Maryland Fender Requirement

[CJHusband]

I've just done some research, and it seems that Maryland requires fenders on both wheels for Motorcycles. I'm in the process of building a cafe racer out of a 75 honda cb360, and had planned to have no rear fender. The current set up has a plate covering the top frame, from tank to the shortened hoop. What can I expect to get away with? Does the fender have to follow the wheel arch?

Cheers,
C.

 

[Tim]

Really has a lot to do with what sort of safety inspections have to be done on the bike and how frequently.

In Ontario (Canada), a safety inspection is required when buying a vehicle - so when I bought my 1972 XS650 I had to produce a safety inspection certificate which is provided by authorized local mechanics.

At that point, it never gets inspected again, unless it gets sold again. So, if I remove the fenders at that point, the only impact is if the police decide I should have fenders and ticket me/force me to put them back on.

I don't have fenders on my XS650 at all, and get pulled over all the time because my license plate is a little too horizontal to the ground. They never comment on my lack of fenders, chain guard, turn signals or mirrors.

 

[VonYinzer]

Yup. Tims right. In PA where I am, bikes need a yearly inspection (which Ive never gotten, they get enough of my money ) so unless you find an inspection station with "friendly" mechanics, they'll fail your bike. My buddys almost all stock Suzuki SV got failed last year at the local joint because he replaced the speedo cluster with a Vapor unit. The mileage obviously didnt match up, so no sticker.

 

[JustinLonghorn]

I built a CB360 cafe two years ago. It was registered as a Historic vehicle. It did not require any inspection whatsoever. It had no rear fender, and only a fender brace on the front.

I then turned that same bike into a raked out chopper. I was only stopped once by a cop. He just wanted to tell me that it was "Pretty Cool" and "Must have been a bunch of work"

Whereabouts in Maryland are you? I am in Frederick Co.

 

[CJHusband]

I'm Bethesda, just to the east of the DC border.

For historic registration do you have to do anything special? Or just apply with a bike over what ever age is required?

 

[JustinLonghorn]

For historic tags, the bike must more than 20 years old and it must not be your main mode of transportation. I believe that it is still $50 for two year historic registration (plus title transfer fees and taxes and etc).

Let me know if you need a hand when it comes to the actual build.

 

[CJHusband]

Can always use a hand. Challenges for the next few weeks are going to be stripping down the tank, hitting it with some filler to fix the dents and delete the emblems. The the fiber work for a custom seat. Also have to far up the metal plate to cover the top of the frAme to mount all the electrics. Could definitely use a sounding board and a hand if you've got some of those skills. Im a complete novice, but Im handy.