TOPIC: Toy boat you could pilot: Buffalo Mini Boat

For a time about ten years ago, I owned a 1991 Buffalo Mini Boat. They were made for a few years in the late 80's-early 90's. This is a link to their Coast Guard MIC database entry:

www.uscgboating.org/recalls/mic_detail.aspx?id=DGY

The boat was made out of ABS plastic, came with mechanical steering and a lawn mower throttle assembly adapted to, in my case, a 3 1/2 HP Tohatsu outboard. It even had navigation lights, plus bow and stern cleats. It could hold me and a little kid. It was tricky to board, as it was only 6 1/2 feet long and about 3 1/2 feet wide. I capsized it once while trying to board it from a dock. It was much easier to board if beached. It was really too small to be practical - more of a toy.

I had it inside the break wall in Lake Erie off Cleveland twice, just to see how it would perform. Top speed was only about 5 mph and it would just bob like a cork. If the wind was against you, little progress was made. Mostly I used it on small HP-restricted lakes.

Sold it to a friend who still has it and uses it as a little boat for the pond in his back yard. He takes little kids, including his own, for rides in it during the summer. The two lower pictures are with me driving it on that friend's pond, with his little son seated next to me. They were taken at my friend's annual pig roast. That day, when I came back to shore to let his son off, we had about 25 other little kids lined up wanting rides. Spent the next three hours taking them out one at a time around the pond.

Great fun!

Pictures are attached.

Very nice, thanks for sharing. You will never know, but you might have lighted a spark in a Future Fiberglassic Member.

That reminds me of one I was under 10 years old, and a friend of the family gave me a ride in a 63 Split Window Corvette. I have been hooked ever since.


Regards,
StevieB

I have one of these Buffalo mini boats in really nice condition. It’s so small.