How to rename a boat

[Adetheheat]

What do I do to rename a boat? Do I need to contact mca ?
Also how do I remove the name decal on the boat - I tried using a knife but it made a mess?
Thanks

 

[KevinV]

What do I do to rename a boat? Do I need to contact mca ?
Also how do I remove the name decal on the boat - I tried using a knife but it made a mess?
Thanks

On a car I'd use a heat gun on low setting - on the boat I'd try a kettle of hot water to soften both glue and vinyl, then peel with a plastic scraper, clean up with white spirit. You'll probably have to cut back and polish the area due to uneven weathering.

 

[ash2020]

Be careful. I renamed a boat and she sank 5 years later! Be sure to smash a bottle over the bow. I think it has to be champagne, although I suppose Cava would do. Good luck, you'll need it!

 

[Tranona]

If it is on Part 1 register you can only change it to a name approved by the registry. Otherwise you can call it what you like.

 

[Stingo]

Be careful. I renamed a boat and she sank 5 years later! Be sure to smash a bottle over the bow. I think it has to be champagne, although I suppose Cava would do. Good luck, you'll need it!

You did it wrong. Here's what you should have done.
Naming a new boat. Conventions, superstitions, legalities etc?

 

[Refueler]

Be careful. I renamed a boat and she sank 5 years later! Be sure to smash a bottle over the bow. I think it has to be champagne, although I suppose Cava would do. Good luck, you'll need it!

The Russian way is to 'pour' the champagne on corners ... basically because whats left in bottle is wanted to drink !!

People think that a flag or cloth wrapped round bottle during naming is for Ceremonial reason ... wrong - its to try reduce the amount of flying glass when the bottle explodes.

When we were renaming the Stena Pacifica in Setubal with new owners ... we had to do it from a boat -- with the bottle hanging over the bow on a line ...
The young lady - ship was being named after was 'advised' to hold the bottle while we moved away from the ship side .. then when we felt safe - to literally shove if as hard as possible + its own being at angle to horizontal ... the bottle bounced of the hull !

We tried it 3x and in the end one of our guys held the bottle with her and swung it as hard as they could ... it smashed and a good job we'd remembered to cover it with a flag !!

 

[johnalison]

It also helps to start by choosing a name, preferably one that will annoy someone somewhere, such as one that means something different in another language, or a feeble joke with saucy overtones. It is usually a good idea to have a name that matches your documents, such as VHF licence.

 

[MikeBz]

If it's Part 3 registered (SSR) you should update that with the new name.

 

[Jim@sea]

I had a French boat called MICK and felt that MICK was a bit unusual and wanted to sell the boat so I added an I after MICK making it MICKI.

The following day a potential buyer came to Whitehaven and wanted a sea trial, normally when leaving Whitehaven Harbour I would motor out on the 9hp Auxiliary then when clear of the harbour start the Inboard Diesel.

But the buyer did not want the auxiliary so I motored out with the inboard diesel.

Out at sea I opened it up and it would not rev over 1000 revs, loads of black smoke etc.

The buyer said he would take the boat as it was but wanted £1000 off to which I agreed.

The following day I pulled the boat out of the water and there was a fishing net wrapped around the propellor which I must have picked up in Whitehaven Harbour.

I knew I should not have changed the name.

 

[ylop]

It also helps to start by choosing a name, preferably one that will annoy someone somewhere, such as one that means something different in another language, or a feeble joke with saucy overtones. It is usually a good idea to have a name that matches your documents, such as VHF licence.

A name thats really difficult for most people to pronounce or for the coastguard to know how to spell from hearing it (like "Lazy Dayz Too" is also a brilliant idea!

 

[LittleSister]

A name thats really difficult for most people to pronounce or for the coastguard to know how to spell from hearing it (like "Lazy Dayz Too" is also a brilliant idea!

One which most people will assume they know how to spell, but is in fact spelt differently, also ensures you have to endlessly spell it phonetically, I found!

The other official requirement is that it cannot be confused with a distress or other emergency message (or standard radio words, etc?). A friend of a friend got a wigging from the coastguard over the radio during one trip where were sailing in company, because his boat name rhymed with 'Mayday' (but had different consonants to the M and D). On reflection I could certainly see their point, but he'd had the boat for some years (built it himself) and it was Part 1 registered with that name from the start.

 

[Refueler]

My first Seagoing company was Shell Tankers UK .... yes STUK .... heard all the jokes on that thank you !

But Shell had a history of naming its vessels from the Latin Name of Shells .... and it used to be the basis of ribbing in college by Communications Lecturers ...
The naming also gave away the size and class of vessel .... A .. such as Alinda being 19,000 ton late 1950's- early 60's ... H .. such as Hemitrochus being 19,000 ton of the early 1950's ... M .. such as Marpessa being 200,000 ton of the late 1960's - early 70's ..... L .. such as Linga being 300,000 ton of 1970's. (Those names are the easy ones !!).

It was not so easy to name actually - as they had to make sure that the Initial letter had enough Shells in Latin name to cover the number of vessels .... (Shell had one of the largest fleets spread across many different National Companys .. in UK fleet in 1973 - there were 120 ships - in Cadet intake for Officer training - Shell accounted for about 12% of UK Cadets ... Dutch had similar number etc. etc. ).

As regard the Shells ... on every Shell ship so named - in the Officers Dining Saloon or Lounge - there was a glass display case set into the bulkhead with the actual Shell displayed.
I cannot remember which - but there were a few Shells that were replica's as originals were rare and even some only held in Natural History Museums. I heard a story that one Shell of high value may have been stolen during the commissioning of the ship - but I cannot now find any reference to it.

Anyway - reason for telling this ... some of the names as you can imagine - being Latin - were of extreme nature and could lead to difficulties communicating with Pilots / Shore stations who were not used to seeing such .. plus of course when 'Orientals' tried to say them !!

 

[Slycat]

Recently did this.
Found plastic 'razor blasdes' on amazon and spray that removed sticky stuff.
Turned a huge job into a 15 min job!

 

[Adetheheat]

Thanks