for sure. Very errily interesting to say the least. Cannot wait to get down to our cabin and try to ID the boat, thank you again for your help. I will definitely let everyone know what model my boat is. Hope everyone has a good weekend with their classic boats, I will be sanding on kia bodies preparing them for paint. Have a good one!!!!

Wow to the history lesson and wow to that news video story. I guess we both should restore our rare boats. After boating accident video story, perhaps I should consider a couple of things...like not boating near the dam (though many of our dammed up rivers have launches just above the dam)...the other is maybe consider twin engines and make sure they still have "in-hood" pull starts as well as electric start (2 batteries and 2 gas tanks...two anchors...you get the idea). Yikes, what a story and SO GLAD they got out...and what a crazy boat builder history.

Well, with Bob's help, we have determined that my boat is not from 1963, but is from 1962. Thanks Bob!!!

Well, on Easter Sunday I washed the boat. All I have done so far is wash her once and my sister helped by cleaning the rub rail with a magic eraser. I haven't cleaned the seats or the top yet, and haven't had time to wax her. I think she cleaned up rather nicely. She does have a bit of crazing but I guess that is to be expected from a 50 year old boat. Oh, and she is a 1962 Span America Nomad, shout out to Bob for helping me determine the year and model. Hope you all enjoy the pictures, I have many of them as you will see, Lol.
Before:

After:

Very nice results. Your family should be very proud you are giving this boat TLC. Hope you enjoy a fun and safe summer in it!

Thank you. I was glad that the moldy dirt just washed right off really easily. I plan to wash her again, bathe her actually, and then follow up with a few coats of wax and a light buffing. Probably detail/polish all the bright parts with some "nevrdull" and keep her wiped off with a diaper, Lol. I am going to make sure she is never neglected. Oh and of course I will need to take a look at what I need to do to get her running again also. It's a process, but headed in the right direction.

You have her looking great. Anything done on the soft top yet? They usually get pretty stiff and crackly. I found that baby oil, any generic brand will work. Rub it in generously, let it soak a few days and repeat. It will soften it up and smell nice too. Helps if you do it on a sunny day.

I have not cleaned the top yet. It is actually soft and in really nice shape. The top has always been rolled up and stored on the frame in front of the windshield, I moved it to the rear just to take photos. I have noticed that it is really snug. I think it has shrunk a little because when I put it up and snap it all down on the windshield, when I try to attach the rear straps, it is way too snug and I can only get one side strapped down. Both straps are in perfect shape and are adjusted as long as can be. I don't ever try to force it because I don't want to break anything. In the pictures with the top up, I wrapped the straps around the framework so they wouldn't be hanging down and loose. I haven't seen a way to maybe lower the frame, so I need to figure out how to stretch the top a bit so that it can be properly strapped down. The top and windshield both have the name "Water Bonnet" on them as well as the snaps also. Other than the snug issue and one stain in the front, it's in good shape. It also has a section in the middle at the windshield that can be opened up. Pretty neat top.

Came out awesome! It really depends on what your top is made out of. My '60 top was cotton with "duck back" water proofer all over it. Not sure if grandpa made it himself or had it made.

Bob