West Bend Power Bee

[bblackwell]

I live in the southern part of the country and need some repair info on a West Bend Power Bee outboard it belonged to my grandfather and was later inherited by uncle.

The motor has spark, carburetor looks to be in good shape, but it just won’t fire.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

[Buccaneer]

I’ve never heard of a West Bend Power Bee, and searches for the same only comes up with go-cart engines,
not outboards. If you find a model number, it may help someone help you easier. Photos would be great as well.
That said, check the basics, compression, and that the spark plugs wires will jump an “open air” spark to ground
about 1/4″. You can squirt a little pre-mixed fuel in the carb or spark plug holes to see if it will fire then.

Prepare to be boarded!

[The Boat House]

• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by The Boat House.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by The Boat House.

[dsaulsbury]

Our family raced Go-Karts on a local area dirt track thru the last half of the 50’s and into the 60’s. After 1961 when I went off to college, they bought a West Bend Power Bee engine to race. The earlier West Bend 2 cycle motors had 2 intake ports. The new Power Bee had 2 more intake ports added ( under the bolted on covers) . Attached is a pic of an Air Cooled, I think a Starling from California, made, later in the 60’s, that I bought at the Constantine meet in 2016. The powerhead is the same as the Power Bee Go-Kart motor that my family raced. I still had the motor we raced and would see Peter Hunn at our local meets. He said he was looking for a Go-Kart from the 60’s. I found one at an engine show here in WNY for him. I gave him the family motor to use on the Kart. He was working on his “Small Engine” book at the time and included a chapter on the “Power Bee” motor I gave him.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by dsaulsbury.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by dsaulsbury.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by dsaulsbury.

[Mumbles]

Not outboard related but Benders and McCullochs were ‘The Motors’ to have for karts back in the day and a few years ago I found a West Bend one at a junk store which had lots of old motors out back. I don’t remember any name on it but I think it had a number for the model instead and it was a very hard to find model. When I took it apart for inspection, everything inside was totally worn out and it couldn’t be repaired. Unfortunately, it ended up in the recycle bin.

Local legend engine builder Grant King built karts called Kingo-Karts and I was fortunate to have one in the mid sixties. It was powered by a Homelite motor and would do close to 35 MPH timed at our local speedway, which was lightning fast for a young teen.

[lindy46]

Mumbles wrote:

Not outboard related but Benders and McCullochs were ‘The Motors’ to have for karts back in the day and a few years ago I found a West Bend one at a junk store which had lots of old motors out back. I don’t remember any name on it but I think it had a number for the model instead and it was a very hard to find model. When I took it apart for inspection, everything inside was totally worn out and it couldn’t be repaired. Unfortunately, it ended up in the recycle bin.

Local legend engine builder Grant King built karts called Kingo-Karts and I was fortunate to have one in the mid sixties. It was powered by a Homelite motor and would do close to 35 MPH timed at our local speedway, which was lightning fast for a young teen.

I had a custom-built kart late 50s-early 60s with a Mac10 engine and direct drive. To start it, you had to pick up the back end, run, drop down the back end and jump in! I think that kart would get close to 60mph. I’m lucky I didn’t kill myself. Back then I thought I was invincible as most teenagers do. Ahh – the memories.

[lloyd]

I built a Kart with direct drive and Mac 10 engine in the mid 60’s. We clocked it to about 55 MPH in a deserted subdivision. I sold it and used the money to build a hydroplane.

[lindy46]

lloyd wrote:

I built a Kart with direct drive and Mac 10 engine in the mid 60’s. We clocked it to about 55 MPH in a deserted subdivision. I sold it and used the money to build a hydroplane.

When you’re sitting that close to the ground, it felt like you were flying! Pretty scary.

[Mumbles]

It’s kind of interesting that a bunch of us had karts when we were younger! The Homelite on my kart might have been the very first small engine I ever owned or it may have been an early fifties Power Products AH-47 which I still have and was given to me by a late uncle. My interest in outboards came a few years later in life.

[need2fish]

I believe the “Power Bee” designation refers to the powerhead — it was West Bend’s utility engine, used on a variety of applications, including Lawnmowers, Karts, Pumps, Chain Saws, Minibikes and Outboards.

[Author]

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