Hinckley 43 Buyer's Guide
The Hinckley 43 (Hood) is a scarce Ted Hood-designed cruiser-racer built from 1976 to 1981, with only about 17 hulls completed, so any example on the brokerage market is a rare find. Its fiberglass hull with wood trim, fixed fin keel with retractable centerboard, and eight-berth teak interior make it a distinctive used buy for a sailor wanting shoal-draft flexibility without giving up offshore stability.
Layouts on the Used Market
The used fleet shows the standard Hood 43 arrangement: a bow cabin with a double V-berth, a main saloon with a pair of straight settees plus two pilot berths, and twin aft staterooms each with a single bunk for a total of eight. The galley spans both sides just forward of the companionway with a three-burner stove, ice box, and double sink, and a port-side navigation station sits opposite the head aft of the bow cabin. Because the centerboard trunk runs through the accommodation, buyers should note how the board case was finished in each individual hull rather than expect a uniform layout.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
No equipment tiers are flagged as prevalent for this model, so buyers should assess each hull on its own installed gear. Typical owner-era additions on a 1970s cruiser-racer of this sort may include modern navigation electronics, canvas for the centerboard trunk, and rigging updates, but none are standard on the used fleet. A buyer should weigh any generator, watermaker, or sail-handling upgrade by its service records rather than assume fleet-wide fitment.
What to Inspect
The available material for this design points to two built-in foci. The retractable centerboard and its trunk seals are the primary watertight concern: inspect the trunk for staining or softness around the board case, work the board up and down to confirm free movement, and check the bilge below the trunk for any trace of persistent moisture. The wood trim over the fiberglass hull is the second item — examine every teak-to-fiberglass interface, especially around the rail and cockpit coamings, for cracks, rot, or failed bedding that would let water track into the core. Neither is a reported failure, but both are inherent to the design and worth a surveyor's close look.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The typical market for these boats is the United States. Given the tiny production run, a buyer should move deliberately when one appears.
- Check the centerboard trunk for leaks and free board travel
- Examine all wood trim joints for rot or failed bedding
- Verify the 40 hp Vire diesel service history
- Confirm the eight-berth layout matches your plans
- Review Hinckley build records for hull-specific notes
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Hinckley 43. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 1 row
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 2 | $97,500 | — |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
6 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hallberg-Rassy 43 Mk I | 44.52' | $ 375,000 | 32 | 10 |
| Dufour Classic 43 | 43' | $ 61,688 | 29 | 3 |
| Hans Christian 43 | 42.62' | $ 154,500 | 24 | 9 |
| Slocum 43 | 42.5' | $ 98,500 | 20 | 4 |
| Contest Yachts 43 | 42.65' | $ 174,425 | 12 | 3 |
| Swan 43 | 42.78' | $ 79,864 | 10 | 0 |