Help IDing Sears Jon Boat (flat bottom)

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Erinslion

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Hello all.

I hate being "that new guy" on a message board asking the same sort of question every new guys asks, but I've done all the looking I know how to do in identifying my boat and have come up empty.

It is a Sears, 1636 (technically I suppose it's 15'10".) To delve a little deeper, the beam is 54" and the transom is 16".

The HIN number is there but the capacity plate...well, it isn't missing, but it's completely smooth, there is literally nothing to be read on it, laying a piece of paper on top and wiping a pencil back and forth reveals nothing...

The first three letters of the HIN are ELD. HIN identifier says this is Arrow Glass, and was previously Eldo Craft. Put a pin in that for a moment.

The last digits are M74F which I presume means the boat was certified in January 1974. Arrow Glass got the MIC in the mid-eighties after Eldo Craft went out of business so clearly that's not who made this boat (also, Arrow Glass doesn't seem to have made aluminum boats anyway.)

That being said, I can't find any boats listed for Eldo Craft prior to 1976 and the ones I have found all also seem to be fiber glass.

So, I'm at a dead end where the HIN is concerned.

Search after search reveals no 16 ft Sears aluminum flat-bottom boat from the 70s (74) but I assure you, it's sitting in my yard right now.

If I use the standard formula (I guess it's standard, I keep seeing it) for capacity I come up with three 150 pound people which seems...puny for the size of the boat. If the capacity really is 450 pounds, I will embarrass myself a little and say that my fishing buddy and I will run right up to the edge of that on a good day.

I haven't found a formula for calculating max HP but the boat came with a 15hp 1974 Evinrude Fastwin (in pretty good shape, really.)

So...has anyone seen or heard of this boat? Is there a better way to calculate capacity and HP? That flair from 36" to 54" makes me FEEL like the boat ought to be fairly buoyant but I'm not one to "just guess."

That's where I'm at and I appreciate any help or advice you fellas can offer. Thanks!
 
The outboard is a great strong engine, had a 15 Johnson from the same year and it was powerful, not as fast as a Merc. but we could waterski off of it (both light weights).

As for the boat I'd say it would take a 20 without a problem and quite possibly a 25 or greater. I hope someone comes along with a definitive answer.
 

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