I bought my first motor in the winter of ’64-’65 when I was 12 years old. It was a green Johnson TN-27………..a 5hp beauty that had the neutral lever on the side. What a great idea………..neutral. My family is from Northern Michigan, which means long, cold winters with a lot of snow. But, no problem………..I kept the motor in the basement and every so often my Dad and I would put it in a bucket of water to start it up. Great fun……………got a little smokey in the house….. but great fun.
That spring I bought a brand new 12′ Mirro-Craft aluminum boat. You may remember them…………that mint green color. I paid $45 for the motor and $186.50 for the boat. That was a whole lot of snow to shovel and grass to cut. An average lawn………..2 bucks. I ran this rig at my grandparents cottage on Long Lake……….just outside of town on an inland lake. I had to keep her in the bay by the cottage in sight of the watchful eye of my Dad. I zipped up and down that bay for hours and also spent countless hours trolling for walleye. What a great life for a kid.
The motor in the picture is a TD-20……….nice motor, but no neutral. I have 5 grandsons that have cut their teeth on grandpas’ old motors. One of them, Corban, is a club member along with his trusty 1960 Johnson 3. Passing on the tradition………….that’s what it is all about. Bruce Miller
