Saving Old Seagulls

What are these any information would be fab

A bit like an Atco , I see one the same for sale on Facebook marketplace along with a Seagull with a huge rudder bolted to it ! I'll try to attach a pic . Looks like it comes from same place as my Sea Bee lookalike

If you have a look at my AP3 post in this section a few weeks ago , RickUK had some info

Cheers china's noticed a plate on the electric one

Superb you are an early bird....china

The little petrol engine is probably a Coventry Apex (made using the Auto Products name) 'Canoe Engine', 34cc. No other info, but late 1950's early 60's.

Lejay were from Minneapolis, and called their electric trolling motors 'Electrols'. According to the Peter Hunn book, they were gone by the early 1960's, but not clear if they eventually became Minn Kota, which survives today.

Many thanks for your your info Rick UK seems to be complete will inspect at a later date......

In the early 60's there were several companies, including: Auto Products, Brit, Coventry Apex, Deflectajet, Dolphin, K.Skinner, Sea Bee, Seachief and Tidemaster, who used the JAP (John Alfred Prestwich) 34cc and 80cc air cooled industrial engine as the basis for their outboards. Although there are similarities between some of the motors, I have yet to find any evidence there was any 'badge engineering' going on.

I have a copy of a letter sent by Auto Products to Raleigh Industries in 1969 asking if they would be prepared to sell components of their 'Wasp' engine to them as the JAP engine was no longer available.

The canoe or sideboard motor you have was known as the 'A.P.Minor'

With regards the Lejay electric outboard, the company produced a manual of 'Build your own', which included things like: wind plant, electric fencer, welder and of course an electric outboard using a generator from a Ford Model T.

Think you need to separate things out a bit -

JAP engines were universally used on any number of small engine applications outboard, lawnmowers, and a lot of small powered devices, with a good reputation- I once even had an Anzani Minor with 'JAP' cast in the crankcases!

The following we're not linked to Auto Products to my knowledge --

Brit - were in Bridport, and appears to have just faded out at some point.
Deflecta Jet - no idea.
Dolphin - made in or near Guildford
Skinner ?
Sea chief - Whitstable
Tidemaster - Whitstable - (maybe there was some cross-pollination between the latter two?)

Mallard- with an address originally in Leicester - were being promoted as being manufactured by Coventry Apex as of early 1957!
Maybe everything is blurring into history now - eg. probably not recognised, but JAP was eventually owned by Villiers as of the late 1950's, so how did they carve up small engine manufacture in a declining market?