Arkansas Traveler

[PAPAGREGG]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

1954 sp-14 with a 1956 Evinrude Big Twin 30.Been in family since 1958.Still take it to lake.

 

[bigdaddypt]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

My grandfather's 1964 Arkansas Traveler Atlas. 16' with a 1982 Mercury 50hp. He hadn't ran it since 2000 because of age and health. He passed away this past January and asked me to get it running again so the family could enjoy it. He would take the motor off it each year due to two motors getting stolen off his boats, including the original Evinrude that was on this boat.

I just finished getting the motor put on and everything back together. New fuel line, tank, and connectors. The thing started right up and runs like a champ!

 

[sushidick]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

i have what i believe is a 17 or 18 ft. saturn adventurer, 1964 at least that's what the old boy said [about 90yrs old when he sold it to me in 2009] i have put in a new floor , recovered all the seats , rebuilt the 1964 kiekaufer 100 hp mercury with all brand new '62- '67 parts , still looking for a drive shaft for the '60 or '61 kiekaufer 6 hp kicker. still finishing the interior,and detailing the exterior[faded of course]. i love this boat! the dashboard looks like a '62 chevy.
does anyone know anything about these boats?
can't find anything on the internet.
i originally bought it as a family boat , but the wife left me before it was finished.
i'm also wondering if anyone would be interested in this boat, i am a fishing guide ,and have other boats for work.
mainly, i would appreciate any info anyone has on this beauty.no matter what lake i'm on, everybody looks

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

I have an old '59-'60 AT DUT-14 (I think). It started life as a little 14" semi-V hull, aluminum runabout/ski boat, but it was just a hull when I got it. I've since converted it to sort of a DIY tiller skiff. I love it. It's tough, has good lines and has held up very well. There are quite a few AT owners here in the forums and on the water. Now that you have one, you'll start to notice them. Congrats on the new toy. Any pics?

My boat:

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[kipmic]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

My grandfather's 1964 Arkansas Traveler Atlas. 16' with a 1982 Mercury 50hp. He hadn't ran it since 2000 because of age and health. He passed away this past January and asked me to get it running again so the family could enjoy it. He would take the motor off it each year due to two motors getting stolen off his boats, including the original Evinrude that was on this boat.

I just finished getting the motor put on and everything back together. New fuel line, tank, and connectors. The thing started right up and runs like a champ!

where can a person find out any information on this perticulare boat?

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

1954 sp-14 with a 1956 Evinrude Big Twin 30.Been in family since 1958.Still take it to lake.View attachment 160221View attachment 160223

I just bought an Arkansas Travler SP 14 but it does not look like yours. Has yours been modified or is mine missing the windshield and the cover on the bow?

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Hi jwilkey84. Glad there's another AT owner here in the forums. There seem to be quite a few cropping up lately. AT were made in Arkansas (duh) from the mid 50s-70s. The made both aluminum and fiberglass models ranging from simple fishing boats to runabout/skiboats. I have a '59 DUT-14 which started off life as an aluminum ski boat, but I've since converted it to a tiller drive, flats skiff. Nothing fancy, but she's lots of fun and will hit +/- 20mph with my trusty old '66 20 hp Johnson, 2-stroke. Here is a handy link on the history of the company and a few pics.

Arkansas traveler - Classic Boat Library

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[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

1954 sp-14 with a 1956 Evinrude Big Twin 30.Been in family since 1958.Still take it to lake.View attachment 160221View attachment 160223

Why does my SP 14 not look like yours? I just got this one and am in the middle of some slight improvements. Hopefully the picture will come through.

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Sure enjoy looking at the pictures. Is the long white rod sticking out of the motor what you steer the boat with? Any idea of how hard it would be to put a steering wheel section in a small boat like this?

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Happy New Year Ed. Yeah, the "long white rod" is just a piece of 1 1/4" thin-walled PVC attached to the stock tiller of the motor with a couple of pipe clamps. It makes steering the boat a dream and I can stand, or sit which improves my visibility quite a bit. It also lets me shift my weight forward to get on plane faster. Best of all, it only cost about $3 and I can pop it off in about 10 seconds. Of course, they make fancy aluminum and/or carbon fiber versions too if you have the money, but mine works fine as is. As for your boat, you can add a small helm with a steering wheel and throttle/gear control as long as you keep it small and tidy. You'll need a teleflex style steering cable, wheel, a throttle and gear shift cables, battery and cables, choke cable (if applicable), and kill switch. It's not very hard to set up, but it can get a little pricey once you piece it all together, and space is always at a premium. Check online for pics of old boston whalers and/or modern flats skiffs, both of which have fairly small helms.

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Wow! KFA what a great post. I am as tight as the bark on a tree, so I don't like spending money. Sounds like a $3.00 PVC pipe would be right up my alley. I thought, I bought this boat with the intention of reselling it but now I am thinking about maybe fixing it up to keep and use some and get rid of my motorcycle. My reflexes are lessening so a boat may be safer Do you have any ideas about a motor for this boat. I would like a 25 HP since that is its max capacity. Ed Bell

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

A 25 hp would make your little boat fly! I have a '66 20 hp on mine and I can get +/- 20 mph and it hops right up on plane. Of course, I'd like a few more hp, but who doesn't. You should be able to find a decent 20-30 hp motor for less than $500. I got mine and a parts motor for $100 off of Craigslist. I had to rebuild the carb, ignition, and add a kill switch, but I had it up running again in a few days for less than $100. I like vintage OMC (Johnson/Evinrude) motors for their reliability, ease of maintenance and parts availability, but there are many good brands out there, such as Yamaha. Newer Mercurys are fine too, but the vintage Mercs are some strange birds and are usually avoided by beginners. AS for the helm/tiller debate, I think that a tiller motor would serve you best in such a small boat. They take up less space, they're cheaper to install and maintain and give you more options in terms of weight distribution. New tiller outboards are experiencing a bit of a Renaissance these days, especially here in FL. In fact, you can get fancy new motors with throttle, gear, trim/tilt, start/kill switch controls all right on the tiller arm. Check out customgheenoe.com and/or microskiff.com for tons of cool "tiller skiffs".

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

I would like to fly. We have a very large lake up here near me (about 40 miles away) where you can launch and go all the way to the coast, which I would guess to be close to 400 miles. It's Pickwick Lake, and the Tennessee Tom Bigbee begins there and goes to the coast. I know a 14 footer couldn't make that trip but that lake would be a neat lake just to fool around on and that's what I've got in mind. Not into fishing but I guess I could start. I looked at the customgeenoe and microskiff sites but didn't see much about motors and to be honest, I don't even know what a helm/tiller motor is. Is it a torlling motor? I think I would like to do a little something more than just torl. Do you guess that Old AT would hold up to much 20 + mile an hour traveling? I hate anything that's un-reliable so I have been looking at new motors. Probably doesn't make much sense to put a $3,500 motor on a $300 boat. But, at least the motor should be reliable. kfa4303, thanks for you help. Ed Bell

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Hello again Ed. If your boat is rated for a 25 hp, it can handle it. With a light load, you might get close to 30 mph with a motor that size, which is pretty dang fast on the open water in a small boat, and 30 mph on the water "feels" more like 40-50 mph A tiller motor is simply one where the steering, throttle and/or gear shift are controlled using the small arm that comes off of the front of the motor (like on my boat), whereas other boats use a "helm", or control station, with steering wheel and throttle/gear shift control mounted to a console in the center,or side of the boat (think bass boat). Generally speaking, smaller motors <50 hp tend to use tillers, while large motors tend to use helms, but there are exceptions to the rule. In fact, nowadays you can get 5 hp motors with controls and/or 150 hp tiller motors. One isn't really better, or worse than than the other. It's mostly a matter of cost, space and use. I like to keep things simple, so a tiller works best for me. Plus, it lets me sit, stand, or move around as I like. It's also a lot cheaper and easier to maintain than a helm set-up. Here's a link to a vid of some boats using each set up. You can decide for yourself which you think you might like better. Bear in mind that because of your boat's age, the engine rating assumes that motor is/was a 2-stroke, which are much lighter than their modern, 4-stroke cousins. As a result, while your boat is currently rated for a 25 hp, 2-stroke it could probably only handle a 10-15hp 4-stroke, which would weigh about the same. I think you'll find that most folks like vintage, 2-stroke OMC (johnson/Evinrude) motors for the reasons stated above. However, some lakes do not allow 2-stroke motors anymore, so check your local regulations.

Here's a vid of a "gheenoe" with a tiller motor and grab bar (aka "sissy bar"). It's a very popular set up here in FL where folks run in super skinny water and want/need as much visibility as possible. This is how I have my boat set-up and I love it.

Custom Gheenoe boats flying by - YouTube

Gheenoe Classic In Action - YouTube (another tiller skiff in action. the platform on the back is for standing on and poling from in very shallow water)

Sea Foam Green Tiller Caimen - YouTube (another fancy skiff using a tiller/grab bar set up) (you can also see in the intro to the vid the different configurations available with or without a console)


Here's a vid of the same boat(s) with a helm (ie control station) rather than a tiller. As you can see, the captain has to pilot the vessel from the helm at all times, which limits his ability to redistribute weight as needed, but a helm does provide a nice place to mount any and ll electronics and navigation gear.

Four Custom Gheenoe Lo Tide 25s Running the St Johns 07302011 - YouTube

Kyle Got His Caimen....mov - YouTube

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

Kfa, thanks for all of those links. I throughly enjoyed them. That one with the three boats going down the shallow river, (I am sure there is a name for those shallow rivers is Florida), I just don't happen to know what they are called. At any rate, that clip reminded me of some of my motorcycle trips except they were on the water. All of the other clips sure did look like fun in the sun. Can't believe some of those small boats with 50 hp mortors. I called about a few motors yesterday a 25 hp 4 stroke Yamaha weighs 174 lbs. and I bet that may be a little too heavy form my little boat. It cost $3,500 new at the place I called. I also called a guy off of Craig's List that had a 25 Mercury and a 25 Yamaha. The Mercury was a 1993 and he wanted $750.00 for it. The Yamaha was a 1994 and he wanted $1,200.00 for it. They were both 2 strokes. I may go take a look at them but he is about 70 miles away. He was the first person that told me that a 25- 4 stroke may be to heavy but I thought that, per chance, he may have just been trying to sell me his.

I would guess that with a tiller drive it may be a little like my zero turn lawn-mower, it may take a little getting use to as far as the stering goes. Thanks again for all of your post and sharing your world of knowledge. Ed Bell

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

yeah I would try to avoid a 4-stroke motor on such a small boat due to their excess weight and generally higher maintenance and repair costs. 2-stroke Yamaha's, on the other hand, are great motors and getting harder and harder to find. Lots of the fish camps/lodges down here, as well as in the Bahamas and in South America use 2-stroke Yamahas exclusively, particularly the red decaled "Enduro" models. My neighbor runs a big ol' V4 100+hp Yami and loves it. Mercs are good motors too, but I'm less familiar with them. The most important thing with any motor is the compression. Assuming it is over 100psi and both cylinders are within 10% of each other, most other things can be fixed fairly easily.
The vid of the the small gang of folks running their modified Gheenoes was shot on the St. Johns river outside of Jacksonville, but there are countless other rivers just like it, and much nicer, all around FL. The reverse "motorcycle" style set up in which the captain and passenger sit/stand around a center console/helm is often described as a "bay boat" set up and is great for keeping the weight centered along the keel. While you don't see it as much in freshwater boats, it's particularly popular and useful while fishing in salt water where the fish can/will often drag your around the entire boat. Plus, I just kind of the like the clean symmetrical look it provides.
Don't worry about steering with the tiller, you'll get the hang of it in no time Boats have been piloted that way from the beginning of time (literally). Best of all, they're much lower maintenance and take up very little space. Don't get me wrong, helms are nice, but there are lots of little bits, pieces and linkages that can nickle and dime you to death and space will be at a premium in such a small boat.
Good luck hunting for motors. Keep us posted.

 

[Banker Ed]

Re: Arkansas Traveler

No questions this time, just a comment. I may lose my project. Just for the heck of it, I put my boat and trailer on Craigs List with the pictures I recently posted here on iboat knowing that I wouldn't get any calls before I got the boat and trailer further along in the project. But, yesterday a guy comes by looking for a boat who has a 15 hp Evenrude. He seemed very interested in my boat and wants to come back Saturday. I tried to buy his motor but he said he wasn't interested in selling it. He said a dealer that he took it to, to have it checked out, offered him $300.00 for it. I'll keep you posted and thanks again for all your help. Ed Bell