Anyone know of a kayak company called Great Lakes Kayak? I just bought an unmarked boat but there is a hull ID number beginning with GLK. I’d like to find out how old this boat might be and whether the company is still in business.
identifying used Kayak
All boats are supposed to be registered with the US Coast Guard. Manufacturers are pretty good about this and SOMETIMES the initial owner. On small boats like kayaks, subsequent owners rarely register with the Coast Guard, but it IS a good idea.
Anyway, you can go to the US Coast Guard website and enter the boat ID number and you should be able to get some basic information.
It would be a good time to register you as the owner as well.
Not in a lot of places
Six sea kayaks which live in NY except when they go to Maine, NH, CT, MA RI or MD. No requirement they be registered in any of those places. (And are not.)
HIN are supposed to be
registered with the Coast Guard…at least the Manufacturs Identification Code
Individuals do not register themselves with the Coast Guard. The CG does encourage paddlers to put contact numbers and names in the craft in case the vessel is found loose. It may save them from having to initat a search They do have stickers available.
Lets not confuse hull identification with having to ( or not) registering a craft in a particular state.
Again that would be at a State level, not the Coast Guard
To the original question I don’t know a thing about Great Lakes kayaks… Its possible they were made pre HIN requirement.
As I recall…
…they went out of business in the late 90s. Does it have really horrible gelcoat ???
Is the boat an Eddyline?
A company handling Eddyline in Lake Bluff, IL, recently closed its retail store after another store in Rockford, IL, began to carry Eddyline. The Lake Bluff operation was a distributor, whom I think closed the store so as not to compete with a retail store.
Can’t be as Eddyline’s HIN
starts with EDY. The poster’s HIN starts with GLK.