Documented boat - number plate

[DougSea]

Hey all,

Just got my USCG documentation paperwork back. Does anyone know of a source for getting a number plate made up? I suppose I could get a piece of teak and the router out and make one myself but if someone out there makes them it would probably be easier (and cheaper) to buy one.

(For those out there saying "How could it cost more to make it yourself?" - I'd HAVE to buy a letter and number template kit, a few new clamps for the router table, perhaps a new bit...you get the idea! )

BTW - the boat was not documented in the past so there's no number on her yet

[chiefrcd]

Doug,
My numbers have been fiberglassed into the hull under the quarter berth (28TE). I do know that what ever you do, it has to be pretty permanent.
As far as a visual number board, it's not required unless that is just something you want to do.

[DougSea]

Thanks for the reply Chief. I was actually referring to the "permanently affixed to the hull" requirement, this is not a component that would be normally visible. I was thinking of mounting it to the stringers in the area of the rudder.

So the follow on question is; how are the numbers affixed to your hull, and if they’re on a ‘plate’ of some kind, where did it come from?

[Tuxedo]

I got some stick on numbers and applied them to the visible side of a stringer in the engine room. Then, I coated the numbers with several coats of epoxy resin. Very permanent, very cheap, and very legal.

[Elizabeth Ann]

I went and bought 4" black letters and numbers (the same you would use for a reg. number on the hull) stuck them on the stringer next to my batteries and put a few coats of clear poly-urethane varnish on top. Don't know if that is 100% legit, but it is close to 100% permanent.

It seems like Chief's method and my method are similar, except he used fiberglass.

[DougSea]

Stick on numbers and epoxy - sounds like a winner to me!

Thanks guys!

[Elizabeth Ann]

Nice and cheap, right? Don't forget you are supossed to have the original documentation on the boat as well.

[DougSea]

Nice and cheap, right? Don't forget you are supossed to have the original documentation on the boat as well.

That I've got. It actually just showed up in the mail late last week. I've been running her under a 'non-resident' MD registration with her old name on the stern. Over the winter I'll get the new name and hailing port on, mount the numbers and find a good place to keep the documentation.

Can you do the renaming ceremony on the hard? Don't want to make Poseidon mad!

[tomcat rio]

..pretty sure the credit union required it...i guess i forgot what the advantages of documentation are...at the time there was a sales tax savings, but i don't think that's true anymore.
...
if it's theft related, maybe two sets of numbers should be applied. one set easily observable, and one set fairly well hidden.
...
Two cargo ships collided head-on in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico.
The cargo of the eastbound ship contained machine parts, hand tools and
135,000 gallons of red paint. The westbound ship was loaded with computer
parts, electronic testers and 37,000 gallons of brown paint. Thanks to
superior survival training, not a man or officer was lost, even though both
ships split apart and sank to the bottom.

The question: what happened to the survivors before their rescue three days later?

The answer: They were all marooned!

[tomcat rio]

...
http://sandblastedsigns.stores.yahoo.net/bodonu.html

[jleonard]

I took a pine board I had in my supply and routed out the numbers freehand. Painted the board white, inside the numbers black, and epoxied it to one of the stringers in the engine room.
Was simple and cheap and made a nice evening project.
Looks nice in the engine room too.

[chiefrcd]

Engine room.....ENGINE ROOM????? What's that??????

On my boat the words engine and room won't even "fit" in the same sentence unless you put the words " there isn't any" between them.

[Mariner]

Ours is like jleonard's. I don't think it's permenent enough to truly be legal, but it's good enough in my opinion. Surveyor mentioned it, but said it wasn't really a worry.

[SpaceCoaster]

Hey Tomcat! Thanks!



That Woodsigns shop is about 5 miles away from where I live and keep my boat. I just may drive over and pick one up.

Jorge

[jleonard]

I don't think it's permenent enough to truly be legal, but it's good enough in my opinion. Surveyor mentioned it, but said it wasn't really a worry.

It is legal according to a couple of surveryors I talked with. I guess it depends how one interperets the rules. The PO just had sticky numbers on the sound insulation....now that I know was not legal.
I think it would take some serious prying to get the board off...