TOPIC: New member, looking for info on Larson boats

Hello to all! I'm new to this site, and have never personally owned a boat before, but spent lots of time on different boats as a kid and young adult. I found an old boat and got it bought for a song. Turns out it is an old Larson Surfmaster! Can't remember being this stoked about buying a project in a really long time. But, I'm having trouble finding much info about it. Anyone who could point me in the right direction would be greatly appreciated. I hope to fix this ol' girl up and go boating with my girlfriend some day! Thanks for your help!

BTW, this is a really nice site and forum! Glad that I found it!!

Welcome aboard, You can't go wrong with a Larson boat. Quality built. I would suggest you look at the top of the screen and go to the glassic library. It's easy to navigate. They might even have a picture for you. Either way there is plenty of info here and we all share. Pictures are a must because most of us can't read.

Wow! That is an old Larson! Yes they do have a reputation for quality. I am not familiar with Larsons that old but since the mid 80's I have known some of the people who worked at Larson and they produce good boats.

Don't see many surfmasters these days, I guess you will have to be the pioneer in this group for it.. Looks like a very solid hull, keep us posted..

Here is a pic of a convertible Surfmaster that has been sitting in a boat salvage yard in western Wisconsin. It was still there last fall, but I haven't been up that way since, so I'm not sure it's still around. There have been rumours the yard is going to close down.
It having been there so long I assume the owner may have an unrealistic price on it.

Wow, that's cool. I haven't seen one with the top off of it. Thanks for the pic! Would be a shame if that salvage yard shuts down and nobody gets the old boats that they have....

Flying fish, any chance on getting the location to the yard, and is there any other glassics laying around there? Thanks Joe

Is this the graveyard in Grantsburg? If so things sit there forever. I plan to stop by this spring but calling ahead is a good idea. If Tim isn't there no one will sell you anything. I have his contact information and the location if anyone is interested. Not a lot of real interesting stuff but fun to look around. A lot of trihull era boats.

Yes, it's Tim Nelsons place, about five miles west of Grantsburg on Wisconsin 70.
There haven't been any real glassic boats there for quite a while. A couple of years ago there was an Anthony Jet Cat and an outboard Biesmeyer, but they are probably gone. He also had quite a few older Mercs around including some Dockbusters.
There are a lot of older boats and Tim does sell parts off of them, but as Fox said, make sure you call before you go.
This Switzer Wing was in the yard a number of years ago, but Tim didn't actually own it.

Tim Olson of Grantsburg died earlier this year.

Andreas

Sad to hear that Andreas...I have been there. Tim sold me some throttle controls. We ran from a bees nest after removing the cowl from a 60's merc 4 cylinder. I used to see him at Tomahawk National Antique outboard motor show. It has been over a years since we last spoke. I walked the property with him to find some merc faceplates. He had lots of Mercs...we looked at his Powercat 14T that he wanted to get going. Sad he is gone. He had loads of boats around when I walked the property with him. Nice guy that treated me right!

Mark, is there a date for the next show in Tomahawk?
Andreasl, what is the date for the show in Marinette?

After lots of driving and working on the home-built trailer..... I got the surfmaster home this past weekend. It is in need of a lot of work, since it sat outside, uncovered, for many years in Deadwood, SD. If any one has info on where to get parts, any old photos or brochures of original boats like this, I would like to see them. This is my first boat, a major project, and although it is mostly complete, I would like some reference materials and will definitely need advice. It has a Johnson 100hp golden meteor motor as well.

Go to the glassic library on top of this page and search the Larson brochures.
Here's a link to one of the pages.
www.fiberglassics.com/library/index.php?title=File:1960larson10.jpg

hi guy yes you have a treasure chest , hah full of members who before you has tackled the same ups and downs ,hah im full of them
tonight, but we all have one thing in common , we want to see you finish it and launch it to a whole new whirlwind of memories , as it has in the past life many times over. cast off your fears and dive in and anything along the way you need we all here want to you to finally turn the key to another outstanding project finished


billy .

It looks like you have a nice place to start on your restoration. The Surfmaster was introduced in 1957 as part of the Larson Laker Line. I believe that yours is a 1959, by the built in spray rail and rubber rub rail. The Surfmaster was given an update for the 1960 model year and was dropped in late 1962 by the powers that be at Brunswick. Here are the catalogs shots, year by year. I hope that they will help in your restoration.

Lee Wangstad

Thank you Lee! Any info available always helps! I also thought it was a '59, but was having trouble finding any good pics or advertisements. There is no ID tag except for a small one on the top of the dash, with Larson Boatworks Little Falls, MN on it.

There might be a small tag on top of the shift control block either fiberglassed in or perhaps not, I've seen them done both ways. It should be an alpha/numeric code number. Most of the time they've been painted over.

Lee

I contacted the Larson company via their website and got a very nice email back with PDF copies of the brochure with my year of our Larson All American Hardtop 1962. This is when Brunswick owned them. Interior pictures and also,the price list of options was interesting. I provided the serial number and they sent me a handwritten list series where and when our boat was made.

I looked last night for an ID number or tag near the controls, and did not see anything. A friend of mine contacted Larson about this boat, but the only info they coughed up was one advertisement from 1959, which happened to be one of the ads that Lee attached in the above message. I'm excited to start working on this boat, but I really don't know where to begin. If either of you guys has repaired or replaced the floor or interior walls of your old Larsons, I would like to pick your brain a little about that. Specifically, the construction of the floor and interior side walls. It looks like plywood was used to build the seats and storage spaces, but then a thin layer of fiberglass was applied over the wood, "sealing" the wood structures within the floor. Some of this needs repaired or replaced on my boat, but I don't really know what I'll run into beyond that. Where would a person start when it comes to taking up the old floor to check on things underneath? I've read that there is foam under the floor on these old Larsons.