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DATING IBANEZ GUITARS

An Ibanez serial number can tell you two things, year of manufacture and factory (or country) of manufacture. There is no master list to correlate to a model number, these are consecutive serialized numbers only. If you’re trying to figure out what model something is from the serial number, figure out what year it is then go to the catalog library for the corresponding year (or year before or after) to find the model. Some models will never be found in the catalogs, that’s just the way it is.

On typical Ibanez serial numbers the first 2 digits will indicate year, or the first digit will indicate the last digit of the year, but there are also some that indicate no year at all.

This page is for dating Ibanez guitars built in Japan only. See the Factories heading a few paragraphs down for little info on guitars produced elsewhere.

Before 1975 Ibanez did not put serial numbers on their guitars. Most just bore a neck plate simply marked Japan. The only way to date these guitars is to find out what years they were available and then comparing all the minute details like scripts, contours, and inlay variances that only the hardcore vintage gurus know.

1975 – Present

This old style serial number will either be on the neck plate or impressed into the back of the headstock. It consists of a letter, A – L, followed by a 6 digit number. The letter stands for the month, A for January etc., the first 2 digits will be the year, 76 is 1976, 96 is 1996, the last 4 digits will be the consecutive production number for that months production, 1356 would be the 1356th guitar produced that month. This form of serial numbering is still used today on guitars where the number is impressed into the back of the headstock. A761356 – The 1356th guitar produced in January ’76

1987 – Present

These serial numbers will either be on the neck plate or on a serial sticker affixed to the back of the headstock, with some models still following the impressed old school serial numbers shown above. There are many variables of numbering through these years and between different models and are broken down into 3 categories, stickers, plates, and the impressed numbers that follow the old school style detailed above.

HEADSTOCK SERIAL STICKERS

1987 – 1996
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The serial numbers for Rickenbacker guitars and basses can be found engraved on the output jack, neck plate, or bridge. It usually has two separate numbers: a date code consisting of two digits which may be letters or numbers, and a number. The number is a serial number for the year.

1960-1996

First letter denotes year. Second letter denotes month.

After 1986, Rickenbacker serial numbers go to a numerical year indicator; the first number indicates year. The same letter system is used for the month.

1997-1999

It appears that for 1997-1999 and perhaps into 2000, a different format was used. The month code started coming first, followed by a number for the year. The numbers are shown in the table below.

1999-Present

Sometime in 1999, Rickenbacker started switching to a slightly different system. In the new system, the lone number represents the last two digits of the year. 1999 becomes 99, 2004 becomes 04, and so on. The first two numbers of the number part represent the week of the year that the instrument was made.

For example, take the number 99 28926. The 99 indicates that the instrument was made in 1999 and the 28926 tells us that it was made during the 28th week of that year.

External Links

• Rickenbacker serial number decoder
• Vintage Guitar Pro

The following information is from our Gearwiki. Please contribute your knowledge.

Marshall has used three serial number systems since 1969.

Marshall amps began featuring aluminum back panels in 1969. Serial numbers began appearing stamped on the back panels in July 1969.

Note that some models produced from 1979-81 had serial numbers stamped on the front panel (to the left of the power switch).

1969-1992

Marshall used a coding system that provided (a) model, (b) serial number, and (c) manufacture date. This sequence of (a)(b)(c) began in 1969 and was valid through 1983.

In 1984, the order of the serial number components changed to (a)(c)(b), but the method used to determine the values for (a) and (c) remains the same.

The first part of the serial number grouping determines the model of the chassis.

(b) Serial number – The second part of the serial number is the five-digit serial number itself.

(c) Manufacture date – The last character determines the date of manufacture. Since A was used in both 1969 and 1970, Marshall decided that 1971 would start with C. To avoid confusion with the numerals 1 and 0, Marshall elected to skip the letters I and O. Also, for reasons not explained, there are no Q-dated amps. Z was used for two years. Here are the date codes:

1992-Present

After 1992, a bar code system was introduced.

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Fender has had several serial number schemes over the years. On top of that, the schemes are different depending on where the instrument was made.

Fender serial numbers are not strictly sequential. The only definitive way to date a Fender is to look at the dates on the neck, body, and pots.

1950-1964

For Esquires, Broadcasters, and Telecasters, a unique numbering scheme was used until 1954, when Fender switched to a universal numbering system. The number is shown on the bridge plate.

For Precision Basses, a different system was used until 1955, overlapping some with the universal system. These numbers also appeared on the bridge plate.

In 1954, Fender adopted a universal serial number system. These serial numbers appear on the neck plate of the instrument. In 1957/1958 some serial numbers started with a minus sign (“-”), or had a “0″ prefix before the number. Also in 1959/1960 some serial numbers were at the bottom of the neck plate instead of the usual top. Double stamped serial number plates were also produced (number on both front and back of the neck plate) in late 1957 to early 1959.

In late 1962 – late 1965, Fender produced instruments with an “L” prefix. These numbers were found on the neck plate.

In late 1965 the scheme changed yet again. The serial number was still located on the neck plate and a large script “F” could be found below the serial number.

In mid-1976, Fender moved the location of the serial number to the headstock.

1977-Present

Finally, in mid-1977, Fender decided on a serial number scheme that carries on to today. The serial number can be found on the headstock. The decade can generally be determined by the serial number prefix. “S” means 1970′s, “E” means 1980′s, “N” means 1990′s, and “Z” means 2000. Note that Japanese Fenders can also carry the “N” and “E” prefixes, but their country of origin should be clearly marked on the headstock.

Since 1990, the serial numbers have generally been kept consistent. There is the decade prefix, followed by the last number in the year. For example, 2004 would be Z4; 1998 would be N8. The American Deluxe series adds a “D” before the year prefix, so the previous examples would come out as DZ4 and DN8, respectively.

The Fender American Vintage Series forgoes the year prefix altogether and just has “V” plus five or six digits.

Additionally, some instruments made in 1990 were (presumably by mistake) given N9XXXXX serial numbers.

Mexican-Made Fenders

The first Mexican Fenders were made in 1990. They follow the same number scheme as American-made Fenders, except that they are prefixed with an “M”.

Japanese-Made Fenders

The first Japanese Fenders were made in 1982. All Fenders made in Japan are marked on the headstock as “Made in Japan” or (since 1997) “Created in Japan”.

Sometime during 1997, all Japanese-made Fenders say “Crafted in Japan” on the headstock instead of “Made in Japan.” There is some overlap between serial numbers on these instruments, but the newer ones can be distinguished from the older ones based on the text.

The following is from our Gearwiki. Please contribute your own knowledge.

Warwick has had a consistent serial number scheme since its foundation in 1982.

A Warwick bass’s serial number can be found on its headstock. Until 1988, it could be found on top of the headstock. Between 1989 and 2007, it was placed between the machine heads on the back of the headstock. Since the end of 2007 it has been placed below the machine heads.

The serial number is a letter followed by a six-digit number and then a two-digit number. The letter represents the month the bass was made.

The last two digits represent the year the bass was made. 1994 becomes 94, 2003 becomes 03, and so on.

External Links

• Warwick Serial Numbers

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G&L has had two primary serial number schemes throughout its life.

It is important to note that G&L’s serial numbers are non-sequential. Batches of bridges and neck plates are made and then tossed into a bin. When building instruments, builders just grab a part out of the bin and build with it. However, the serial number can still give you a rough idea of when your instrument was made. For example, GF0025 is most likely not the 25th George Fullerton Signature made; in fact, it may not even be from “early” Fullerton production. It is also important to note that not all serial numbers were used because some bridges were defective.

1980-1997

Originally, numbers of the form GXXXXXX were used for guitars and numbers of the form BXXXXXX were used for basses. The two notable exceptions to this are the “GF” and “BC” serial numbers, used for the George Fullerton Signature Model and the Broadcaster, respectively.

G&L’s website provides the first serial number used in each year up to 1992.^[1]

1997-Present

G&L’s current serial number scheme, begun in late 1997, is of the form CLXXXXX, where CL stands for “Clarence Leo” (note that Leo Fender‘s full name was “Clarence Leonidas Fender”). This was changed one year later to the most current scheme of CLFXXXXX.

Another good resource for finding out about your serial number is the G&L Registry, linked below.

Other Notes

The best way to date a G&L instrument is to take off the neck. There should be a date on the body in the neck cavity and a date on the neck itself. Note that even this is not a perfect method, as necks and bodies could have been made weeks or even months before their use on an instrument.

External Links

• G&L Registry

References

This information and more can be found in our Gearwiki. Care to contribute your own knowledge?

Gibson has been in business for over a hundred years, and has used several serial number systems in that time, many of which had inconsistencies which make accurate date identification tricky. Often other considerations must be taken into account. We’ll cover those as we come to them. In this article, we’re going to cover the current serial number format, in use since 1977. This system is in place across the board in all production facilities. This borrows heavily from the serial number guides on the Gibson sit, from the Blue Book, and other web sources.

For instruments built before 2005, The serial number is an 8 digit number impressed into the back of the headstock with “MADE IN USA” below. The Serial number is stamped before the finish is applied and is pressed into the wood. Often, a thick coating of paint and lacquer will make the serial number difficult to read. If you see plain wood through the serial number, it was stamped after finishing, and likely a counterfeit.

The pattern is:
YDDDYRRR

YY is the production year
DDD is the day of the year counted 1-365 (or 366 for leap year)
RRR is the factory ranking/plant designation number.

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This information is quoted directly from the Martin Guitar Co. website. I’ll add some other brief points for other resources soon. Bear in mind that this is the best information that we have at this point in time. If your mandolin does not match the information here and you would like more authentication information, you can likely call Martin directly and inquire.

Year

Last Serial No.

1895 23

1896 112

1897 153

1898 359

1899 577

1900 800

1901 881

1902 1171

1903 1348

1904 1507

1905 1669

1906 2026

1907 2357

1908 2510

1909 2786

1910 3098

1911 3431

1912 3847

1913 4162

1914 4462

1915 4767

1916 5007

1917 5752

1918 6370

1919 7237

1920 8761

1921 9627

1922 10245

1923 11020

1924 11809

1925 12520 Continue reading

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As part of our goal to provide information for personal loss prevention, we are developing a reference library of serial number information. Using this information, you can more accurately date an instrument, determine how genuine it is, and make the right buying or selling decisions. Currently, Martin serial numbers are found inside the guitar on the heel, printed directly on the wood. Any deviation from these numbers or this design could indicate a counterfeit instrument.

Here is a list of Martin Guitars Serial Numbers. Martin is very good for determining a year from this number, as their numbering system has been consistent from the point they began serializing their instruments. The serial numbers you see below are the LAST serial numbers produced during that year. The Backpacker guitars are numbered on a separate system, and aren’t accounted for in this dating material.

* Serial numbers 900,001 to 902,908 were used on Sigma-Martins in 1981 and 1982.

We’ll post Mandolin information on a separate page.

All information is quoted from Martin’s site.