TOPIC: Anyone know a Taft Bumblebee??

I got this at a garage sale and would like to find info on it,where would a fuel tank go? any value? I cant find anything about it..Its a single seater about 8 foot by 4 foot, has a "tunnel hull" design..

trying to get pic..

another

Any motor up to 20hp max. The tank sits in that little well in fromt of motor or got a motor with a tank on it. Seen these raced in Canada a few yrs back. They ran 20hp max on them and they really moved with that size motor. Haven't seen one of them in years. cool find. have fun with it.

Taft Marine Woodcraft was a maker of kit boats in Minneapolis, MN at 636 - 39th Avenue NE.

Nothing called "Bumble Bee" in the 1957 brochure but there is a three point hydroplane with this name in the 1962 brochure. Looks like your typical small plywood hydro. Three prices: $3.00 for plans only; $64.00 for wood pieces cut to shape, no finish no drilling; $99.00 for pieces cut to shape, painted and pre-drilled.

There waere 12 pre-cut pieces to assemble.

Andreas

It seems to me I posted a link to an old Popular mechanics mag with little boats someone was looking for and that one may have been in there. It has been maybe six months ago.

Hope you have good knees/joints.As noted by Skip the tank if not on the motor goes in the recessed area in front of the transom.This boat is driven in the kneeling position.You have the steering wheel but no hardware.That is dependent on what you motor it with.Some people will set it up with a bar on the rear of the motor and the cables going directly to the bar,eliminating springs and two pulleys this being more of a direct hookup,which results in very responsive steering.A dead mans throttle is probably a good idea if you are using the wheel.If you are using the tiller method,the wheel will confuse you and should be locked into a fixed position,so you have something to hang onto.Looks like fun on a calm day.

Its fiberglass, I dont think its a kit, on each side of the seating area there is a non slip area molded in the fiberglass that is where the Taft bumble bee and a pic of a bee is molded in. I have an old boating mag with some boats racing that look just like it but they say nothing about them. Thanks to all for the replys....

Gonna put this on Craigs list, any idea of a value??

It would be really hard to put a value on the boat. I know that it will sell fast as there are allways people looking for them little one so they can try and hang the biggest motor they can find on it. Just put it in at what ever you feel comfortable with and leave yourself a little wiggle room as you will get alot of lowballers on that one. Where are you at by the way? Skip.

Northern Minnesota

Taft Bumblebee.
Yes, I had one of these when I was a kid. It was built in the seventies as a complete boat. I just got a call this morning from Gary who sold me the boat new in about 1975. He had breakfast with Bill Taft the son of the original desinger and he's looking for an original Bumblebee to make another mold from since the originals where stolen out of a storage facility in Mound Mn. I'm sure he would be interested in purchasing it or using it to make a mold from.
Kirk
wk 952-943-1519
Mound MN