safely cleaning a boat vin plate

[jon_boat]

I just bought a 1436 flat bottom jon boat from a friend and I am trying to figure out a way to clean off the vin plate so I can get the boat registered. You can see the numbers "21825" stamped in it but I also need to know the brand and year of this boat. Anyone know a good way to clean off paint without damaging what might be underneath it? Any help is apreciated, thanks!

Here's a few pics of it, sorry if they are too big

 

[Bondo]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

You can see the numbers "21825" stamped in it but I also need to know the brand and year of this boat.

Ayuh,.. There's Nothing but those #s on that tag...

 

[jon_boat]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

what do these numbers mean? and if this isn't the vin plate, where would i find it at on this type of boat?

 

[Bondo]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

what do these numbers mean?

Ayuh,... My guess is, it's pre-73,+ it's the 21825th 1 they built....

Post-73 the numbers contain some Info, but the start with Letters, designating the Manufacturer,+ end with the last 2 digits being the Year....

 

[jon_boat]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

where could i find a vin plate or any kind of info on this boat? would it be posted on a specific part of the boat? the plate i found was at the left rear of the boat on the outside. it was screwed on and the numbers were upside down.

 

[tx1961whaler]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

That may be all there is. It may even be a state issued HIN.
Before 1973, the HIN was not required from the manufacturer.
I notice in the pics that it looks like the old registration numbers are somewhat visible. Can you use those to register it?

 

[jon_boat]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

yeah, im going to try cleaning that off too and see what i can get from that. im in arkansas and i think have to get it assessed before i get it registered. all i have is a bill of sale and wasnt sure if i needed a manufacturer and vin number or not. what does state issued HIN mean? if you can't tell, im new to this boat thing, lol. thanks again.

 

[JoLin]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

What happened to the registration, and why can't it be replaced?

As for finding additional info on the boat, if it isn't in the open somewhere, then there isn't any and I sincerely doubt you'll find any info anywhere. What you have is a simple aluminum jon boat. It's the type that was and can be manufactured by literally hundreds of large and small companies, most of which have probably gone belly-up since that boat was built.

If you can't find any paperwork or identification on the boat itself, you'll have to live with whatever your DMV says to do, or leave it unregistered.

 

[jon_boat]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

I asked my friend and he's not sure what ever happened to the old registration. It was his dad's old boat and itS been sitting for three years. I'll probably just call the DMV and see what they need to get it registered. Thanks again for all the help. This is a great site for info.

 

[halas]

Re: safely cleaning a boat vin plate

Try cleaning it off with denatured alcohol.
If that wont work use lacquer thinner although that might remove the info you want to reveal as well.