Gibson is a popular and collectible guitar brand. It remains one of the only guitar manufacturers to produce its instruments exclusively in the United States. Since 1989, all Gibson acoustic guitars have been made in Bozeman, Mont., and all Gibson electric guitars have been made in either Memphis, Tenn., or Nashville, Tenn. Knowing where the guitar was manufactured is straightforward, but knowing when it was made can be tricky, as Gibson's serial numbering system has changed numerous times through the years.
Check the back of the guitar headstock for an eight-digit serial number. If your guitar has an eight-digit serial number stamped on it, it was made after Gibson changed its numbering system in 1975. If there is no eight-digit serial number found, check the bottom of the guitar neck, which can be seen by looking inside of the guitar's sound hole. There will be a three- to six-digit number stamped in black, and possibly a two-digit number penciled in red.
Gibson Custom Serial Lookup
If your guitar has an eight-digit serial number, it contains the year, date and the factory ranking number for the instrument. Make note of how the serial number will represent this information by referring to the sequence YDDDYRRR. In this sequence, 'Y' indicates the year it was made, 'D' indicates the day of the year, and the 'R' represents the ranking number. For example, 80505210 means that the guitar was made on Feb. 19, 1985 and was the 210th instrument made that day. There are three exceptions to this rule. If the guitar was made in 1975, the eight-digit number will start with a '99.' If the guitar was made in 1976, the guitar number will start with '00.' Finally, if the guitar was made in 1977 the guitar's number will start with '06.'
- Electric Guitars built at the Gibson USA plant in Nashville are ranked from 500-999. Prior to 1984, the numbers 001-499 show Kalamazoo production, 500-999 show Nashville production. The serial numbers from the Custom, Art, and Historic division vary depending on the line.
- Continued to use the 6 digit serial numbers through 1978 and 1979. So double check the serial numbers on those 1970s L-5s, Super 400s, and Super 5 BJBs! Gibson's F O N System In addition to the above serial number information, Gibson also used Factory Order Numbers (F O N) to track batches of instruments being produced at the time.
Unfortunately, there is no easy way to decipher serial codes of guitars made before 1975. Gibson used and reused numbers, changed numbering systems, and generally did not give much consideration to sequential numbering prior to its 1975 serial number system. Visit the Vintage Guitars Info Web site. This comprehensive guide will show all possible derivations of the old Gibson numbering system with information arranged by year. Be aware that the Gibson J-45 was not first produced until 1942.
Tip
Search By SKU and Date Range; SKU: From Date (mmddyy): To Date (mmddyy). The Gibson Serial Number Decoder currently supports 6 formats from 4 Factories. For guitars made prior to 1977 use the extended search function. This new function will try to match the serial number against older formats, details required for an exact match are listed in yellow. Davidson is referring to Gibson’s system—in effect since 1977—of including a guitar’s build date within the serial number sequence. On today’s new models from Gibson USA, Memphis, and Acoustic, the first and fifth number in the sequence signify the year a guitar was built, and the second, third, and forth number identify the day of. Aug 04, 2010 i dont get it, you buy a used sg vos and cant find the date of birth, mine comes up pre 1977, no candy with the sg, serial number 055682 any info appreciated.
Gibson Serial Lookup Pre 1977 Vintage
In step 2, please note that the 'D' in the code stands for the day of the year, not the day of the month. In the example, the '050' stands for the 50th day of the year, which is February 19th.
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