Identify Model from Photo and HIN

[SteveC]

[Help me identify the model of the boat (shown below) based on a small photo and its HIN number [BWC3321EE686].

Fig. 1 Mystery Boat with registration obscured.

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Fig. 2. Federal HIN number

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I'm guessing it's a 1986 Montauk 15 center console.
--SteveC

[jimh]

...guessing it's a 1986 Montauk 15 center console...

There were no 15-foot boats with the model designator MONTAUK in 1986.

If the boat is 15-feet in length, then it appears to be a 15 SPORT that has been modified.

The model cannot be deduced from the HIN. The HIN only gives the manufacturer, a hull production serial number, a manufacturing date, and a model year.

The HIN decodes exactly as described in the FAQ under the format called "NEW FORMAT as early as January 1984 and mandatory after August 1984" which, of course, fits perfectly with the 1986 production date.

The HIN format is MIC-NNNNN-P-Y-ZZ

MIC = BWC = Boston Whaler
NNNNN Production code in five characters = 3321E interpreted later by reference to another table; see below.
P Month of production = E = May
Y Year of production = 6 = 1986
ZZ Model year = 86 = 1986 model

The boat should have a stencil number. For 15-foot hulls the stencil number range is well known and can confirm the boat is a 15-footer.

The center console does not look like an OEM Boston Whaler center console. [UPDATE: see my comment in a later post; the console may be an OEM console.--jimh]

The seat behind the center console is not an OEM seat from Boston Whaler.

This suggests the boat was likely ordered as a SPORT 15 and was later modified by adding an non OEM center console and seat.

If you want to obscure the state registration number, do not do in a manner that looks like there is an enormous flaw in the hull.

The railings are the standard 15-foot side railings. There were several other railing options.

With use of table mentioned and linked in the FAQ the production number sequence can be associated with a particular hull length. Entering the table with the production sequence number 3321E we find that number fits the range listed for "15' Model" which extends as high as 3999E. The inference then is that a boat with production sequence 3321E was near the engine of the 15-foot hull production.

[SteveC]

Thanks for the input. The boat has been sitting uncovered in the Floria sun for the last 20 years. I'm undecided whether I want to take on the restoration. The hull appears to be sound but a lot cosmetic" work to be done. I think the damage is from vines that attached to the hull and the top side has lots of small cracks in the gel coat from the constant sun.

The boat will float fine the way it is, but it really needs full refinishing. It was my late father-in-law's boat, so the cost of entry is great, but I shudder to think of the time it will take. Luckily it's only 15-feet long.--Steve

[jimh]

Upon further research, I found a photo of a 15 CENTER CONSOLE with the port side opening, so perhaps the center console is an OEM model. The images I have showing the center consoles on 15-footers are all rather small, as is your image.

[jimh]

Boston Whaler boats are amazingly resilient, so some cleaning, buffing, and polishing can do wonders. But if the gel coat has lots of crazing and cracks, removing them and re-applying a new top coat will be a project.

[biggiefl]

That is a 1986 15' Center Console with an aftermarket RPS seat. Take some pics of the inside.

[jimh]

All the images I can find of a 15 CENTER CONSOLE show side rails that cross and connect behind the helm seat, with that crossing railing used as a support for the helm seat back. While hard to tell from the small image provided, the boat under discussion does not appear to have side rails that connect across the cockpit. The railings look like the standard railings on a SPORT 15 which did not run across the cockpit aft of the helm seat.


Fig. 2. An image from my article at http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/15/models.html showing the OEM railings on a 15 CENTER CONSOLE model.

[SteveC]

Thanks to all for the input. Correct, the rails do not cross the back of the cockpit, they are only on the sides adjacent to the cockpit area. Also, the seat is storage compartment, or cooler, but is missing its padded top cover. My father in law lived very close to Edgewater, Florida back in [1986], and he was probably on first name basis with the Whaler management team. With that, I'm thinking he custom ordered that seat and rail configuration directly at the factory. I say this because neither the seat or the rail appear to have been installed after the fact. I will get more photos when we go pick it up in a couple of weeks.
Thanks again,
Steve

[biggiefl]

Back then you could order whatever you wanted. [The original owner] very well could have ordered a bare hull with OEM console and side rails and put the seat in himself because that is not OEM. That is an OEM console, not sure windshield is original as most were tinted.

[jimh]

The critical component of an OEM center console is the rigging tunnel. While it was possible to re-fit the rigging tunnel (if you were a very crafty fellow), the CENTER CONSOLE model would have been made with the rigging tunnel created at the factory. If the rigging tunnel looks like OEM work, then the boat was probably ordered with a center console.

If you have stencil number you might be able to confirm the original build configuration by contacting Boston Whaler customer support. They still seem to be available for support of these old classic hulls.