Bass boats from the early days through about the mid-80s had a nominal front deck – many of which stopped at the rear of the front seat pedestal- and these decks were anywhere from 6 inches to a foot below the boat’s gunwale.
Category: Old Bass Boats
Are you interested in looking back at the dawn of the bass boat age? Interested in seeing the history about how bass boats came to be? Did you own a 1971 Ranger and want to find more information on it or just reminisce about the good old days? Well, you’re at the right place.
The Bass Fishing Archives Old Bass Boats section is the place where the history of bass boats come alive. Chronologically ordered, we go though every year and nearly every company who has been in the bass boat business since the inception of boats built specifically for bass fishing.
Looking at old ads placed in every bass and fishing magazine published, we dissect the the history of the bass boat and their evolution. Skeeter, Fisher Marine, Loweline, MonArk, Ranger, Tide Craft, Bass Cat, Tracker and Ouachita are only a few of the companies we look into.
Keep coming back as we update the list of boats, the companies and what they had to offer as well as the evolution of the boats from tiny 14-foot tubs to the 20-foot high-performance boats we have today.
The Beginning of Packaged Boats
Of course, Morris had founded the Bass Pro Shops brand, a combination store and mail order catalog business, a few years before. That operation and his experience fishing the BASS Master Tournament Trail gave him a good idea of what the fishing public wanted in the way of fishing and boating accessories.
Old Bass Boat Ads – 1973
By 1973, bass boats and bass boat companies were coming out of every one-stop town in the U.S. In 1972, 11 manufacturers put ads in the top bass fishing magazines and 1973 would feature 15 boat manufacturers and I’m sure there were a number of other companies who hadn’t yet made the leap to advertise.
Bass Boats of 1964
Today we’re going to continue down the line of old bass boats, specifically the Bass Boats of 1964. Recently a good friend of mine, avid angler and exemplary jig maker from Oklahoma, Jack Hall, contacted me about a book he had called, “Don Fuelsch’s Southern Angler’s and Hunter’s Guide.” Being […]
Bass Boats and Tackle 1956 – Jason Lucas
Between the middle and forward seats is what we’re all probably most interested in, though. It’s Lucas’ tacklebox. A wooden box of hip-roof design with ten foldout trays filled with his lures.
The Need for Speed
For those of you who have a need for speed, here’s a blast from the past that might have you reminiscing the days when you really had to work to make your boat the fastest on the water. Although Michigan Wheel is still in business, I hadn’t thought of them […]
Japan-Only Ranger Bass Boats
On one of my first trips to Japan (2006) I was lucky enough to spend some time touring the local tackle shops and boat dealerships around Tokyo.
Old Boat Ads – 1972
The second ad makes my back hurt. I’m reminded daily what it’s like to be in a boat of this hull configuration when they got air like this.
1971 – A Bad Year for Boat Manufacturers
What many may not know is there was another Arkansas boat company, MonArk of Monticello, AR, that got hit by a flash fire on the same day. Here’s the news clip from the 1971 July/August issue of Bass Master Magazine.
Old Boat Ads – 1971
The last time we looked at bass boat ads from 1970. This time we move a year later to 1971 and check out what had changed in a year. Although there were only five boat ads in the 1970s Bass Master Magazines – Master Molders Kingfisher, Ranger, Terry Astroglass and Ouachita