Ramblings about river jon boats

[jdmidwest]

The vintage 73 9.5 Johnson returned to running form today. I rebuilt the carb on Friday and took it out this morning and it run like a champ. The float was all soaked up and sunk and that was my prob. I have a nice old boat now from the days of my youth.

[taxidermist]

I bought a 22 f river jon and trailer from a friend over at Hardy. I have ran a 25hp 4 stroke Yamaha, the hp is right but he 4 stroke is a bit heavy. with three people I can balance the 25 out for shallow water, but with two people the stearn is a bit deep for my liking. I am going to build a taller transom for the 35hp.

Current motor is a electric start 110 merc, 9.8 hp, the motor being older may have 7hp at the prop. It works well with two people but three is a bit slow.

This boat is so long that it will float over most logs or rocks that are just an inch or so under the surface.

I would maybe like to trade the 25hp 2002 to a 2000 or later 15hp might be interested in trading for a waterjet with electric start.

I currently have the 25 in the shop for lower unit, repair and skeg gaurd build. Goota love waiting for parts!!

[Crippled Caddis]

brownieman wrote:

<had a 22 ft. 32 inch wide square stern river jon...sold it bent in half for scrap...those were the days>

That implies it was a aluminum boat. I can't recall ever seeing a metal river jon that long. Do you recall who made it?

<had several different motors all the way down to a 3 horse>

Musta been one of the Johnnyrude 'Lighttwins'. I've had one for over 20 years that is my go to motor for dependability. One of the sweetest running fishing motors ever built. Few could match it for trolling. And it just sips gas.

[brownieman]

brownieman wrote:

<had a 22 ft. 32 inch wide square stern river jon...sold it bent in half for scrap...those were the days>

That implies it was a aluminum boat. I can't recall ever seeing a metal river jon that long. Do you recall who made it?

<had several different motors all the way down to a 3 horse>

Musta been one of the Johnnyrude 'Lighttwins'. I've had one for over 20 years that is my go to motor for dependability. One of the sweetest running fishing motors ever built. Few could match it for trolling. And it just sips gas.

CC Yes it was aluminum...inside wooden transom...don't recall the maker.

My father and I still have all the motors...if memory serves me right the little 3 horse has no nuetral or reverse...you pull the cord and your off...direct drive I reckon. Sweet little motor, idles down so slow and takes little gas as you said.

The boat had sat for 10 yrs. or so and I had just finished restoring it and the trailer from top to bottom. Got to use it twice before it was smashed by the kids running from the law. I have pictures of the boat after the damage...makes me sick to look at them...that boat was like a part of me...memories are all I have now.

When we bought the boat the trailer was too short for the boat...going over low spots had damaged the bottom of the rear of the boat.

We had the toungue of the trailer extended 4 ft. and 1/4 inch steel welded to the underside of the trailer vertically...we did this so you could walk the toungue out to the boat with out bending the toungue and avoid getting wet...trailer was just too long and flemsy but at least the boat didn't hang 4 ft off the back of the trailer which is why the bottom of the boat had been damaged.

Years back when I was able I once took 4 friends and myself on a float down the North Fork of the White.

I had my 1956 10 horse Johnson, 5 men and all our tackle and we put in at Kellys Shoals...just below Rainbow Springs and floated to Patrick bridge. There were several bridges we had to carry the boat around.

Just below Blair bridge was very tough water, lots of boulders...I could see only i spot to try to run it and there was a fisherman standing right in it, I tried my best to be curteous and move over a little and he would not budge an inch...in the proccess I felt the boat drag over something...moments later the friend in front of me turned to me and said there was a hole on the boat. It was a hole alright...must have hit some old rebar in a chunk if concrete under the surface or something...it ripped a tear thru the bottom of the boat about 8 to 10 inches long and bent the front of the back bench seat in the boat...couldn't believe it and we were taking on water fast. We pulled over and I always carried an old body hammer in the boat. We used some tin cans and that body hammer and repaired the boat as good as we could on the river bank and made it to Patrick bridge bailing out water all the rest of the way.

Needless to say I did not get to fish much that trip and the only spot we walked the boat around besides the bridges was the falls...all I did the whole trip was prop my feet against the seat in front of me and with a 6 ft. lond sasafras paddle with a wide blade on it which I made for that boat work my but off the whole day. The next day...well...I was mighty sore, lol.

Hows this for the ramblings of a jon boat man? sorry for the lengthy post

[Crippled Caddis]

brownieman wrote:

<Hows this for the ramblings of a jon boat man? >

Great! I'd much rather read true stories like that than fiction and it's the sort of thing I can well relate to also. Great memories make great stories.

<My father and I still have all the motors...if memory serves me right the little 3 horse has no nuetral or reverse...you pull the cord and your off...direct drive I reckon. Sweet little motor, idles down so slow and takes little gas as you said.>

Yep----that's the one! Mine is a '68 model, the first year that they came equipped to use only a remote tank and the last year before they boosted them to 4 hp IIRC. If you're using one as a back-up to a big motor or as a troller the remote tank is definitely the hot set-up as you can just unplug the fuel line from the big motor and plug it into the little one, but if you're using it as primary power on a riverboat then the earlier models (from '51 up) with the built-in tank are more convenient IMO. One of these days before I get too old maybe I'll stumble across one still in good enough shape to be reviveable.

I'm working on 2 old Johnsons at the moment that were maybe even better for slow trolling that the Lighttwin. One is a 1948 5 horse direct drive model TD-20 and the other is the same thing except a 1950 TN-26 model that had the nuetral/forward clutch but the same powerhead (a great one for running trotlines!). The secret to their slow-running and utter dependability that made them the hands-down favorite of boat rental docks was the dual carburetion system that allowed them to idle down so low and run all day without fouling plugs even with the 16/1 gas/oil mixes of the era. One in good shape will run so slow (and restart at the same setting!) that it sounds like it should die before the next stroke. In parts of the country where trolling was a big deal (as it used to be even here in the early days of the big reservoirs) the 5 horse Johnsons were king, both for private owners and boat liveries. If you are of a technical bent the carburetion sustem is sorta facinating. At start and low speeds it runs entirely off of fuel/air mix thru a 'mixing valve' consisting of nothing more than a venturi about a quarter inch ID and a needle valve. (Exactly like a model airplane engine 'carburetor' and little if any bigger!) Air velocity through that tiny venturi had sufficient velocity to properly atomize the fuel without feeding the engine wet gulps of inproperly atomized mix that would wet plugs as in the case of other makes with a regular carburetor operating off of a butterfly that merely restricted a big throat. The Johnsons would run from a disturbingly low idle all the way to mid-range through that tiny venturi before the standard carb assumed the duty from mid to high speed. They will even run up to about half speed with the fuel shut off completely to the carb. One of the delightful side-effects of the fuel system was that they merely sipped fuel since they were getting it mixed right, a not inconsiderable benefit to liveries and impecunious fishermen.

<I have pictures of the boat after the damage...makes me sick to look at them...that boat was like a part of me...memories are all I have now.>

But at least you have some great memories! So much better than if you'd never had it (and used it!) at all. Think of all the people who never did much of anything-----what the heck do they have to reminisce about so fondly? No matter their bank balance they are destitute of accrued interest in their 'memory savings account' while you are as rich as Midas in that respect.

<sorry for the lengthy post>

Er-----surely you can't think I would fault you for it! ;o) CC

[brownieman]

CC, thanks for the nice words and thoughts

you remind me of my father...he's knows all about the old motors...when I was younger I can always remember him having one in a 55 gallon drum tinkering with it...he is a perfectionist and 82 now and It's hard to see him lose that " edge" ya know.

We have a 19 ' square stern canoe now which he built a small jack on...the motor you speak of is his favorite...bar none, speaks as highly as you of it.

My grandfather was a judge in Larwence Co. in Mo. and ran a bait shop out of his basement.

He tied flies, made jigs and poppers and patented 1 Mo. fishing plug. Fond memories from my childhood.

" The Judges Bait Shop" it was called...he gave it up after a few years...said it was "interfering with his fishing", lol. He distributed cards of jigs around to the local lakes...can remember my father painting the plugs and when I was small dipping jig heads.

The big ole cement bait tank was my favorite, crawdads and minnows...remember it like it was yesterday...I always looked forward to going to his house.

Have a feeling if anyone would have one, you would...his plug "The Judges Jawbreaker" ( patented in 1956)...was noted to be the best walleye plug there was...came in a plastic oblong case with an insert that read "If the fish are hungry they'll bite it, if not, They'll fight it". There were about 1000 sold...probably few left around. We still have some of his original jig dispay cards and old equipment.

They are listed in Dean Murphys book of patented Mo. fishing tackle...I know where this book can be purchased if it would interest you...kinda think it would, lol.

Would you my friend happen to own one of the few " Judges Jawbreakers" that still exists away in an old tackle box ? If not, I would try...I said try to send you a picture of one...being the self proclaimed computer moron I am.

Thanks for the information about the motors, I find it very interesting...the 10 horse Johnson I ran for years was my grandfathers...it complimented the old long jon nicely.

If and when my father decides to let go of some of these motors would you like to know...as with you, they all purr like a kitten...reckon they are probably kinda rare these days.

Again, thanks for the neat thoughts and words...I know I would enjoy talking with you sometime.

Take care my friend...can tell you a unique individual.

[Crippled Caddis]

jd wrote:

<The vintage 73 9.5 Johnson returned to running form today. I rebuilt the carb on Friday and took it out this morning and it run like a champ. The float was all soaked up and sunk and that was my prob. I have a nice old boat now from the days of my youth.>

Darn jd, I missed your post while BSing with brownieman. ;o)

Congratulations on getting that old warrior running right! You've got a great rig that should provide many, many hours of pleasure. The truth of the matter is that very few outboards indeed are ever truly 'worn out'. They are simply taken for granted until time exerts its' toll and are then consigned to a forgotten corner of garage or barn. Often, down the road a bit, they are sold for scrap or sent to the landfill when only a few hours and dollars would revive them to provide a motive source for adventure. CC

brownieman:

PM sent. CC

[Crippled Caddis]

brownieman,

Nope---no 'Judge's Jawbreakers', but I can wish.

And yes---I'd like to know should your Dad decide to surrender his Lighttwin, but it'd hafta be soon as I'm not getting any younger either.

Look for a PM in your message box. CC

[jdmidwest]

Just a little update on the vintage boat purchase. It was a little rough when I purchased it. The titles stated everything was made in 1974. A model number on the Johnson 9.5 revealed it was actually a 1964, a pure antique. With a little work and a few still readily available parts, the motor is running and only needs a little final tuning on the carb. I just waxed her down tonight while grilling a few burgers, got rid of the oxidized paint and brought out the "cream puff" finish on the old johnson. Armoralled the plastic emblems to bring out the color in the emblems.

I replaced the tires and repacked the bearings. Made a mount for the spare tire. Went over both trolling motors and repainted and put new props on them. Changed out the rope on the winch and the anchor. Added a few cleats. Oiled up and greased every fitting. Replaced the fuel lines and fittings. Sanded and painted the fenders. Bought a service manual off Ebay that helped alot. Also found some good info from a outdoor book "Care and Repair of Outdoor Equip" by Monte Burch that I purchased a few years ago on outboards.

As you can tell in my post last week, my fishing buddy approves. I still need to add some electronics, a bilge pump, aerator, and build a pop up duck blind for it. But that is what a project boat is for.