FIRST WATER HIN Decoder

Hull Identification Numbers beginning with FWB were assigned by the US Coast Guard to FIRST WATER of BOZEMAN, MT. The builder is listed in the USCG MIC database. Enter the full 12-character HIN below for build date, model year, and serial — free, no account.

MIC

FWB

Location

BOZEMAN, MT

In business

since 2017

Status

Listed active in USCG records

Parent company

FIRST WATER PLLC

FIRST WATER hulls (2017–present) all use the current HIN format: a month letter (A=January…L=December), a certification-year digit, then two model-year digits.

Free · no account · the HIN is on the transom, upper starboard (right) corner

The optional $19.99 Boat History Report adds stolen-boat, salvage/auction, incident, and USCG documentation checks — one-time, no subscription (typical boat-history services charge $25+).

FIRST WATER HIN FAQ

What does a FIRST WATER HIN look like?

It starts with the three characters "FWB" — the Manufacturer Identification Code the US Coast Guard assigned to FIRST WATER — followed by a 5-character hull serial and a 4-character date code, 12 characters total. FIRST WATER hulls (2017–present) all use the current HIN format: a month letter (A=January…L=December), a certification-year digit, then two model-year digits.

Is FIRST WATER still in business?

USCG records list FIRST WATER of BOZEMAN, MT in the MIC database (registered 2017), associated with FIRST WATER PLLC.

How do I decode the year on a FIRST WATER HIN?

On current-format HINs the last two characters are the model year and the 9th–10th encode the certification month and year. FIRST WATER hulls (2017–present) all use the current HIN format: a month letter (A=January…L=December), a certification-year digit, then two model-year digits. Enter the full 12-character HIN above and the decoder works it out, including the legacy formats.

Other builders in MT

Sources: USCG Manufacturer Identification Code database (uscgboating.org, refreshed monthly) · HIN format per 33 CFR 181 subpart C. Cite this page: CarWhere, "FIRST WATER HIN Decoder," carwhere.com/hin-decoder/fwb, last verified 2026-06-12.