My 1947 18.5 foot Truscott Utility was and is powered by a Chrysler Crown M27-S flathead six that will be on its way to Robert Henkel, Peter Henkel INC. in Marine City, MI next week once we have drained it completely.
My “Baby T” utility, which joined the SMB fleet about a week ago, behind Frank Mole’s monster dually. (https://wwwFrankMole’Transport.com). Frank is my number one, go-to transporter and good friend.
She joins my 1948 19.5’ Truscott Deluxe Runabout that I towed, also from northern IL, first to Robert Henkel’s engine shop in Marine City, MI, several weeks ago. Here is the link to her arrival video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRUUcDEJPW8&list=PLU9jswQZjSK3YSrQ-7axBhV3VY5JiVA5k&index=1&t=38s.
In both cases we stopped at Loadmaster Trailer Company in Port Clinton, OH so that those folks could measure them for the matching trailers they will build for the Truscotts.
Here is some information from Bob Speltz that is germane here:
According to Bob Speltz, The Real Runabouts, Vol. II, “Following the conclusion of World War II, a lot of major changes affected the boat building industry here in the United States. For example, some of the old-line builders like Gar Wood, Elco and others … quietly folder their tents and stole off into the night, never to be heard of again.” (p. 58)
In late October, 1947, by contrast, the Truscott Boat and Dock Company of St. Joseph, MI announced that it was again entering the pleasure boat market when it hired Ed Hancock, who had been a member of Gar Wood’s senior management for 23 years. According to Speltz, hiring Hancock positioned Truscott to be well on its way to becoming a leader in the post-war pleasure boating scene.
Such was not to be the case as Truscott failed to capture sufficient pleasure boat market share and the company ceased operations at the end of 1948.
The company introduced a fleet of new – well, mostly Gar Woodesque – models ranging from a 16’ utility, its “All-About,” that closely resembles the Gar wood Ensign, to a 24’ All-About utility.
The 19’6” twin cockpit forward runabout, with its strong tumblehome curvature on the transom, closely resembles Gar Wood’s 1947 19’6” Commodore runabout, which is not surprising since, save for the bow confirmation, both hulls were built using Gar Wood jigs that Hancock brought with him when he jumped ship and joined Truscott.
My runabout is powered by a 115 HP Chrysler M27-S. Truscott also offered an optional 140 HP Gray Marine Fireball engine.
Very few 19’6” Truscott runabouts were built, so information on their specs is difficult to come by, especially that related to this model’s upholstery. We know that, following Gar Wood’s design, the ceilings are upholstered. Unlike the Gars, however, it appears that the dash is mahogany finished brite with three gauges, centered on the tach, which is signed “Truscott.”
We are aware of one example lying in St. Joseph, MI, and one that was donated to the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton, NY.
Sharing information and photos you might have with us will be greatly appreciated as we proceed with planning and executing an historically-correct preservation of my Truscott runabout.
Here is a link to some interesting information on the Truscott Boat and Manufacturing Company:
https://adirondack.pastperfectonline.com/library/B27B200C-BB03-4371-B516-556731110980
Here are the specs for the runabout:
Speed 38 knots
LOA: 19’ 9”
BEAM 6’ 9’
DRAFT 1’ 8”
When Gar Wood folded some of the people, patterns and hull dimensions found new life, though short, with Truscott Boat Company in St Joseph, Michigan.
