In reply to 914Driver :
No, it was on Craigslist and I met with the seller in a nice nearby town in a beautiful neighborhood (just saying that it wasn’t abandoned. He was just selling it because it had been sitting in his backyard too long and he had no time for it)
Im assuming since the 80’s, it’s been ridden and passed on a dozen times and somewhere along the way, paperwork was just discarded.
Im getting more curious now due to the low cc’s and it’s age that there could be loopholes...
Pretty positive I don’t need a title but I’m reading that I would need the previous registration. I can’t see how that would ever happen.
Can't you simply contact the seller and at least get a bill of sale, if not a copy of the previous registration?
This would seem to be the obvious solution, instead of the legally questionable fake BOS or the other shenanigans.
If you sell it to your brother then you would be giving him a bill of sale. Just because you don't have a bill of sale doesn't mean you can't give him one.
Stampie said:If you sell it to your brother then you would be giving him a bill of sale. Just because you don't have a bill of sale doesn't mean you can't give him one.
That’s what I was thinking too.
As to getting a Bill Of Sale, it was at night in a town I’m not very familiar with in a neighborhood I’ve never been in and at night. There’s no way I’ll find the right house.
If you are able to pull any revistration history from the plate that's on it, that should give you the sellers address.
Really know nothing about registering vehicles in your area. I live in Alabama and built a car from scratch so their was no previous VIN. This state has what is known as a Assembler Title. However it requires receipts or notarized recites plus a notarized letter of the history and work done. Fairly easy as long as you follow the steps exactly.
I would be carful about how much work or money spent on this project until you find out if you can get a title or determine if the bike was stolen. Recently read an an article on line where a guy bought a 33/34 Ford coupe body years ago. Had a receipt for the sale. Project was on hold for years. He finally finished project and attempted to register it only to find out the body/car had been stolen. He had to return car to previous owner even after all the work and money spent by him.
EastCoastMojo said:If you are able to pull any revistration history from the plate that's on it, that should give you the sellers address.
The sticker on the front (not sure if that’s a “plate”) is from NH, the seller was from MA.
In reply to ebonyandivory :
Have you checked to see if it can even be registered. It's too big to be a moped and you will need headlights, mirrors, brake lights etc (you can add these if needed) . If it was originallly sold as an off road vehicle it never had a title just a certificate of origin which may add to the drama. NH is generally easy to register vehicles if you have contacts there, Maine could be similar. Make sure it is yours before working on it. A friend had an awesome KTM taken from him because someone two owners before him had stolen it, he bought it from a tow lot for unpaid storage fees.
https://www.motorecyclenow.com
Never used them but seems like an easy route to take
In reply to imgon :
It’s got all that stuff already
I'm with the folks saying A) pay pros to sort it, and B) anecdotes aren't much use.
Both illustrating how it can go, and that things change (and thus the uselessness of anecdotes even from your own state), I gather it's virtually impossible to do a lost title on a motorcycle in Oregon now, but 20 years ago I bought a Vespa from a junk shop with no paperwork whatsoever, though it did have a license plate. The DMV had me mail three copies of a registered letter to addresses they had on file for that plate, and bring them back the "no such person here" responses, after which they were willing to issue me a title. If the previous owner *had* been at one of those addresses, who knows what would have happened. (EDIT: The central point here is that this hardly seems to qualify as a formal process, and may have been made up on the spot by someone there... It might have been a no-go or maybe simpler the next day)
I don't think there's any way to know exactly how it's going to go for your bike in your location. The only way I could think to proceed (apart from calling in professional title-getters) would be to go to the DMV with pictures of the info you have and an explanation of your situation. They should hopefully be able to tell you the steps to take. I would expect there to be many steps, and a lot of dealing with folks who aren't used to sorting this sort of issue, or disagree with the person who sent you to them about what the steps should be... Where there's a will, there's a way, but I would expect it to be slow and tedious, and that's about all I can suggest from my zip code. Either pay someone, or get advice from the people whose cooperation you need.
In reply to Ransom :
I think everything you wrote is spot on. I have another motorcycle project going on WITH a title in my name. I’m starting to lose faith that the fight will end up worth it in the end.
Here the Auto club has DMV services....
if you think it would help to get a Bill of Sale from the guy you got it from , do you have an email ? Did you put his address in your GPS , Did you call him ?
If he will do a Bill of Sale , get the correct papers , fill them out and a big RED X for him to sign it and a stamped self addresses return envelope .....might help to send it to him registered to know he got it....
Good Luck
ebonyandivory said:In reply to Ransom :
I think everything you wrote is spot on. I have another motorcycle project going on WITH a title in my name. I’m starting to lose faith that the fight will end up worth it in the end.
The VT route is seriously easy and cheap, search for some threads on advrider about it. You can pm me if you want my specific experience.
In reply to EvanB :
So having literally NO paperwork and just a VIN and an old NH sticker that looks like a license plate this is still possible?
Another vote for Vt. I purchased a bike from ApisMillifera here in the forum and it came with no title. Sorted it through Vt.
ebonyandivory said:In reply to EvanB :
So having literally NO paperwork and just a VIN and an old NH sticker that looks like a license plate this is still possible?
Yes, that is what i did.
In reply to EvanB :
PM sent
In reply to californiamilleghia :
Try asking Google assistant where you were at on that date. Pretty good chance the GPS will give the original poster a nice trace of his meanderings that day. Helped me recently when I was apartment hunting and had been driven around by someone else to several properties one of which I forgot the cross streets. 
In reply to ebonyandivory :
Tried to reply but got a message that the email address was not found.
In reply to EvanB :
Thanks! Just updated my email now, sorry.
ebonyandivory said:Step #2: Submit Paperwork
Submit the following information to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles:
- Notarized Affidavit attesting to the complete history of the vehicle as known. Affidavit must include vehicle's model year, make, and Vehicle Identification Number
- Completed Visual Inspection of VIN
- Any other documentation pertaining to the transfer of ownership of the vehicle, including bills of sales or cancelled checks
The vehicle inspection form must be completed by a state police barracks or local police station.
Submit all the information via fax or mail to the Title Division, to the attention of the Title Review Officer.
I don’t have a Bill Of Sale nor a title or previous registration.
i don’t have ANY complete history. Well, I know the year and model etc and the frame is unmodified
I think you're making this too complicated. Just follow the directions. Get the VIN inspection done and submit the affidavit with the little information you have and let the RMV do their thing. They'll run the VIN number and determine if it's stolen. If it's not they'll issue a title.
APEowner said:ebonyandivory said:Step #2: Submit Paperwork
Submit the following information to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles:
- Notarized Affidavit attesting to the complete history of the vehicle as known. Affidavit must include vehicle's model year, make, and Vehicle Identification Number
- Completed Visual Inspection of VIN
- Any other documentation pertaining to the transfer of ownership of the vehicle, including bills of sales or cancelled checks
The vehicle inspection form must be completed by a state police barracks or local police station.
Submit all the information via fax or mail to the Title Division, to the attention of the Title Review Officer.
I don’t have a Bill Of Sale nor a title or previous registration.
i don’t have ANY complete history. Well, I know the year and model etc and the frame is unmodified
I think you're making this too complicated. Just follow the directions. Get the VIN inspection done and submit the affidavit with the little information you have and let the RMV do their thing. They'll run the VIN number and determine if it's stolen. If it's not they'll issue a title.
I think you are right on! When I was trying to title my car I had a couple false starts at the local Judge of Probate Office which was frustrating to say the least and kind of lead to an attitude by me. I finally called the state Department of Motor Vehicles checked my attitude and asked exactly what I needed to do and took notes. After talking the lady asked me to get everything I needed and send it directly to her and she would do what was needed.
I did exactly what was requested making sure I had everything requested and sent it in along with a note thanking her. Wham-Bam it was done. Recieved the package scheduled the time a State Police could come out and check numbers on major components and safety check. I was given the VIN plate and title came in mail within two weeks.
The take away is do exactly as requested, be patient, lose the attitude and you can make it happen.
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