Hello all. First post here.

What does a plain standard and normal registered boat, if modified to
very unusual characteristics has to comply with in order to legally run
?
Does it have to be presented to some authority for evaluation ?
If planning to home build or modify, would presenting its plans in
advance be a better choice than spending the effort to risk a later
negation ? Or plans is not enough, but engineering calculations be
needed ?
Thanks,
Miguel

Miguel,

I am sure that this is somewhat a local issue, but I have built and
registered a few boats in several states. When I was done or nearly so
with building, I would take a box of material receipts and sometimes
sketches or pictures to the local authority. An individual in said
authority would look (usually with no exmanination) at the box of
receipts and ask searching questions like: "How long is it?" or "Did you
really build this?" and complete a Certificate of Origin. You take the
CoO to the registering authority and give then money. If the first
person you sspoke to did not, then this person will give a Hull
Identification Number to stamp into the hull and the registration number
for the local registration so they can collect personal property taxes.

Nobody actually cares if it floats. (As long as they get your money.)

The USCG has some standards that they can inspect to, but don't expect
to see them ever. You will not unless you force the local law
enforcement to pay attention to the stupid things you are going.

If you modify an existing boat, there is no way the authorities can know
that it is not box stock.

Good luck

Matt Colie





Externet wrote:
Hello all. First post here.

What does a plain standard and normal registered boat, if modified to
very unusual characteristics has to comply with in order to legally run
?
Does it have to be presented to some authority for evaluation ?
If planning to home build or modify, would presenting its plans in
advance be a better choice than spending the effort to risk a later
negation ? Or plans is not enough, but engineering calculations be
needed ?
Thanks,
Miguel

You certainly might have problems if you want to carry passengers for hire,
insure it for liability or damage, or sell it.
"Externet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello all. First post here.

What does a plain standard and normal registered boat, if modified to
very unusual characteristics has to comply with in order to legally run
?
Does it have to be presented to some authority for evaluation ?
If planning to home build or modify, would presenting its plans in
advance be a better choice than spending the effort to risk a later
negation ? Or plans is not enough, but engineering calculations be
needed ?
Thanks,
Miguel

Externet wrote:

What does a plain standard and normal registered boat, if modified to
very unusual characteristics has to comply with in order to legally run ?
Does it have to be presented to some authority for evaluation ?

That depends very much where in the world you are. Most likely the
authorities are more interested in collecting tax than in seeing how well
it works. They may require an insurance, and the insurance company has
reason to be more interested in the safety of the thing.

Of course, if you start making money with it (carrying passangers, cargo,
fishing, even selling it) the tax authorities are even more interested, and
some other authority may even care about the safety of it all.

-H

Thanks, gentlemen.
Interesting how a couple of opinions mention the importance of the
location. Am in San Francisco, but even if the local authority is
'easy' to deal with about a heavily modified craft; this brings the
question what reaction would sailing to a foreign port authorithy
bring, for a US registered monster, if they have to swallow it, or can
forbid it from sailing...

It would be a not 'for hire' craft; which may ease the insurance part
and taxes. There will be no intention to sell at all... actually
nobody would want such animal.

The tempting magnitude of lunatism could be an aircraft bolted onto a
registered catamaran (no mast); leaving room for an insurance inspector
to say "Nope. Cannot insure that thing" That could be a problem. No
intention to fly, just to go quite fast never taking off.
(keeping the fire extinguishes they want to see, the lights they want
to see, the meticulous location of the regitration numbering, life
vests...)

Well, will digest more about lunatisms...

Hmmmm... more like a non-airworthy 6-8 seater pusher -if such
contraption exists- or converted to V8 pusher, out of a boneyard, on a
21' cat, aiming for ~60mph...
Oh boy! who are they coming with that straight jacket ?

Externet wrote:

The tempting magnitude of lunatism could be an aircraft bolted onto a
registered catamaran (no mast); leaving room for an insurance inspector
to say "Nope. Cannot insure that thing" That could be a problem. No
intention to fly, just to go quite fast never taking off.

Let's be nice. I've been playing with just that idea. Sort of: a
flying boat without the wings.

--Aha! You need to check out the WIG page:
http://www.se-technology.com/wig/index.php
--There are probably other pages for what you're doing but this is
the only one I've found..

--
"Steamboat Ed" Haas : Why do weekend projects
Hacking the Trailing Edge! : always last a month??
www.nmpproducts.com
---Decks a-wash in a sea of words---

steamer wrote:
--Aha! You need to check out the WIG page:
http://www.se-technology.com/wig/index.php
--There are probably other pages for what you're doing but this is
the only one I've found..

Thanks. I have that one bookmarked.

If anyone is really going to do this sort of thing, it seems to me so
far that the best approach to actually doing it at home is to use the
design of a WW1-era flying boat. I found sufficently-detailed plans
for two Russian two-seaters from 1918 or thereabouts. Construction
seems quite possible. Those plans flew well (until so many other
Russian airplanes), and,. of course, they floated.

In the meantime, I have turkey eat.