Our tour of Bob’s shop took us to the west coast of Florida, just south of Tampa. The small city of Ruskin has been home to Bob Icenogle his entire life. An avid fisherman who loves performance, Bob’s personal testing fleet of boats consists of seven different kinds, from a flat- bottom boat to a giant, luxurious yacht. His hands-on 40-plus years of experience is very evident, especially after seeing

more than 25 u.s. patents granted to his design parts. Bob’s motto is, “If it can be made better, I’ll do it.”

As a boy, Bob worked around machine shops while attending high school. starting at Franklin Racing Equipment in Florida, he performed many duties and got a taste of the manufacturing of metal parts. It intrigued him, and soon he went to work in the shipyards. His interest in metals and

his experience in the shipyards led him to a long-term career with the Reynolds Metal Company, where he served his journeyman apprenticeship to ultimately become a tool and dye maker. Most of his free time was spent fishing in local rivers and the ocean.

By chance, he bought a bass boat and got permanently hooked on performance. By the mid-i 970s, most bass fisher-

men were running at speeds between 65 and 70 miles per hour. Bob’s boat was considerably faster than that, and friends wanted to know what his secrets were. He was running in excess of 90 miles per hour in his Hydrosport, which was powered by a mild 225 horsepower Merc. Although he continued purchasing minor parts from manufacturers, he became very disappointed with their quality and durability. When things didn’t fit, he would remanufacture the item and make it fit properly. (In those days, many products were semi-rough.)

After making numerous parts for him and his friends, he soon decided to go into a full production business. More than 25 years ago, Bob manufactured his own jack plate, which featured multiple settings. Bob has always favored one part with many variables. He feels ft gives his customers more for their money. His background, which included experience with hydrodynamics and the flow of metals, came in handy when he designed his own nose cone as

f you or your hot-boating friends are geared toward outboards, Bob’s Machine Shop of Ruskin, Florida, should be on the top of your list of best friends. Bob’s Machine Shop manufactures a complete line of performance options and unique parts designed to increase

mileage and performance while conserving fuel. And what better place to live than Florida for your year-round research and development of marine parts?

Pump assemblies for hydraulic lift plates are lined up in the assembly room.

Bob Icenogle shows off a demo outboard engine with the full Bob’s Machine Shop treatment, including a Mercury lightweight cowling, hydraulic lift, stabilizer plate, low-water-pickup nose cone and a High Performer Torque Tamer.

Benny Tidwell holds a ten-inch Max Jack hydraulic lift plate.