How to Identify the Year a Gibson Guitar Was Made

The Les Paul is one of Gibson's most enduring designs.

Established in 1902 by Orville Gibson, the Gibson Guitar Company began life making mandolins and acoustic guitars. Over the years it has produced many innovative guitars, including the legendary Les Paul and futuristic Flying V. Identifying the year your Gibson was made can be difficult because serial-number styles have changed six times over the years. However, if you've been lucky enough to take ownership of a genuine Gibson, a little careful research will help you pinpoint its vintage.

Things You'll Need

• Gibson serial-number checklist

Instructions

1. Locate the serial number on the guitar. On electric guitars it's normally on the reverse of the headstock, either printed on a decal or stamped into the wood. Up to 1954, the serial number on acoustic instruments was printed on white oval labels, changing to orange after that date. This label is visible through the center sound hole on standard acoustics, and through the upper "F" on an F-hole guitar.

2. Match the number to the table of serial numbers available at the Gibson website, which will provide the year of manufacture.

3. Be careful of numbers that indicate a date of manufacture between 1961 and 1969. This is one of the most difficult systems to decipher, with numbers routinely switched and duplicated -- and seemingly assigned randomly.

4. Check closely any numbers that suggest a manufacturing date between 1970 and 1975, as this was another confusing system with seemingly random numbers and letters. Orange labels on acoustics were replaced in 1970 by white and orange rectangular labels, with electric models featuring black, purple and white rectangular labels.

5. Identify the year of manufacture without referring to the serial-number listings on guitars built between 1975 and 1977 by checking their eight-digit number. The first two digits indicate the year, with 99 indicating a 1975 vintage, 00 indicating 1976 and 06 indicating 1977. The following six digits are in the range 100000 to 200000.

6. On all production guitars since 1977, Gibson has used an eight-digit system with the first and fifth digits indicating year of manufacture. Serial number 82765501, therefore, indicates a guitar made in 1985.

Tips & Warnings

• It's best to double check your serial number against the official serial-number tables provided by Gibson.

References

• Guitar Collecting: History of Gibson Guitars
• The Guitar Attic: Finding the Year Your Gibson Was Made

Resources

• Gibson USA: Gibson Serial Numbers 1975-Present
• The Guitar Attic: Finding the Year Your Gibson Was Made