Have You Looked In Your Drawers Lately?
There is a 12 footer in your drawers
It’s been a while since we messed around in someones drawers. And thanks to Bob Kays for fishing around in his. Look what he found? A Kit Boat! Not the biggest one out there. But as Bob likes to say, it’s not the size of the brouchure it’s what you do with it. Like send it to Woody Boater and show it off.
Dang, Bob, it’s growing
Good grief Bob!
All kidding aside, these are cool, and didnt know these kit boats came in all these cool styles and sizes
Dang! I so need one of these for Sweet Pea. Love the logo on the bow
A nice letter sent by Harry Mercier
And price list. By the way in today’s numbers $122.90 is $1,201.11
A huge thanks to Bob “Have I Got A Calendar For You” Kays for sending us in the stuff he found in his drawers.
Thanks Bob, u da man!
hmmmm….lets see…13 socks, most of which don’t match, T-shirts covered in varnish and paint stains, cargo shorts to match…a belt that I’m hoping will fit again someday…an old jack-knife…and a silver dollar that was my dad’s. Yup..its all there!
Nice collection Bob. I bet that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Matt: Would you like to see what is in my drawers?
(image may be subject to copyright)
I bought a prewar and a postwar 25′ sportsman and a prewar 22′ sportsman out of New Jersey and Michigan. WhenI got the hull cards all 3 were sold new by GEO. Mercier.
Jim G….saw your name in an old post. did you have a CC centerconsole 22?
does it have wood stringers, or is it glass?
ty
Craig
Is that young Troy in the header?
My desk drawer.
And here I thought that having a coffee cup glued to a human’s hand only started after Starbucks popped up onto the scene….and yet, your header photo clearly shows Huck Finn and his darlin sportin cups-o-Java…..
Also, a reason I don’t always buy that “in today’s dollars versus back then” stuff, is that there is nowhere in the USA that you can purchase a nice Pram kit boat for a measly $1200.
Actually, if you look around you can find a used pram on the side of the road or in the classifieds for under $2,000.
Unlike N.C. where they have mofre water than they know what to do with our lake is so dry you can’t put a boat in it…So I’ve got a 1995 OMC Ski boat with 95 hp Johnson you an have for a mere $4,000
$118.00 is a good deal for the boat, but $4.90 slow speed shipping is a rip-off! They should have free two day shipping like Amazon Prime.
That’s 42.10 in today’s dollars which is a great deal.
Yup. mine isnt in a draw i use it.
… filled up all my drawers with other ‘junk’ — had to start hangin’ the bigger ‘stuff’! Where does it go from here???????
10′ CC Racing Pram/Duck Boat (real early ’50’s kit)
I read that letter sent to a prospect and was impressed with the “wording” and sentence structure. We sure lost the art of proper grammar in the past 60 years or so.
It was to the point, simple and a short sales pitch.
I copied it and will try to write some sales letters, I mean “Emails”, another lost communication form (letters), using some of these sentences.
Thanks, Matt and Mr. Keys for this look back into my childhood days…
I still have my original order form for my 10ft racing pram and
full kit catalog (1952)
Cost $84.00 plus $4.00 freight shipped to Mass
Hardware kit was $7.90 and paint kit package was $11.40
These costs are from March 1952
Thanks for sharing Mr. Kays. The 8 foot pram (we also had the sailing kit) was my first boat. I learned how to row and sail on it, and once I could pull start the 2 hp Evinrude I was on my way. Dad had the 21 sportsman. I learned how to water ski behind it and caught my first fish on that boat. They are both still sitting in the backyard on Long Island. They’ve seen better days but maybe someday…
The kit boats are such a cool piece of 1950’s/1960’s history! I love the short Chris Craft film of the father and son ordering and assembling the 14′ kit boat.
I had (and still have) a 17′ Kit Boat “Speedboat” inboard that I bought when my daughter was 12 and learning to drive a boat. I figured painted plywood was easier to fix than varnished mahogany. I paid $1000.00 with a trailer,a running model B,cover and decent upholstery.Refinished it and replaced the mish-mash of hardware with Chris Craft stuff from inventory We used it for 10-12 years. Best boat buy I’ve ever made. It’s that same hull as the 17′ Cavalier except the kit boat has planked decks instead of plywood. If gas prices ever go through the roof, I’ll fix the bottom and run it again.
It’s fun to remember when there were kits for things and people would build them. I also liked electronics kits, but Heathkit stopped making their kits about 1990. Now kids and adults just play with their hand-held phone/device rather than actually building anything.
At least there is classic boating!
I partially take my comment on Heathkit back. A spin-off off the old company is back making a handful of kits again.