Acquire a motor/engine for the boat (another adventure of its own).
Before taking out the boat with a motor, it must be registered.
Registering the boat
Visit the ky.gov Boat Titling page to see where to start. It says “Homemade boats must go through the Rebuilt Titling process.”
Visit the Fayette County Clerk office, go to the Rebuilts desk, and ask about registering a homebuilt boat. Receive forms TC 96-169 (Application for Vehicle or Hull Identification Number), TC 96-215 (Affidavit of Motor Vehicle Assembled from Wrecked or Salvaged Motor Vehicles), and TC 96-184 (Motor Boat Transaction Record/Application for Registration and/or Title). Receive instructions to fill out these forms, apply for a Hull Identification Number (HIN) through Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KTC) Frankfort using form TC 96-169, and then return to the County Clerk for the registration papers. The person at the desk was very friendly.
Fill out forms TC 96-169, TC 96-184, and TC 96-184.
Go have all three forms notarized, since they each have a notarization section.
Applying for that Hull Identification Number
Prepare to submit HIN application to KTC Frankfort. Check the Boat Titling page to double check everything is in order. Under “Applying for a Kentucky Issued HIN” it says “Complete form TC 96-169 - Application for Vehicle or Hull Identification Number, and attach the ownership documents as instructed.”
Figure out what ownership documents are required. Form TC 96-169 itself says “Rebuilt Proof of Ownership (pursuant to 601 KAR 9:200) NOTE: If the vehicle or boat does not have a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN/HIN), a minimum of five (5) years of ownership is required before applying for a VIN/HIN.”
I satisfied the five years of ownership requirement but the form did not say what documentation to submit to show ownership in that case, so to be safe I submitted all kept receipts from the materials to build the boat in 2009, thinking that would show both ownership and that has been 5+ years. (For vehicles or boats which are not homebuilt/rebuilt and which have a more conventional Proof of Ownership, the acceptable documents are more clearly defined).
Check the Boat Titling page to see how to submit the HIN application to KTC. It offers an email address and a mailing address, and states “Once your application has been approved, a HIN Authorization letter will be sent to you in the same manner it was received.”
Email completed/notarized TC 96-169 and scanned receipts to KYTCMVLBoat@ky.gov.
Getting the Hull Identification Number application approved
Wait two weeks for an email response, since the application was submitted via email.
Call KTC at (502) 564-1257 to check on the application status. Go through an automated system for a few minutes, entering numbers to indicate to the system that you would like to speak to Rebuilts.
Wait for five minutes for someone to pick up.
Someone answers and asks where your call should be directed. Tell them Rebuilts. They direct the call to Rebuilts.
Wait on hold for 15 minutes.
The automated system lets you know after 15 minutes that there is a high call volume at this time and wait times are longer than normal, so you can’t get through to someone right now. Leave your number with the system for someone to call you back.
Wait 20 minutes or so.
Someone from Rebuilts calls back. Ask them about the status of the HIN application. They inform that it was rejected since it did not contain the necessary documents. Ask where this rejection notice was sent, since it was expected via email. They inform that it was sent via mail. Ask for it to be sent via email. They do so. The person was very friendly.
Read the emailed rejection letter. It says that the application could not be approved for the following reasons: “Need Affidavit (TC 96-215 Form), Water patrol inspection, Need Boat Transaction Record (TC 96-184 Form), Need descriptive notarized labor statement explaining exactly what was done to repair the vehicle.”
Since these requirements for the HIN application had not been listed anywhere, call KTC at (502) 564-1257 for clarification to make sure you get it right the second time. Go through an automated system for a few minutes, entering numbers to indicate to the system that you would like to speak to Rebuilts.
Wait for five minutes for someone to pick up.
Someone answers and asks where your call should be directed. Tell them Rebuilts. They direct the call to Rebuilts.
Wait on hold for 15 minutes.
The automated system lets you know after 15 minutes that there is a high call volume at this time and wait times are longer than normal, so you can’t get through to someone right now. Leave your number with the system for someone to call you back.
Wait 20 minutes or so.
Someone from Rebuilts calls back. Explain the situation and that you want to double check you are submitting everything correctly this time. They say to submit the HIN application again, this time with all of the now requested documents, and to also submit a note with the documents explaining clearly that you are applying for a HIN and Title, and to put in the note a listing of the contents, per the phone conversation with KTC. They also say to contact Fish and Wildlife to find the correct person to inspect the boat. The person on the phone was very friendly.
Write a labor statement saying that you built the boat and describing the methods used.
Go have the labor statement notarized.
The Fish & Wildlife inspection
Since you have now learned that you need an inspection, call KY Fish & Wildlife at 800-858-1549. Explain that you need to have a boat inspected for Title & Registration, and ask who to contact. They instruct you to go to the website, find the Conservation Officer for the county, and contact them directly to schedule and conduct the inspection.
Visit the website and go to the “Find my County Contact” page. Search for Fayette County. Observe that there are no Conservation Officers listed (at the time of this writing, there is now a number listed for Conservation Officer), but there is a Fisheries Biologist and a School & Kid’s Summer Camp Program Leader. Call them both directly, explain that you need to register a boat and would like to find the county Conservation Officer to conduct an inspection, and ask them if they know who to contact. One is not sure and one says he will get back to you, but doesn’t.
Call KY Fish & Wildlife at 800-858-1549 again to explain that you were unable to find the Conservation Officer for Fayette County, and ask what to do. They say to call the Conservation Officer for Woodford County, and give you the phone number.
Just for fun, look on the Fish & Wildlife page to see if the Conservation Officer is listed for Woodford County. He is not. (Although this is fixed by the time of this writing).
Call the Woodford County Conservation Officer to schedule a boat inspection the next week. Schedule the inspection. He says that you’ll need a Hull Identification Number for his form, so to go ahead and apply for that. Explain that the whole reason you are having the inspection is because you were told it was needed in order to get the Hull Identification Number in the first place. Offer to contact the County Clerk for clarification.
Call the County Clerk to explain that the Hull Identification Number requires an inspection, and the inspection requires the Hull Identification Number. What to do? They say you can leave the HIN blank on the inspection form.
When the inspection time comes, wait for a couple of hours since he is late (but did at least give a heads up in the morning that he might be running behind).
Fill out the Division of Law Enforcement Title & Registration Inspection form with the officer, and wait for 15 minutes while he does some other paperwork. Let him know the County Clerk said it was fine to leave the HIN blank on the inspection form.
Walk down to the boat for the inspection. He says something like “Yep, looks good. Nice boat.” All done.
Getting the Hull Identification Number application approved (Round Two)
Compile all of the requested documents for the Hull Identification Number application: TC 96-169 (notarized), TC 96-215 (notarized), TC 96-184 (notarized), Division of Law Enforcement Title & Registration Inspection, labor statement with receipts (notarized).
Write a nice cover note indicating that you have spoken with KTC over the phone a few times, are applying for a HIN and Title, and have attached the requested documents.
Compile these into a PDF and submit it to KTC via email.
Wait two weeks for an email response, since the application was submitted via email.
Call KTC at (502) 564-1257 to check on the application status. Go through an automated system for a few minutes, entering numbers to indicate to the system that you would like to speak to Rebuilts.
Wait for five minutes for someone to pick up.
Someone answers and asks where your call should be directed. Tell them Rebuilts. They direct the call to Rebuilts.
Wait on hold for 15 minutes.
The automated system lets you know after 15 minutes that there is a high call volume at this time and wait times are longer than normal, so you can’t get through to someone right now. Leave your number with the system for someone to call you back.
Wait 20 minutes or so.
Someone from Rebuilts calls back. Ask them about the status of the HIN application, since you have not heard back yet. They say that they have not received it. Say that you are pretty sure they should have, and ask if they could check again. They check again and sure enough, they had received it a couple of weeks ago. Ask if they can process the application. They do. They were very friendly.
Five minutes later, receive an approval letter from KTC with the HIN for your boat.
Get your stickers
Take all of the paperwork back to the Fayette County Clerk office, along with the newly acquired HIN, and pay the boat registration fee.
Receive the registration number and stickers.
Use your boat
Get some decals to put the registration number on your boat, and put that on the bow along with the stickers from the County Clerk.
Take the boat to a nearby lake and go for a ride with some friends/family. It is immediately worth the effort!