20' ma 1977
 

I've been waiting patiently to find a 20' with some good power on it, not in need of too much work right away. I've found one that I should be taking home this weekend if all goes well. I am headed down to the Keys to take a look and bring it back to Naples.

The owner text me a the title so I could check out the VIN and I noticed two things:

1) the VIN is an FLZ number, I believe this means that they lost the original title?
2) the manufacturer is listed as "baker&ow"

The boat is definitely a 20 MA based on the pictures. Do people change the VIN and manufacturers listed on the title if they do a major restoration?

It seems to me that it would be more marketable or desirable to leave the manufacturer as SeaCraft.

Thanks for any input

Chad

Sounds like some one lost the title and used one from a junk hull just to register it. The original would be worth more for sure. Some restore hull with out tittles and here in NC it is not to hard to get an home made title to use for registration. Hulls made before 1972 did not have HIN's and may be listed odd on titles due to they were issued years latter after production. NC did not require titles till 2004 so there are many hulls around here with out tittles and once you register an older hull here it comes back with an tittle now. I would look for the Hin on the back of the hull and make sure it matches the one on the tittle. The name may be different, I have seen variations but I think having the hin on there is the most important part. If it don't match it is just a random tittle. You can use it to register and get a id number and sticker and stick it on your hull so you can ride but if some one really checks it out, which no one really looks at this but insurance or cops if they try to Id an stolen boat, But that would be about all it would be useful for. I would use this to talk him down on price and restore it then get an home made tittle if you want the numbers to match up. You can also apply for an tittle for abandoned vessels, cost a little but if they cant locate a owner or lean they will reissue it to you.

Here is how the abandoned vessel tittle deal works:

http://www.ncwildlife.org/Portals/0/...VesselForm.pdf

If its the one I think it is, it has a 150 4 stroke on it, which looks like a real nice motor, but my concern would be that it would make the boat stern heavy. Just something to think about. Hope it works our for you either way.

Thanks for the info guys. I'm told the VIN on the transom is gone due to the transom replacement done a few years ago. I'll let you know how the sale works out. Good point in the four stroke hopefully she doesn't sit too low at the stern.

Not that this is the best way or probably not legal but I you wanted to make this work and being the tittle is from something else you could get you a 1"x6" piece of aluminum and stamp the number on off the title on it and screw it to the back of the hull. Or if the coast guard ever ask what type of boat you have you better respond it is a "what ever is on the tittle". I have see the commercial fisher guys do this on a lot of their junk to get it registered.

I have bought un-tittled hulls in the past but it aint worth the effort to get one if you don't get the right paper work with it sighed correctly when purchased.

Remember that the 20' hull was designed for the I-6 Merc, which weighs less than 300 lbs! With their relatively narrow beam, they're quite weight sensitive, but very efficient and so they perform best with small light motors. If you run offshore, they'll start to go airborne at about 20 kts when the seas get up to about 3', so you don't need a lot of power for that sort of use. Something around 115-130 hp is ideal, and I wouldn't recommend anything heavier than about a 150 2-stroke, maybe 375 lbs!