ok so my roomate is buying a custom built motorcycle today,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=4556016949#ebayphotohosting
this bike to be exact.

well technically its a custom bike, if we had to we could scrape the vin off with a die grinder and just title it as a custom bike.

does anyone have any idea how to go about doing this?

dont you still need a VIN to register it..

what im saying is, if its a custom bike , you would have to make a vin. i mean how the heck does OCC and places like that make bikes, they are from scratch.

they are "dealers/fabricators" and have the leagel athority to asign vin's.

This varies from state to state..
Over the years, I have "found" several motorcycles that have been abandoned at the local colleges..

You can usually do a little research and find out who the last owner was, contact them, and title it that way..  but in one case for me the last owner was deceased..

I had to fill out a lot of paperwork and have a state trooper verify that I did indeed have possession of the vehicle and it took about a month, but I was able to get it titled..

One way you can do it (and I have done it this way once) is find a wrecker service that is willing to say they towed it from private property and put a lien on it..
Then you can buy it from the wrecker service for what they say is owed on it.. Kind of like a police auction..

Make sure the laws in your state allow for this sort of thing before you do anything!

There are ways to do it, but trying to make up your own VIN and register it?? I don't know how well that will work.. :dunno:

So you've inherited a pile of tubular aluminun (or titanium, or chrome-moly, etc), a welder, a pile of bike parts and a dream. After several hours of fabrication (and instruction on good, safe welds...that should get some attention... ) your custom design is finished and now your are waiting for the Discovery Channel to offer you a contract for your own show.  In the mean time, you need a VIN or your creation will just be a show bike.

Every state has an agency office to assign a VIN to a custom or one-off motor vehicle after it has been inspected by their agent. You would have to make an appointment with the DOT, DOMV, etc. office that does this. In some states, the inspector will come to your garage/house/shop rather than you having to trailer the vehicle to their office.

Davipu is correct regarding larger operations like OCC or any number of two or four wheel custom vehicle manufacturers. Their manufacturing process and their products conform to the state and government regs for making a vehicle. I am certain they are inspected regularly to make sure their process conforms. They may or may not have a bank of preassigned VINs issued from the state. That will vary from state to state.

So, in short, do your homework and find out how the particular state you hope to get a VIN from does it. This link will give you a link to multiple state DMVs. Click on the "DMVs" link on the left side bar and follow the results to your state of interest.

It does not matter that the vehicle in our case is a motorcycle. Every state has a legal definition of what exactly constitutes a motorcycle, a motor vehicle, and/or several other types of vehicles.

It ain't magic.  It is just legal stuff.

thanks guys, i think what i might do is try to track down the original owner. or call up a towing company that does alot with bikes. they might help us out. we have the original vin for what bike it was, just need to figure out who owned it. a drag racing team owned it before the previous owner and it was just a drag bike so no need to registar it. i will try and contact them and see whats up.. thanks soo much.   btw riding a custom chopper is BAD ASS

What the hell is your roommate thinking?  $500 for that hunk of shaZam!?     A fool and his money are easily parted.

Quote from: SmartDrugWhat the hell is your roommate thinking?  $500 for that hunk of shaZam!?     A fool and his money are easily parted.

If you can't say anything nice...
Don't say anything at all..

Quote from: Faxxxy

Quote from: SmartDrugWhat the hell is your roommate thinking?  $500 for that hunk of shaZam!?     A fool and his money are easily parted.

If you can't say anything nice...
Don't say anything at all..

i lub you! :kiss:

Quote from: '04gs500fi lub you! :kiss:

:mrgreen:  :c heers:    :lol:  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

This is a forum designed to help people with motorcycle issues/questions/comments especially those pertaining to the GS500E/F.  Would my comments not follow those guidelines?  Would you not agree that a rusted bike that was used for drag racing, with dirty carbs(that apparently still runs well, how that is possible is beyond me...), numbers that do or do not match(the seller is clearly a moron), no bill of sale and no readily available title would be too much of a hassle and probably not worth the time/trouble?   That's all I said buddy...  advice for someone who, from the sounds of things, clearly needs it.  :nana:

Quote from: SmartDrugThis is a forum designed to help people with motorcycle issues/questions/comments especially those pertaining to the GS500E/F.  Would my comments not follow those guidelines?  Would you not agree that a rusted bike that was used for drag racing, with dirty carbs(that apparently still runs well, how that is possible is beyond me...), numbers that do or do not match(the seller is clearly a moron), no bill of sale and no readily available title would be too much of a hassle and probably not worth the time/trouble?   That's all I said buddy...  advice for someone who, from the sounds of things, clearly needs it.  :nana:

well first off if you knew anything about welding and bare metal and fabrication , you would know that the rust you see is minor surface rust that shows on all custom bikes that have not been all the way sealed and painted yet. the bike is originally a 1978 kz650.  the motor has individual throttle bodies, and has been jetted properly, I dont know where you get off with the statement "apparently it still runs well" the owner took very good care of it and it runs like a dream. and the sound is amazing. I drove this for an hour today straight on the way home for my friend. it is so comfortable and a damn good bike, the welds are perfect and very well crafted we are finishing the project the seller started. i dont see where any of those comments helped me out at all, and clearly i dont need advice> i checked out the bike and rode it and told my roomate to buy it. it turnes heads more than any assembly bike .

btw it handles super nice as well, it gets down into the turns pretty well. and took a beating on downtown city roads. my next bike will be a custom chopper im going to start working on this summer. I own 4 cars and a bike and ive rebuilt all of them. my latest projects are a 76 volvo 244 which is getting a 302 from ford racing and a 83 245tic, ever gotten your ass wooped by a wagon? this one willl do it .

I think this bike is an amazing buy and with time will be titled. it has all the original vins. we were just trying to get around having to get the title, but we are calling a company that will help us out and call it a tow bike if we cant find the original owner.  and talk about FAST mmmm this bike is super fast

i seriously still want to know why you think I need advice about buying that bike? and he bought it for 900$. because its mechanically and structurally perfect.


learn the history of the motorcycle from begining to present, I dont think you would have posted what you did if you knew

these kind friends of mine on this awesome gs forum were helping me out. and I thank them for it.

ps: my GS is still the most fun bike ive ever ridden.

Quote from: Susuki_Jahok so my roomate is buying a custom built motorcycle today,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=4556016949#ebayphotohosting
this bike to be exact.

well technically its a custom bike, if we had to we could scrape the vin off with a die grinder and just title it as a custom bike.

does anyone have any idea how to go about doing this?

Trying to get a new VIN for a custom-built bike is going to involve paperwork, and an inspection... which will require mufflers, turn signals, illuminated license plate, etc.  

I think your best bet is to try to track-down the title, and get the bike registered as a regular KZ.  Then if that fails, add muffler, license plate and signals and try for the salvage title.

ok first off you would file a form "Assembled from Parts", it must pass all state vehicular requirements for that perticular vehicle, things vary throught the states.  lights, speedo with odometer, brakes, tires and such. If your state has a safety inspection it must pass that too.  you will have to show proof of where and how you got the parts, All the parts. From that point IF it passes DOT inspection(fee) it gets titled as the current year (2005) custom

Quote from: Susuki_Jah

Quote from: SmartDrugThis is a forum designed to help people with motorcycle issues/questions/comments especially those pertaining to the GS500E/F.  Would my comments not follow those guidelines?  Would you not agree that a rusted bike that was used for drag racing, with dirty carbs(that apparently still runs well, how that is possible is beyond me...), numbers that do or do not match(the seller is clearly a moron), no bill of sale and no readily available title would be too much of a hassle and probably not worth the time/trouble?   That's all I said buddy...  advice for someone who, from the sounds of things, clearly needs it.  :nana:

well first off if you knew anything about welding and bare metal and fabrication , you would know that the rust you see is minor surface rust that shows on all custom bikes that have not been all the way sealed and painted yet. the bike is originally a 1978 kz650.  the motor has individual throttle bodies, and has been jetted properly, I dont know where you get off with the statement "apparently it still runs well" the owner took very good care of it and it runs like a dream. and the sound is amazing. I drove this for an hour today straight on the way home for my friend. it is so comfortable and a damn good bike, the welds are perfect and very well crafted we are finishing the project the seller started. i dont see where any of those comments helped me out at all, and clearly i dont need advice> i checked out the bike and rode it and told my roomate to buy it. it turnes heads more than any assembly bike .

btw it handles super nice as well, it gets down into the turns pretty well. and took a beating on downtown city roads. my next bike will be a custom chopper im going to start working on this summer. I own 4 cars and a bike and ive rebuilt all of them. my latest projects are a 76 volvo 244 which is getting a 302 from ford racing and a 83 245tic, ever gotten your ass wooped by a wagon? this one willl do it .

I think this bike is an amazing buy and with time will be titled. it has all the original vins. we were just trying to get around having to get the title, but we are calling a company that will help us out and call it a tow bike if we cant find the original owner.  and talk about FAST mmmm this bike is super fast

i seriously still want to know why you think I need advice about buying that bike? and he bought it for 900$. because its mechanically and structurally perfect.


learn the history of the motorcycle from begining to present, I dont think you would have posted what you did if you knew

these kind friends of mine on this awesome gs forum were helping me out. and I thank them for it.

ps: my GS is still the most fun bike ive ever ridden.

So what is your point??  I am sorry but that bike most likely rides like crap just because of the age and design.  Yes, it is a 650 but air cooled so it its limited to what you can do to it before it deciede to overheat and die.  You have narrow spoked wheels which limit the quality of tire that you can find that will fit it that will actually stick to the pavment.  You have a single font disc brake when added to a narrow skinny bias ply tire does not add much to the stopping end of the bike.  How about the small forks maybe 35mm or 37mm and what about rear shocks?

Do not get me wrong because the bike looks cool but as far as performance maybe in a straight line but forget the corners and totally forget last minute braking.  

Again it looks cool and that is about all that I can say that you might think to be positive but i also think the AMC Pacer looked cool when it came out in the mid 70's and look what everone ended up saying about it.

I guess it all depends on the ride or image we want to have!

Quote from: tkm433

Quote from: Susuki_Jah

Quote from: SmartDrugThis is a forum designed to help people with motorcycle issues/questions/comments especially those pertaining to the GS500E/F.  Would my comments not follow those guidelines?  Would you not agree that a rusted bike that was used for drag racing, with dirty carbs(that apparently still runs well, how that is possible is beyond me...), numbers that do or do not match(the seller is clearly a moron), no bill of sale and no readily available title would be too much of a hassle and probably not worth the time/trouble?   That's all I said buddy...  advice for someone who, from the sounds of things, clearly needs it.  :nana:

well first off if you knew anything about welding and bare metal and fabrication , you would know that the rust you see is minor surface rust that shows on all custom bikes that have not been all the way sealed and painted yet. the bike is originally a 1978 kz650.  the motor has individual throttle bodies, and has been jetted properly, I dont know where you get off with the statement "apparently it still runs well" the owner took very good care of it and it runs like a dream. and the sound is amazing. I drove this for an hour today straight on the way home for my friend. it is so comfortable and a damn good bike, the welds are perfect and very well crafted we are finishing the project the seller started. i dont see where any of those comments helped me out at all, and clearly i dont need advice> i checked out the bike and rode it and told my roomate to buy it. it turnes heads more than any assembly bike .

btw it handles super nice as well, it gets down into the turns pretty well. and took a beating on downtown city roads. my next bike will be a custom chopper im going to start working on this summer. I own 4 cars and a bike and ive rebuilt all of them. my latest projects are a 76 volvo 244 which is getting a 302 from ford racing and a 83 245tic, ever gotten your ass wooped by a wagon? this one willl do it .

I think this bike is an amazing buy and with time will be titled. it has all the original vins. we were just trying to get around having to get the title, but we are calling a company that will help us out and call it a tow bike if we cant find the original owner.  and talk about FAST mmmm this bike is super fast

i seriously still want to know why you think I need advice about buying that bike? and he bought it for 900$. because its mechanically and structurally perfect.


learn the history of the motorcycle from begining to present, I dont think you would have posted what you did if you knew

these kind friends of mine on this awesome gs forum were helping me out. and I thank them for it.

ps: my GS is still the most fun bike ive ever ridden.

So what is your point??  I am sorry but that bike most likely rides like crap just because of the age and design.  Yes, it is a 650 but air cooled so it its limited to what you can do to it before it deciede to overheat and die.  You have narrow spoked wheels which limit the quality of tire that you can find that will fit it that will actually stick to the pavment.  You have a single font disc brake when added to a narrow skinny bias ply tire does not add much to the stopping end of the bike.  How about the small forks maybe 35mm or 37mm and what about rear shocks?

Do not get me wrong because the bike looks cool but as far as performance maybe in a straight line but forget the corners and totally forget last minute braking.  

Again it looks cool and that is about all that I can say that you might think to be positive but i also think the AMC Pacer looked cool when it came out in the mid 70's and look what everone ended up saying about it.

I guess it all depends on the ride or image we want to have!

i just think its funny how people can tell all this stuff from looking at the bike. look ive stated a couple of times how it rides and how well it runs. I swap engines in cars and work on engines and brake parts and anything mechanical you name it. im not an idiot when it comes to this stuff.I am a total gear head, im a muscle head, i live for speed and things that are loud and turn heads. about the braking... it brakes better than my GS . it is low to the ground and a totally different ride. when I first saw the bike I thought it was going to be a crappy ride, but the seat takes most of the abuse and works like shocks on your ass lol.  I would encourage those of you who think that these type of bikes are bad riding bikes, to actually ride choppers and understand the amazing feeling you can get from a custom bike and all the heads you turn while you set off alarms and blow ear drums with your straight pipes. im a bad ass at heart, not a road rider on a small bike. I see my GS as a bad ass bike. I do things to it to make it look and feel bad ass. Im not into riding a motorcycle because I want to be safe and comfortable, thats what I have cars for. to me riding a motorcycle it to defy the normality of transportation. so maybe when you think somthing might ride like crap, i think it rides like a dream. jut dont knock somthing till youve tried it. because not a single one of you knows what has gone into the bike .

the thread was posted about obtaining a title for a custom bike, which most of you answered to. getting on the subject of the bike it self , well i dont know why that arose.

anyways thanks to you guys who actually answered my question.

im going to help my roomate track down the original owner. hopefully we can find him. if not we will try to get a towing company to help us out

ok....
grinding of a VIN....is a federal offense
cops don't find any humor there

You're right, I don't know a blessed bloody thing about welding, but I do know that 1970's designs are far inferior to anything on the road today(at least in terms of safety, tire width, brakes, shocks, etc.).    I was just giving you a heads up that your friend might be getting into a basket case or a bike that could at least be dangerous(how the hell do I know that you know what you're talking about?).  Anyway, I was just giving advice for your friend,  apparently you like being "a badass" when it comes to posting too....  enjoy it, though it won't make you many friends...  Incidentely, I don't know what has gone into the bike, but you're buying an untitled bike over eBay, neither do you man...  

69 Posts.... SWEET!