Hmm....sounds painless.

Glad to hear they got rid of the "big ugly number" law.

Maybe Ohio is a good state to register one's boat in--if you need to register it at all.

Non-Ohio residents: if your state is pursuing a registration process, maybe have them look at Ohio's model. If we can get our registration dollars to go toward facilities for non-motorized boats, registration is money well-spent.

Shawn

: There were a number of posts several weeks ago about getting a HIN for the
: registration process in OH.

: I had a very good experience with the system. I called the local Watercraft
: office in Springfield Ohio. I was able to talk with the officer who set up
: a time to come to my home several days later to measure and put his eyes
: on the boat I was constructing. He did not require that I be present,
: though I was on a vacation day.

: The inspection consisted of measuring the length and seeing what materials
: made up the boat.

: About a week after the "inspection" I received a HIN and a HIN
: plate in the mail. There was no cost for any of the above.

: I stuck the plate on the aft starboard surface of the boat and put a layer of
: epoxy over it, then a coat of varnish.

: With the HIN and the associated paperwork, I was able to mail off for the $20
: three-year registration which now does not require the large numbers on
: the bow of the boat, only a post card sized registration sticker aft of
: the cockpit.

: This is not as easy as the states which do not require a registration, but
: was easy enough for a beginner.

: (The officer told me that he "inspects" about 10 homebuilt boats a
: month, and that many are cedar strip canoes. Mine was the first cedar
: strip kayak he had seen. I asked about the possibility of needing to
: verify the HIN was put on the right boat as mentioned here. He said it
: might happen, but that it would just increase the amount of time he had to
: spend looking at boats.)