ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED HIN Decoder
Hull Identification Numbers beginning with ZHJ were assigned by the US Coast Guard to ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED of EDMONTON, AB. The company is recorded as out of business since 1985 — common for older hulls, and useful to know when hunting parts or records. Enter the full 12-character HIN below for build date, model year, and serial — free, no account.
MIC
ZHJ
Location
EDMONTON, AB
In business
since 1982
Status
Out of business (1985)
ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED built hulls across both HIN eras (1982–1985): boats before August 1984 carry legacy straight-year or model-year date codes; later hulls use the current month-letter format. The decoder handles all three.
Free · no account · the HIN is on the transom, upper starboard (right) corner
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ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED HIN FAQ
What does a ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED HIN look like?
It starts with the three characters "ZHJ" — the Manufacturer Identification Code the US Coast Guard assigned to ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED — followed by a 5-character hull serial and a 4-character date code, 12 characters total. ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED built hulls across both HIN eras (1982–1985): boats before August 1984 carry legacy straight-year or model-year date codes; later hulls use the current month-letter format. The decoder handles all three.
Is ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED still in business?
USCG records list ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED as out of business since 1985. That's common for older hulls — the HIN still decodes normally, and the out-of-business date helps date the boat and guides parts-hunting toward salvage and owner groups rather than a dealer network.
How do I decode the year on a ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED HIN?
On current-format HINs the last two characters are the model year and the 9th–10th encode the certification month and year. ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED built hulls across both HIN eras (1982–1985): boats before August 1984 carry legacy straight-year or model-year date codes; later hulls use the current month-letter format. The decoder handles all three. Enter the full 12-character HIN above and the decoder works it out, including the legacy formats.
Other builders in AB
Sources: USCG Manufacturer Identification Code database (uscgboating.org, refreshed monthly) · HIN format per 33 CFR 181 subpart C. Cite this page: CarWhere, "ALBERTA BOUND HANDICRAFTED HIN Decoder," carwhere.com/hin-decoder/zhj, last verified 2026-06-12.