Those alumacraft cushions are too cool! Never seen them before, ever. Those 70s Johnsons aren't my favorite either, but they seem to run indefinitely. We used to go to Canada fishing and sometimes we'd portage to other bodies of water, that had older boats with those engines on them. They'd sit all winter, and start right up every spring.
Yeah, and the sad part is I never appreciated them or thought about the rarity until bringing it all back. Up until then, they were just beat up cushions we sat on. I've retraced the several series of wrong moves that led me to tearing apart the blue one, and it still kills me. Since then, I've retired the 3 remaining red ones to display status and have been stocking up on period correct kapok cushions that fit with the boat. They're becoming harder to find that one would imagine. I've thought about reproducing some of the vintage patterns and wonder how much of a market there is for that. The 70s to 90s Johnsons/Evinrudes are kindof plain looking and sounding (compared to Mercs anyways) and NEVER run smooth (oddly even with CDI ignition) but yeah, they seem to last like cockroaches. I've seen a couple burn holes in pistons running too lean but that's about it. And the lower units will take anything. A few years back, my dad hit a submerged rock reef at about 20 mph in 1978 Mark Twain...luckily he cut power to it just once he saw it and just before hitting, but nevertheless it hit hard. The 1976 Johnson 140HP took it like a champ, just left a few scrapes and maybe bent the skeg....I was shocked it was still on. As you said as well, they sit all year (maybe several) and start up every time 😂 That's cool that you'd go up to Canada and portage across to other spots. There's a small lake that feeds into a tiny waterfall about an hour down the lake from our cabin. Years ago, family and friends had an older wooden boat stashed up in the woods that they'd drag to the stream (carry the tank, motor, and all the gear) and go upriver to the small lake to walleye fish. I have old 8mm film of them doing it as well, pretty cool stuff. Thanks for the comment! -Brock
Thanks! It's certainly a cool old boat for sure, and it's grown on me through the years from just being an "old family fishing boat" to a cool original 1960's Alumacraft. (Previously I was more on the flashy "Feathercraft" kick). You'll definitely see more of it (have alot of footage that hasn't been ediited yet), as well as other vintage boats as well 👍
Thanks! We'll have to chat sometime for sure. Do you have Facebook? The old footage is really cool, and I have a ton of it from my great granddad. I was trying to find a way to utlize it on this channel, and bringing the old boat home provided an avenue to share it :)
@retro_grade I don't do Facebook like most old guys lol to busy for that drama. I made a comment on how to reach me on another post and please do reach out. We both have our grandpa's boats and there both queens and that's rare
Thanks! What year are the Johnson 35's, same year? I'm curious to know what top speed and pickup you get out of them. My main concern is that great grandpa went to the 50s because the 35s weren't enough horsepower (since the boat is rated for 90).
I’d get the two 50’s running and show how it goes. Inclined to higher horsepower but the idea of two 57 35’s would look great and should move it well, but the 50’s would do better on the water, maybe. If your going to tow long distances go lighter 35’s but if not the 50’s. You can always find the 35’s and keep them for collection and if you feel like it swap them out and see. Switch back to 50’s if performs better.
Yeah, that's the current plan. I have a pretty good idea of how the boat moves along with them, but no idea on how it moves along with 35 HP motors. My concern is that my great grandfather switched them out years ago due to being underpowered. I tow the boat roughly 45 minutes to get to the lake, but there are occasions when I will tow it several hours if I'm going on a weekend trip. So obviously, lighter weight on the back of the boat would help out there, alot. If I find a pair of really nice original 35 HP motors in the exact color and year that I want, it may be hard to resist trying them. I've already stashed a set of NOS twin shipmaster controls in case I do find them. The hard part of giving up the 50's also isn't just the extra power and power tilt. It's also all the MASSIVE amount of spares that I have for them as well - spare parts, props of every pitch, fuel tanks, etc. Alot of stuff that I'll have to re-stock moving to the older ones. Thanks for the comments and thoughts on it!!!! -Brock
I assume you mean from the Johnson 50's to the older Johnson 35's? While most people have told me to stick with the 50's, I'm glad that I see one comment suggesting this option :) Years ago, I said that if I ever ended up with that boat, the only way I'd have it is if it had the original 35 HP twins on it, as the 70's models just didn't look cool enough. Now, I'm bent. I definitley did source a set of NOS twin controls for the old motors though. It may be one of those deals that if a very nice looking set of those motors come my way at the right price, I may just have to pull the trigger on this idea. Or, if one of the 50 HP motors ever blows up. Thanks for the comment! -Brock
Yeah, that's what I figure the route will be, at least for now. It's hard to swap out a couple of perfectly fine (and still vintage) motors to something with less horsepower and lacking power trim. I'm pretty much a stickler on original paint, so I'll likely keep them stock, hoewever, and try to replace the gouged up inside decals. -Brock
I have a couple of tripods....although, not really sure how those would help the shakiness that you're describing for the "entire video" (did you really watch the whole thing????). As most of the shots were me walking around the boat....not standing in place. A gimbal would help with this, however, and I have one of those as well. It is, however, a PITA to set up and I typically only use it when shooting with my Sony A6600 camera. This video was shot on my GoPro Hero 10, as it was easy to climb in and out of the boat and move around with. Typically, its built in stabalization is enough to not require use of a gimbal. I'm watching the video now, and still don't see what you're talking about in terms of shakiness? As far as the "cringe" music you're referring to, that comes from a roughly $15 per month subscription to Epimemic Sound. If you think that music is bad, then try anything that TH-cam offers for free. I guess with music, you can't make anyone happy really - either it keeps the video flowing, isn't too intrusive and they don't notice it (or comment on it), or you get the one guy who says it's "cringe". Not sure if those people don't like the genre or would rather the video be played in silience (which, to me, I think is more worse/dry/boring). Either way, it's hard to make everyone happy. I've been on TH-cam enough now to not expect anyone to stick around the entire video. Unless it has a half naked woman in it or some extreme "shock value" to it, anything over 30 seconds is probably doing pretty good 😂
@@ADDvanced thanks for the feedback, I will keep that in mind for the next one. I want to say volume was ducked about 50 percent on average when talking. I actually mess with that ALOT, and have found it varies tremendously depending if you're watching on a phone, computer monitor, airpods, TV, etc. My monitor (which I'm editing on) typically sounds the quietest so it fools me at times. I get very OCD with it and I've caught myself adjusting the ducking levels by 5 percent increments, I kid you not, it's ridiculous. On earlier videos, I'd watch what I posted on the TV and on several occasions re-exported and uploaded a new version with adjusted levels. I've started since realizing "perfection is the enemy" and try to just move on. I've always wondered what other people's experience is with music and how they get it down. The volume, type of music for what's going on, etc, seems to be an art. Or maybe I'm just bad at it. After seeing this, I'll start erring on the side of quiet in future videos. You've got more experience in this than I do, so I appreciate seeing this. Thanks for the feedback!!! 👍👍
You know if I lived by you I would help you restore this because this is a part of American history. I wish you luck and please take your time and do everything right. Rivets might need replacing and so forth and this might take longer than you think. In the end it will be worth it. I hope more boat guys see this and will donate their time to help the restoration. I'm in Florida and this seems way way north for me.
Haha, thanks!!! It certainly is! I plan on definitely doing this boat right due to its family history. It will need rivets tightened/replaced and alot of bottom work at some point, as it leaks bad. Floors will for sure need to come out to do all of that. I will say though, that this one will be focused more on fixing/repairing what needs to be fixed and leaving as much original on the boat as possible. I don't plan on painting or polishing anything on the aluminum. I wish to keep it as original as possible, as it's how I remember it and they are only original once. So, I'm aiming for more of a "preservation" than "restoration" on this boat, if that makes any sense.
Those alumacraft cushions are too cool! Never seen them before, ever. Those 70s Johnsons aren't my favorite either, but they seem to run indefinitely. We used to go to Canada fishing and sometimes we'd portage to other bodies of water, that had older boats with those engines on them. They'd sit all winter, and start right up every spring.
Yeah, and the sad part is I never appreciated them or thought about the rarity until bringing it all back. Up until then, they were just beat up cushions we sat on. I've retraced the several series of wrong moves that led me to tearing apart the blue one, and it still kills me. Since then, I've retired the 3 remaining red ones to display status and have been stocking up on period correct kapok cushions that fit with the boat. They're becoming harder to find that one would imagine. I've thought about reproducing some of the vintage patterns and wonder how much of a market there is for that.
The 70s to 90s Johnsons/Evinrudes are kindof plain looking and sounding (compared to Mercs anyways) and NEVER run smooth (oddly even with CDI ignition) but yeah, they seem to last like cockroaches. I've seen a couple burn holes in pistons running too lean but that's about it. And the lower units will take anything. A few years back, my dad hit a submerged rock reef at about 20 mph in 1978 Mark Twain...luckily he cut power to it just once he saw it and just before hitting, but nevertheless it hit hard. The 1976 Johnson 140HP took it like a champ, just left a few scrapes and maybe bent the skeg....I was shocked it was still on. As you said as well, they sit all year (maybe several) and start up every time 😂
That's cool that you'd go up to Canada and portage across to other spots. There's a small lake that feeds into a tiny waterfall about an hour down the lake from our cabin. Years ago, family and friends had an older wooden boat stashed up in the woods that they'd drag to the stream (carry the tank, motor, and all the gear) and go upriver to the small lake to walleye fish. I have old 8mm film of them doing it as well, pretty cool stuff.
Thanks for the comment!
-Brock
thats a awesome old boat dude. just found your channel i cant wait to see more of your boat
Thanks! It's certainly a cool old boat for sure, and it's grown on me through the years from just being an "old family fishing boat" to a cool original 1960's Alumacraft. (Previously I was more on the flashy "Feathercraft" kick).
You'll definitely see more of it (have alot of footage that hasn't been ediited yet), as well as other vintage boats as well 👍
I cant wait to talk to you in person. Love the history and footage.
Thanks! We'll have to chat sometime for sure. Do you have Facebook?
The old footage is really cool, and I have a ton of it from my great granddad. I was trying to find a way to utlize it on this channel, and bringing the old boat home provided an avenue to share it :)
@retro_grade I don't do Facebook like most old guys lol to busy for that drama. I made a comment on how to reach me on another post and please do reach out. We both have our grandpa's boats and there both queens and that's rare
Those cushions 😍
I know....I'm still tearing myself apart though over the blue one getting scrapped out 😒
Excited to see the progress. Just bought a 59 queen with twin johnson 35s
Thanks! What year are the Johnson 35's, same year? I'm curious to know what top speed and pickup you get out of them.
My main concern is that great grandpa went to the 50s because the 35s weren't enough horsepower (since the boat is rated for 90).
Neat history
Thanks, appreciate it!
I’d get the two 50’s running and show how it goes. Inclined to higher horsepower but the idea of two 57 35’s would look great and should move it well, but the 50’s would do better on the water, maybe. If your going to tow long distances go lighter 35’s but if not the 50’s. You can always find the 35’s and keep them for collection and if you feel like it swap them out and see. Switch back to 50’s if performs better.
Yeah, that's the current plan. I have a pretty good idea of how the boat moves along with them, but no idea on how it moves along with 35 HP motors. My concern is that my great grandfather switched them out years ago due to being underpowered.
I tow the boat roughly 45 minutes to get to the lake, but there are occasions when I will tow it several hours if I'm going on a weekend trip. So obviously, lighter weight on the back of the boat would help out there, alot.
If I find a pair of really nice original 35 HP motors in the exact color and year that I want, it may be hard to resist trying them. I've already stashed a set of NOS twin shipmaster controls in case I do find them.
The hard part of giving up the 50's also isn't just the extra power and power tilt. It's also all the MASSIVE amount of spares that I have for them as well - spare parts, props of every pitch, fuel tanks, etc. Alot of stuff that I'll have to re-stock moving to the older ones.
Thanks for the comments and thoughts on it!!!!
-Brock
Definitely do the original Johnson repower
I assume you mean from the Johnson 50's to the older Johnson 35's? While most people have told me to stick with the 50's, I'm glad that I see one comment suggesting this option :)
Years ago, I said that if I ever ended up with that boat, the only way I'd have it is if it had the original 35 HP twins on it, as the 70's models just didn't look cool enough.
Now, I'm bent. I definitley did source a set of NOS twin controls for the old motors though. It may be one of those deals that if a very nice looking set of those motors come my way at the right price, I may just have to pull the trigger on this idea. Or, if one of the 50 HP motors ever blows up.
Thanks for the comment!
-Brock
Keep the twin 50's. Hows about custom paint and graphics paying homage to the original 35's. Just a suggestion.
Yeah, that's what I figure the route will be, at least for now. It's hard to swap out a couple of perfectly fine (and still vintage) motors to something with less horsepower and lacking power trim.
I'm pretty much a stickler on original paint, so I'll likely keep them stock, hoewever, and try to replace the gouged up inside decals.
-Brock
keep the 50s
Thanks! That's what I'll likely end up doing, at least for the foreseeable future....
Invest in a tripod.... Handheld camera shot to close shaking the entire video with cringe music thrown in.. How would anyone watch the whole thing?
I have a couple of tripods....although, not really sure how those would help the shakiness that you're describing for the "entire video" (did you really watch the whole thing????). As most of the shots were me walking around the boat....not standing in place. A gimbal would help with this, however, and I have one of those as well. It is, however, a PITA to set up and I typically only use it when shooting with my Sony A6600 camera.
This video was shot on my GoPro Hero 10, as it was easy to climb in and out of the boat and move around with. Typically, its built in stabalization is enough to not require use of a gimbal. I'm watching the video now, and still don't see what you're talking about in terms of shakiness?
As far as the "cringe" music you're referring to, that comes from a roughly $15 per month subscription to Epimemic Sound. If you think that music is bad, then try anything that TH-cam offers for free. I guess with music, you can't make anyone happy really - either it keeps the video flowing, isn't too intrusive and they don't notice it (or comment on it), or you get the one guy who says it's "cringe". Not sure if those people don't like the genre or would rather the video be played in silience (which, to me, I think is more worse/dry/boring). Either way, it's hard to make everyone happy.
I've been on TH-cam enough now to not expect anyone to stick around the entire video. Unless it has a half naked woman in it or some extreme "shock value" to it, anything over 30 seconds is probably doing pretty good 😂
@@retro_grade Maybe just turn the volume down a bit more, or duck it more when talking. I noticed it was a bit loud sometimes. Cheers!
@@ADDvanced thanks for the feedback, I will keep that in mind for the next one. I want to say volume was ducked about 50 percent on average when talking.
I actually mess with that ALOT, and have found it varies tremendously depending if you're watching on a phone, computer monitor, airpods, TV, etc. My monitor (which I'm editing on) typically sounds the quietest so it fools me at times. I get very OCD with it and I've caught myself adjusting the ducking levels by 5 percent increments, I kid you not, it's ridiculous. On earlier videos, I'd watch what I posted on the TV and on several occasions re-exported and uploaded a new version with adjusted levels. I've started since realizing "perfection is the enemy" and try to just move on.
I've always wondered what other people's experience is with music and how they get it down. The volume, type of music for what's going on, etc, seems to be an art. Or maybe I'm just bad at it.
After seeing this, I'll start erring on the side of quiet in future videos. You've got more experience in this than I do, so I appreciate seeing this. Thanks for the feedback!!! 👍👍
You know if I lived by you I would help you restore this because this is a part of American history. I wish you luck and please take your time and do everything right. Rivets might need replacing and so forth and this might take longer than you think. In the end it will be worth it. I hope more boat guys see this and will donate their time to help the restoration. I'm in Florida and this seems way way north for me.
Haha, thanks!!! It certainly is! I plan on definitely doing this boat right due to its family history. It will need rivets tightened/replaced and alot of bottom work at some point, as it leaks bad. Floors will for sure need to come out to do all of that.
I will say though, that this one will be focused more on fixing/repairing what needs to be fixed and leaving as much original on the boat as possible. I don't plan on painting or polishing anything on the aluminum. I wish to keep it as original as possible, as it's how I remember it and they are only original once. So, I'm aiming for more of a "preservation" than "restoration" on this boat, if that makes any sense.