HIN location

Feb 4, 2021
1
Irwin 43 MKIII Reynolds Marina
Hello ... I am working on a 1987 Irwin 43-MKIII and was wondering if there is any other place the HIN is stamped/plated other than the usual spot on the transom on the right starboard side. The boat has a long story of its registry but no record of a HIN anywhere. Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
May 24, 2004
7,129
CC 30 South Florida
Check the HIN on the title and make sure it reflects the actual boat model and a reasonable manufacture date and go ahead and stamp that number on the transom. If no issues have arisen in 33 years with that registration it seems pretty clear that it is a good boat's HIN. Don't know of any other accessible place where the manufacturer may have stamped the hull.
 
Dec 14, 2003
1,392
Hunter 34 Lake of Two Mountains, QC, Can
Agreed with Benny. You may be lucky however as some manufacturers also stamped the HIN in a second location inside of the the hull, either beneath a fitting or item of hardware or on the interior of the boat and unexposed. Hard to see and harder to find!
 
Jul 12, 2011
1,165
Leopard 40 Jupiter, Florida
Don't know if they did it as far back as mid-80s, but manufacturers "hid" another set of numbers for theft detection; learned it from the car companies. I can't imagine stealing a 43-foot sailboat, but whatever. Anyhow, if it exists, you may call the manufacturer and ask. Alternatively, you could search around the interior. It would be stamped to the hull itself, not to anything installed like a cabinet, headliner, or even the matrix liner, so you're looking for unfinished fiberglass. Because it's for theft detection, it will not be obvious, so under a hatch, behind cushions, on a stringer in the bilge, next to water tanks, etc. I've seen them under the v-berth by a water tank and in anchor lockers, but again, in the hull itself.
 
Feb 21, 2013
4,638
Hunter 46 Point Richmond, CA
The HIN is found on a metal or plastic plate, typically on the transom of the boat, usually on the right starboard (right) side of the transom within two inches of the top of transom, gunwale, or hull/deck joint, whichever is lowest.
 
Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
Hello ... I am working on a 1987 Irwin 43-MKIII and was wondering if there is any other place the HIN is stamped/plated other than the usual spot on the transom on the right starboard side. The boat has a long story of its registry but no record of a HIN anywhere. Any help is greatly appreciated.
At the bottom of the companionway steps, maybe under a battery box? Under the floor board. Maybe 1987 was before hins were used?
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,933
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Based on this link I’m a :plus: with @sail sfbay.

And here is the information California states about HIN’s