Is anyone familiar with this boat type?
Perception Vagabond Cruiser Series
Green Plastic of some kind?
14 ft. long and about 30 in. wide
Big cockpit
Heavy
It has been sitting for at least 20 years, but is in very good condition. I have not paddled it yet, I need to get it inspected and registered first.
Any idea what years Perception made this model?
Any idea what its targeted use was?
Any input would be appreciated.
30 inches wide?
Rec boat. Cockpit size would give you a hint whether it was intended for more open deck uses like fishing or more straight on paddling.
What a deal!
Now that I’ve scraped years of dust off of it and gave it a coat of 303, this thing looks brand new.
The owner really had no idea what it was worth. We settled on $100. I’m really pleased with this unexpected find!
My first thought when I saw it was what a great fishing boat. I could probably duck hunt out of it too, seeing how wide it is.
I don’t remember seeing anything like it (especially in poly) “back in the day” before paddling became the sport it is now. But my memory isn’t what it used to be.
I would still like to know how old it really is, I’m sure they will want too know when I take it to be inspected.
inpsected?
Nice find, congrats.
I noticed that you mentioned inspected. Is that, and a registration, required in Ohio and most states? Not that inspections are a bad thing but up here in NB, if you can drag it to the river you can use it.
What do they check for, thwarts, no holes, general condition?
roy
Ohio Registration
Yup, registration before you put that thing on the water in Ohio! Something like an $80 fine if it’s not registered and they do look. It’s only $15 for 3 yrs. and all the funds stay in Division of Watercraft, so it’s not really as bad as it could be. Though, don’t know what he’s talking about an inspection, we’ve registered I don’t know how many boats and never taken them in or with us to do so.
Ohio Inspections
I ran into a ranger while putting in at one of Ohio’s State Parks (Buck Creek) and he treated me to an impromptu inspection. He was mostly looking for registration and PFD’s on board. Pretty nice guy. He gave me a sticker showing that we passed (and he was impressed with the throw bag!)
Inspection is new to me too!
Since the owner did not have a registration, and the boat did not have any OH numbers on it, I called the ODW before I bought it.
They said:
Since canoes and kayaks only need to be registered not titled, all I needed was a bill of sale. It did not seem to matter that the person I bought it off of was not the original owner.
I am required to have it inspected at the coast guard station. (I’ve no idea what they will look at) I guess they will check (somehow?) to see if it was reported stolen.
They will then issue me a registration.
The ease of this really doesn’t make me feel good. I own other canoes and kayaks. (All registered in OH) What would stop someone from taking one of my boats, scraping the numbers off, write up a fake bill of sale, and then register it in their name?
The person I bought it off of assured me it was not stolen, and put in writing that he would return my money if I could not get it registered. He really is a nice old guy, the reason they were having the garage sale is because they are selling their house and moving into an assisted living community. I hope I never get old!
I’ll let you all know how it goes!
Registration
The more I think about this, the more it bugs me how easy it would be to steal a boat!
Has anyone done this inspection before?
What are the rules in other states?
What do the guys who make their own boats do?
in other states
They just steal your boat and sell it or start using it. I found my stolen boat had been used as a sled to drag passengers done a gravel road behind an atv. They then fixed it with great stuff and duck tape and paddled it some before I found it three ponds away from where we had been keeping it.
yes I have
the inspection is nothing. it is a safety inspection that consistas of checking that you have a PFD on board. It oddly enough DOES NOT require a paddle. you get a sweet sticker. I forced them to give me one when I registered my OT Blast…because I wanted the sticker. It is not required to have inspection to be registered.
Your local Division of Watercraft office is where to go to get registered, or you can do it by mail for a special sticker ($20, not $15, but it is only one sticker, not that mess of letters and numbers on both sides). Look online for it, that is how my canoe got registered.
NOW as far as theft…you can’t just scrape off the registration numbers. The registration numbers and sticker (like your license plate sticker) corispond to your Hull Identification Number (HIN). Granted this is not the greatest system, but it is better than no registration. I had a kayak stolen, and I bet that they will not try to reregister the boat when the inspection is up next year. But if I see it (a 12 foot tan Victory Classic 12 with chrome girl stickers on the rear deck) I have a chance to get it back.
Now when you had the guy write up a bill of sale…you have 45 days after that to float around with no registration.
Liveoutside
What about visitors?
Not really planing a trip to Ohio anytime, but what about visitors to your state. There seems to be enough rivers that a kayaker from out of state, would want to put in for a quick paddle.
Are they required to register, get a temperary permit, or ???
Don
Ohio visitors…
are required to have their boats properly registered according to the state of residence of the owner.
As far as the inspection goes, the Div. of Watercraft could have been referring to a HIN inspection. Many older boats or self built boats did not have 12 digit HINs. These must be taken to a watercraft office and inspected to insure they are seaworthy and then are assigned a 12 digit HIN so they can be properly registered.
Thats about how it goes in most states.
– Last Updated: Jun-16-06 8:58 PM EST –
They generally bow to the requirements of your home state as far as registration goes.
You Ohio folks may be surprised to find that as in most states that the state legislature decides where your registration money actually ends up. Even though it initially goes to the account earmarked for boats and recreation, rest assured it is not staying there.
I have been researching where these registration fees and taxes go and in just about every state, the Department of Natural Resources or Division of Watercraft (fill in your state's name for the agency) budget is a fraction of what they are collecting, with the rest going to balance state budgets, add extra money to education and a ton of other purposes other than what was intended.
Some states have instituted canoe registration to get additional Federal funds which are paid based on the number of registered boats a state has. Very little of this money gets where it is supposed to go either and even less actually gets back to paddlers as most funds go to facilities designed for power boats. Personally if I was paying a dollar a year, I would feel gyped.
The really fun part about Ohio…
is that legally, ALL watercraft need to be registered. “Inflatables” in included in the legalese. I asked when I registered my Innova, and they said yes, that includes the 19.95 special from wal-mart. If only that were really enforced, the DNR would have money coming out of it’s behind.
Registration is not a problem in Ohio
Even for a a boat with no previous registration etc as long as it has a HIN number.
Just did one recently
Send me an email at yulelinux@earthlink.net
visitors
In Michigan you don’t have to register canoes. What happens if I take it down to OH and paddle it?
Don’t know, but In MN…
If your boat has a registration from your home state you can bring your boat w/no problem. If there’s no registration in your state you need to register it in MN.
KY paddler in OH
We’re not required to register non-motorized craft in Kentucky, and are exempt in neighboring states. I’m sure the same applies to MI or any other visitor; your home state’s rules travel with you. I paddle East Fork Lake and The Little Miami River quite often.
Same rules apply for Indiana rivers, but they have a new Lake Permit that I’m not sure about.
Just don’t get caught without ID to prove where you’re from.
The DNR guys get bored in Minnesota
A few weeks ago, I camping was in a state park between Minneapolis and Duluth. It was a drive up site, miles from the water and a pair of DNR employees came around the campground to check boat registration.
It was about 7 pm, the boat was tied to the top of the car and I was pitching a tent. They were not able to write any citations that day.
The next morning, my group and I drove 20 miles to the east and went paddling in Wisconsin.
Skip Minnesota, it is the state where nothing is allowed. Paddle Wisconsin, your welcome there.
New York
Basically, in NYS you are registering the motor more than the actual boat. Boats that are human-powered and ONLY human-powered do not need a registration. If however, I decided to mount a small trolling motor to my canoe, I would have to register the boat. Here is the quote from the NYS DMV site:
The law requires you to register any boat that is motor-driven and is operated on public waterways in NYS. The boat requires a registration even if the motor is not the primary source of propulsion.