What kind of boat is this?

[Boatin'Babe]

Hey there all, new here and wanted to know what kind of boat this is.

We were told it was about a 1959-1960, it says Mariner on the hull and the serial plate, but we can't seem to get a hit on the numbers to tell what she is. She also has a cuddy cabin. Other than that, we have no idea what she is. Wanted to find out a little history and what she may have looked like new.

Here are some pic's that we took today. We got a great deal on her and are planning on putting her back into ship shape as soon as we get the wiring done.

Any ideas?

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0302-1.jpghttp://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0337.jpg
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0306.jpghttp://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0304.jpg
http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0308.jpghttp://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u314/EponaAnu/Boat/HPIM0331.jpg

[TerryKing]

Hey Babe,
Take a look at: http://www.uscgboating.org/recalls/mic_database.htm
and put the first 3 letters of the ID number in and you'll get the manufacturer's name and address.

With the whole number entered you might find out more, like there was a manufacturer's recall in 1962 for a leaking beer cooler :D

[Ike]

Try posting on Fiberglassics. Someone may recognize it. http://www.fiberglassics.com/. Another site with old glass boats is Classic Glass, part of the Antique and Classic Boat Society http://www.acbs-bslol.com/Classicglass.htm.

[Ike]

Terry, I tried that every which way and came up with nothing. If I can't do it, I doubt if anyone can, I wrote that database and was the database manager for 14 years. It may be in there somewhere but without more info it's difficult. A clear photo of that plate would be helpful. It looks like an old BIA plate but as blurry as it is I can't tell.

[Boatin'Babe]

Hey thanks for replying!:D

But the downer is, there are no letters to the hull indentification, serial number or the model number...all numbers, no letters.

We looked all over and under that boat today, even under the seats and cushions, just to be safe. The serial number is it for any type of number there is.

Any ideas on where else to look on the boat?

As far as posting on the fiberglassics, there was no luck there either, due to the same number problems.

The ol man is getting a rubbing on the plate as we speak, hopefully that will help some.

The only thing that I could get from what we could actually see is...

Mariner Boat
Serial Number 1-954
Model Number 207?

That is all I have to go on. Maybe you all can figure out what I can do with such little information. I have tried the searches, names, makers, locations and loads more.

I am planning on checking with the court house to see if the tags for boat, which were registered last in April of 99, will have a clue to the make or owner to ask what the heck she is. Keep your fingers crossed!

Thanks, Babe

[Boatin'Babe]

Ok, went out to check again and this was the only number that was there. I lifted cushions, moved what ever wasn't nailed down, and nothing, no other numbers could be found.

I did however, find on the plate, Midwest Marine, St. Paul, MN

I am assuming that this is where is was sold?

I sent pic's to the ol man's mom in Florida and she is going to see if anyone she knows can tell her about it.

I don't know if this helps anyone here, I hope it does. I tried to look up the Midwest Marine in St. Paul, but no luck, unless I need plywood..lol!

Thanks, Babe

[SmithCraft64]

On the keel under the bow or on the transom if you can view it from inside the boat. It looks like that is the original trailer. If it is look on that also for markings. It is often the case that there one in the same builder. They will be a series of numbers stamped into it usually by the tongue or hitch of the trailer. smitty

[Racemore]

Looks like an early Fleetwing.:cool: BTW Hi everybody

[Boatin'Babe]

Ok, just got off the phone with the previous owner's widow. She said that it is a 1961 Mariner. They bought it new. She is going to send me anything that she finds while cleaning out her house. So there may be help there.

She told me of her husband and her son's passing, true boatmen, they had their ashes scattered on the Missouri River. Thought that this was wonderful.

Sha also said that her and her family grew up on the boat and are glad that it is going to be enjoyed by another family.

So if this year helps is finding out more, that would be wonderful.

Thanks, Babe

[Ike]

Wel I did a search on BUC and came up with a Mariner Boat Co. that built a 20' 4" model. According to the plate this is a model 207 which probably translates to 20' 7". Could be. Anyway, still looking.

[Ike]

Here's a 1963 Mariner http://www.theclassicboathouse.com/mariner63.html and another http://www.theclassicboathouse.com/mariner1963.html

I'll keep looking for more info.

[Boatin'Babe]

Thanks so much for the pic's. I think you are right about the 207 it is marked 20_ 7, that would make sense. When I spoke to the previous owner, she didn't think it had another name like some other boats do.

I found the pic that you posted on the same site and another '63 Mariner that looks similair to the one you posted. Except it has the double wings on each side.

Thanks so much Ike for your super search!!!:)

I really appreciate all the posts. I am thinking that the '61, there were few made OR they are still being used OR they just are lost out there somewhere, floating around, having a great time...at least I hope!!! LOL!!!

I am still looking for pic's and more info, I guess I have a too much need to know gene...LOL!

Thanks, Babe

[Ike]

In my job I had to research a lot of out of business boat manufacturers. Unfortunately, now that I am retired I don't have the resources I had at work, so it takes a little longer. Boat manufacturers go in and out of business liek most of us change our socks. There a literrally thousands of out of business boat manufacturers whose boats are still out there.

[Boatin'Babe]

HOLY MOLY!!! That is crazy, I didn't realiize that they changed like that! I just figured that it was my luck! LOL

Mrs. Winn said that the company that they bought the boat from is out of business, it was located in St. Paul, MN. I don't know if this will help or not.

The company's name was Midwest Marine.

I appreciate your looking into this.

Thanks, Babe

[Ike]

Found this "Dick Tittle, president of Midwest Marine, builders of Mariner Boats and former president of the North Central Marine Association, " on this page of the Antique and Classic Boat Society web site http://www.acbs-bslol.com/Classicglass/JetStream.htm.

The paragraph this came out of is very interesting.

[Boatin'Babe]

Wow, I have come to that very page several times and just passed on by, I didn't see any pic's that matched, so being born a blonde and now a redhead...had a flashback and went on..lol!!! Should have read more about the article.

Thanks for the info, Ike, you are greatly appreciated!!! :D

Now, having more blonde coming thru or just really tired...bare with me.

So does this mean that only 200 boats were actually produced or just that first year?

And...the boat that we have isn't mentioned, or at least the several times that I read and reread it, I didn't find the description.

Plus, the model number...20 7, if this is the length, which it does measure, what/which one might it be?

This must be driving you crazy with all the questions that I have as it does me trying to find the answers!!!

I really appreciate all your help, you are awesome and wonderful!!!

Thanks, Babe

[Ike]

Probably 200 overall, but it's hard to tell.

A lot of manufacturers use the boat length in their model names. Thta's why I guessed it was 20 ft 7 inches. I have a contact who can look it up for me.

[Boatin'Babe]

That would be great, I will be awaiting anxiously!!!

Babe

[Boatin'Babe]

Just checking in, to see how the search is going. :D

See ya, Babe

[Ike]

Not well. I got a negative response from my contact. He went through the old BUC and NADA used boat guides and came up zip. Unfortunately the guy that really knows this stuff is on vacation and won't be back for a week. He go involved in boating in the late sixties and knows a lot of the history of some of these builders. but we'll have to wait and see.

Besides, where are you going to float that boat in Iowa? All those cornfields!
Just kidding. I should be passing through Iowa sometime in mid april. Don't know exactly when yet. The wife and I are going back east to visit her dad.

[Boatin'Babe]

LOL---too funny Ike. It's getting close to that any more with all the rain and the flooding that we are having!!!

I am wondering if the boat we have might have been special made???

I have not found any that the company makes that have a cuddy cabin in them. Weird, of course, we would get the oddball, she fits, we are a motley crew here...haha!

If you pass by SE Iowa, we'll give you a wave!!!

Thanks, Babe

[Boatin'Babe]

:) :):):):):)

[Ike]

Here's an e-mail I got from a friend of mine who's been around this business a long time. It doesn't help much but we tried. If this boat is 20 ft 7 then this probably doesn't fit.

Ike:

It looks to me like it's an old Glasspar. According to BUC's, between
1958 and 1960, Glasspar made a variety of Mariner models. In 1960,
Glasspar made six different 19-foot Mariner models:

19 CLUB MARINER CBNCR FBG SV OB (W/ 7'4" BEAM)
19 CLUB-MARINER FBG OB
19 MARINER RNBT FBG OB
19 MARINER RNBT FBG SV OB (W/ 7'4" BEAM)
19 SPORT-MARINER HT CR FBG OB
19 SPORT-MARINER CR FBG SV OB (W/ 7'4" BEAM)

They ceased using it as a model name after 1960, so it's possible
someone else continued with the brand under a different company name after
that.

But remember, Glasspar was a St. Paul, MN company. It would be hard to
believe that two boat companies in the St. Paul MN area would
manufacture a boat with the same model name. So I would tend to think that the
reference to Midwest Marine may have been some company that was part of
Glasspar.


Alston Colihan
Technical Writer and Editor
U.S. Coast Guard
Recreational Boating Product Assurance Division
ph: (202) 372-1072
fx: (202) 372-1933

[Boatin'Babe]

Wow, that is some great info....my dilema still, did they make a cuddy? I am beginning to wonder if she was special made?

I am starting to agree that she has to be some sort of Glasspar, that is the type of boat that kept popping up in my searches.

Oh course, this would be my luck, that there were 2 boat makers in the same area making the same boat...you know those 1 in a million/billion that stuff happens too...that is me and my family...we are the poster people for Murphy's Law...LOL!!!

I will not give up! I will find out what she is!!! We are dtill working on finding her a name. I thought that at sometime, someone would have named her, nope. I thought that if she had, had a name it would be easier to find out her registration and so on. She will have a name before we launch her.

Thank you soooo much Ike, you have truly been sent by Neptune himself to help me! I really appreciate all the help! Past this on to your firend too.

I will keep looking, I am a little bit anal about knowing things...have to find out...argh!

Blessings, Babe

[Ike]

It is entirely possible that Tittle bought some old molds from Glasspar. They obviously knew each other. I know this because Dick Tittle was one of the sources of a book on Glasspar. Any way it was (and still is ) common practice to sell old molds and have a new product that looks just like some other boat.

I was looking at the Glasspars on Fiberglassics and the hull looks a lot like the 19 foot Mariner. But the deck and cabin don't. They could have simply made a new deck mold.

Then I had this thought. Back then it was common for builders to measure boats in two different ways. Down the middle, the way it is done now, and for marketing purposes around the sheer. Obviously if you measure it around the sheer it is going to be longer. So iy may say 20' 7" but actually be much shorter.

How to measure your boat to see how long it really is.

Put the boat on the trailer and park it on level ground, a driveway or parking lot. Try to level the boat itself by raising or lowering the trailer tongue. Drop a plumb bob from the forward most point to the ground. Mark the spot with chalk. Do the same at the stern most point. Measure the distance between the two chalk marks. You can measure the maximum beam the same way. This will tell you within + or - 1/2 inch what the actual dimensions are. If it's actually 19 something then it may well be the same as the Glasspar Mariner.

By this I don't mean to imply it is a Glasspar. It was made by Dick Tittle but he may have used a Glasspar mold.

[VKRUE]

Hi all... It's an old boat so, I was wondering if it was possible that at some point in her past during a "fixer up stage" or a repaint or whatever that someone decided to modify the cabin or add to the cabin. This would make it almost impossible to match it to another photo of the same boat.

I know (very sure) that my boat has been repainted probably as many as 6 times / restored possibly once or twice and probably fixed up several times yet again since it was built in 1960.

And now it's happening again...full restoration (not original / whatever that might have been) with some minor modifications.

Just a thought...

[Boatin'Babe]

The boat is original. I spoke to the lady who owned her from day one. The guy we bought her from had done nothing with her. They were family friends. They both said the same thing, she is original. So I don't think that she has been modified. And for the paint, is original too. She said that they hadn't repainted her except for a couple of dings here and there and they guy hadn't done a thing, they just didn't need her. Even the cushions are original. They took really great care of her, kept her inside, covered when not in use on the water and so on.

Ike
I will meansure her when the weather clears, really crappy, rainy and cold here with high winds. Not really to much of a hurry to be out in it..lol!

It could be a mold situation, not sure either. The lady that I spoke to said that they bought her right off the lot at Midwest Marine, brand spankin new. Like you have said earlier, since they are out of business, it is going to be difficult.

Vic
Thanks for jumpin in here.

The thing that is bugging me the most is the "wings" on her sides. I have yet to find any in my search with 2 "wings". I have seen some with sort a kinda similair with only one. Also, there don't seem to be any with the cuddy cabin...anywhere!

I have spend hours and hours on the net, newspapers and on the phone, trying to get some idea of what she is. I even asked her!!! I have seached her up and down, every crook and cranny, everywhere. Nothing that says anything different than, Midwest Marine, 20 7, Mariner. I even wrote to the place on the Missouri River where they were members of a boat club. I haven't heard from them as of yet. I am hoping that they will answer soon. That might help.

The woman who the boat belonged to is cleaning out her house since her husband died, and she is going to send my anything on the boat. I even asked for pictures so I could see the original shape, color and such to bring her back to original. From what they have said, she is not that far, other than some age.

I am still looking, if you have any other ideas on how to find, where to find, or any other suggestions on what I can do to find out more about her, I would appreciate it!

Blessings, Babe

[Ike]

It is entirely possible that she is a one-off. Boat manufacturers are always trying out new ideas to see if they will sell. They could have used an existing hull put a new deck and cabin on it with a new layout to see if it would sell. Obviously it did, but it might have sat in the show room for along time. Who knows? I was looking at those wings on the side too. Of course wings and tail fins were hugely popular on boats in the 50's but by 61 they were for the most part gone (Thank God!) They don't appear to have any function. I think it's just styling. Maybe to make it look less like a Glasspar.

The other thing is she has a very high free board which can make a boat look clunky. Designers use all kinds of stylistic tricks to make a boat look longer and lower.

[Boatin'Babe]

Thanks Ike, some things to check out an think about. I kinda like the fins, I guess it all comes back now and then..haha!

I sent a letter to Glasspar itself with some pic's. We will see if they answer and if they know what she is. Keep your fingers crossed!

I am really hoping that the lady will send some info on her. That would help so much. I keep hoping anyway!!!

Blessings, Babe

[Boatin'Babe]

Ok, here is the update as of now!

She is a 1960 Mariner, cabin cruiser, holds 11 people, 20'x83", no hull number, made of fiberglass.

They didn't put hull numbers on the boats in the 60's in Iowa, is what they told me.

I am tyring to get the registration from the second owners, it was transfered to the 2nd owners, but not updated. I spoke to the lady who's husband owned her originally, of course she freaked out, she is in her late 80's, so I would imagine that they will also be getting a phone call from her...lol!

I hope this will narrow the seach and give some better ideas to find her maker.

Thanks for all the help and sorry for the confusion on what info I had!!!

Blessings, Babe

[Boatin'Babe]

:):):):):)

[ssnoopys]

Hi Boatin'Babe,
I am also told that it was about a 1959-1960,But I had not much detail about this so you mind sharing that on splashvision.com Or you may go to the link www.pt-boat.com/links.html.On which you may get good information about your topic.

[TerryKing]

OK, Snoopy is trying to get business over there at Splashvision.

But, this is one of the most amazing boat videos I've seen:
http://www.splashvision.com/Video/142_Boat-Explodes-with-Fireman-Aboard.html

[Boatin'Babe]

Yup! It's a 1960 Mariner.

Still not sure all of her details, I keep looking for a picture at least of the same style that she is.

I tried to use your link to get to the site and it gave me a 404? I would love to expand my search!!!!

Thanks, Babe