How do gibson serial numbers work

The serial number is one of the first places to start for how to date a Gibson Les Paul guitar. It should be on the back of the neck at the top just between and above the tuning machines.

If the Gibson Les Paul serial number is six digits or less then your guitar may be older than Gibson reused this serial number scheme for reissue guitars starting in the s, so check the picture below to compare vintage versus reissue serial numbers. Is your serial number ink stamped like the Gibson Les Paul on the left? Gibson used 5 or 6 digit ink stamped serial numbers on Les Paul guitars from until The first digit of this style serial number indicates the last digit of the year it was manufactured.

This is how to date a Gibson Les Paul serial number from the s. Gibson reused this serial number scheme for reissue guitars in the past 20 years as well, so check to see that the style matches.

Do you have a Gibson Les Paul with an ink stamped serial number? I am looking to buy Gibson Les Pauls with ink stamped serial numbers like this from the s. Gibson used the 6 digits or less impressed serial number style from until Gibson reused serial numbers during this time period so that's as close as we can narrow these guitars down without reading the potentiometer codes.

Here's an example of that style. The serial number is only one way for how to date a Gibson Les Paul from the s. Often the features and potentiometer codes are a better way. Andy Summers ES Limited edition of Numbered in sequence as "13xxx" Jimmy Page Les Paul 3 versions -1st 25 aged models were hand numbered and signed by Jimmy Page, no other number is on this model.

Johnny A. Slash Les Paul 2 models - limited edition model, cranberry finish: numbered in sequence as "SL xxx" - Regular production model introduced in , also numbered in sequence as "SL xxx" Note: The discontinued Epiphone Slash Les Paul made has a standard Epiphone serial number.

Many '80s and early '90s serial numbers may follow a similar scheme, but may not include a factory ID code.

This amp was made in the second quarter of Follow us: Instagram. Copyright Gibson Brands, Inc. All rights reserved. Specimens built before had a star inlay or crescent in place of a logo. The script logo continues without the slant. Some flattop guitars of this era started to omit the word "The" from the inlay.

By Gibson had dropped the "The" from all of their logos while retaining the script "Gibson. From to , the logo was a thick golden script, known as the banner logo. The block logo debuted after WWII and remains the face of the company. There were minute changes to which letters were connected in the font between to , but the main logo had the same look. Gibson stopped dotting the i in their logo on some of their instruments. Most models get a dotted i again in , with the rest following suit from onward.

Aside from the logos, each era of manufacturing included certain identifying traits such as the hardware tuners, knobs, plates, etc. But not a final verdict. Many older instruments may have reproduction or other non-original parts, including a non-original finish.

This makes relying entirely on the physical features of a guitar potentially misleading. The thickness of the headstock, however, is not as vulnerable to modification or replacement.

Before mid, most Gibson headstocks were thinner at the top when looked at from a side profile. After , headstocks had uniform thickness. Gibson has historically used two different alpha-numerical formats to catalog its instruments: serial numbers and FONs Factory Order Numbers.

Instruments will generally have one or both of these numbers stamped or written either inside the body generally the case on earlier models or on the back of the headstock. These will generally date an instrument earlier than the serial number, as they were typically applied in the early stages of assembly. Some earlier lower-end models had no serial number at all, making the FON the sole numerical identifier in those cases.

A FON usually consisted of a 3-, 4-, or 5-digit batch number followed by one or two other numbers in most cases. From to , the FON included a letter suffix. The consistency around this stopped during WWII and resumed in the early s. To complicate matters further, there was sometimes a second letter from to indicating the brand G for Gibson, K for Kalamazoo, W for Recording King and sometimes even a third letter indicating "Electric" the letter E.