Rebuild Camper

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supernoob

New member
Joined
Sep 24, 2005
Posts
3
hello,
i have a old camper(1969) that is not usable and a buddy of mine has a old camper also that is not usable, but if i combine both of them(swap parts until 1 of them is JUNK) i would have a usable camper. the only problem that is getting me is on my camper i have a title to and license plate, my buddies is just a old junk camper in his yard with no title and no license plate and doesn't look like its been on the road for sometime. i guess my question is, is what I'm thinking to do legal and can i just use my plates and title? because in my eyes i feel I'm not getting rid of my camper just making it better

Edit: actually after reading my post i should have made it alittle more clear. my camper is not pull-able i would be using his frame and shell, but my guts of my camper (stove, refrig, some couches, pluming etc..basically the whole inside)
 
First let me ask you a question.. At any time did your buddy have and loose (not sell) the title?
If so, go for it, just get a bill of sale,, NOTE: small enough campers might not have a title, what's small enough.. "Your millage may vary" depending on which state you live in.

Now... If it's a good size rig and needs a title then there is a procedure that can be followed after which your buddy will receive a title to the camper.  All nice and legal like.

What is that procedure.. once again "your millage may vary" depending on where he lives, so all I can do is say check it out with legal types in the state he lives in (I suggest either the city, or county, or state attorney's office as, well, I would not want you paying for legal services they provide for free)
 
thankyou for your info...
as for a title from him, i dunno, i dunno if he's ever had a title to it, he does alot of swaping and trading, when i asked him if there was a title to it he just said "no, but if u want it take it", he is a friend but not a close friend i don't know everything about him. and i think it's a 20 footer

As for state Ohio, and i have called BMV title department and bill of sale will not work,they said for him to sell it to me(he's not sell he's giving) that a valid title would have to go along with it.
but i would not be using that camper for full time use, i'd be doing repairs, swapping, put new floor in, some mods to shell and fixs, in a sense the only thing that would be orignal would be the some of the shell and frame/axle, wheels, and tongue.
in the end my camper would be junk because i would swipe everything out of it that i could.

i'm just trying to skip the legal mobo jombo, and just have camper that works and keep the title and plates i already have.

 
supernoob said:
but i would not be using that camper for full time use, i'd be doing repairs, swapping, put new floor in, some mods to shell and fixs, in a sense the only thing that would be orignal would be the some of the shell and frame/axle, wheels, and tongue.
in the end my camper would be junk because i would swipe everything out of it that i could.

i'm just trying to skip the legal mobo jombo, and just have camper that works and keep the title and plates i already have.

Well, the vehicle identification number, if any, is likely stamped into the FRAME, don't ask me where as it could be most anyplace, not into the shell or floor, so if the frame and axel are the ones you have title to you will likely be OK  Just watch out for any and all vehicle info stickers and the like

But if you wish to keep it strictly legal he's going to have to get title, and that means paperwork, just what paperwork I don't know since I don't know Ohio's procedures at all.
 
ty for the reply again

see this what i have been debating in my head for awhile about the serial tag, i dunno know where it's at either, i know where mine is at, i dunno i just don't know what to do :-\, i guess i will have to sit and ponder more about doing this, i guess there's no quick legal way to go about doing this. i might be just SOL.

well ty for your help
 
If you use the frame of the one that has a title as the base, you should have no problem.  Axles are replaceable and frequently are replaced, so any ID number on an axle is subject to change anyway.

Most states have some provision for "home built" or "rebuilt" vehicle titles, so I suggest you investigate that angle with your state's DMV.  Don't get into "I have a trailer with no title" - that will just get you lost in the weeds.  Just say you are building a trailer from used parts and want to know how to get a title.  But I would only go down that path if I was not using the frame (chassis) for which you already have a title.

Does your state require that a VIN be visually verified when you apply for a new registration? If so, you are going to have to locate the VIN or chassis ID (whatever is shown on the title) anyway, so you may as well start looking. It will be stamped on the frame somewhere. On a travel trailer or pop-up, it is typically on the tongue/A-frame or on the "box" part of the frame  immediately behind the "A".  Sometimes it is on the underside of the frame member, but usually not.  It may well be painted over, so you might hve to do some judicious sand-blasting or sanding to find it.
 
Edit: actually after reading my post i should have made it alittle more clear. my camper is not pull-able i would be using his frame and shell, but my guts of my camper (stove, refrig, some couches, pluming etc..basically the whole inside)

First,  try to register your friend's trailer in your name using a bill of sale from him.  Your state should have a procedure for ressurecting title of a junked or abandoned vehicle -- else how do those Model T antiques get back out on the road.  Then I would think that you would salvage out your old trailer to extinguish its title -- and stop paying taxes on it.
 
Supernoob,

Look for a number stamped on the tongue of the trailer, possibly the left arm. Also there's usually a tag on the side of the trailer with the vin number. This may already be missing. If you are going to use the trailer you have as a base and just move the "inside" stuff then you shouldn't have any problems.

 
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