What Makes Up a Dippy?
This famous early Canadian power boat is generally known as the “Dippy “ or “Dispro” and was the brainchild of the late William J ‘Billy’ Johnston of Port Carling, Ontario, Canada. Mr. Johnston started working for his pioneer Muskoka boatbuilding uncle, William Johnston Sr. around 1900 and together they built many fine boats in the Muskoka area.
What’s the Device?
The ‘device’ consisted of a cast iron housing (later aluminum) mounted in the hull to accommodate a universal joint, propeller shaft, combination strut-skeg and the propeller. The motor was mounted forward and was coupled to a flexible propeller shaft which entered the housing through a stuffing box. In the largely uncharted and unexplored waterways of that day, this device was truly a safe way to get there with little or no damage if the propeller shaft skeg struck bottom or logs, etc.
Some Helpful Links
Every Dippy needs a helping hand from time to time. We have found the following sites to be informative to our Association and recommend that you visit them.
Advantages of Membership
It Pays to be a Member
You do not need to own a boat to be a member of the association! Members who enjoy this simple yet elegant powerboat come from all walks of life. Most of them restore, repair and maintain their own boats and enjoy the convenience of its manual retractable propeller for beaching or storage.