stoney07 Posted March 20, 2017 Share Posted March 20, 2017 I have recently purchased a Epiphone 12 string acoustic. The model number inside says FR212. I have looked everywhere for this model with no success! also the serial number is 86030217. I hope someone out there can throw some light on this! many thanks! Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuestionMark Posted March 21, 2017 Share Posted March 21, 2017 I have recently purchased a Epiphone 12 string acoustic. The model number inside says FR212. I have looked everywhere for this model with no success! also the serial number is 86030217. I hope someone out there can throw some light on this! many thanks! Steve My best guess would be the early 80s. Gibson had moved to Nashville from Kalamazoo circa that time and their Epiphones were being made in Japan at that time as the label indicates. QM aka Jazzman Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoney07 Posted March 21, 2017 Author Share Posted March 21, 2017 My best guess would be the early 80s. Gibson had moved to Nashville from Kalamazoo circa that time and their Epiphones were being made in Japan at that time as the label indicates. QM aka Jazzman Jeff Thanks Jazzman Jeff! really appreciate the help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remellick Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 Actually Epiphone production left my home town of Kalamazoo 1969-1970. There is a serial number decoder project and an unofficial epiphone wiki website packed with answer like to the questions you are asking. You'll learn the blue label debacle like the blue labels that say just made in Kalamazoo, some with that plus "union made" in the bottom left corner, some with those two things and "made in Japan" in the bottom right and then there are some with made in kalamazoo AND "made in Japan in the bottom right and nothing in the bottom left side... then after all of those blue label (made in Kalamazoo) stickers ran out I think is when the Norlin (sp) brown square stickers started being put on.. there is a period before or after the use of big brown Norlin (sp) when serial numbering was all messed up, a production move to Korea happened as well as a short production run out west anyway... a hodge podge of stickers was put in epiphones over the years. So stickers like in your picture could be Japan or Korea or ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scootch Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Nothing even mentioned for an EPi FR212 in the Wiki or web. I wonder if it's another makers model they slapped a sticker on for a short run? Or for a special sell, like a this store only model. I have a Sigma like that. It's a Yamaha with a Sigma label on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoney07 Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 Nothing even mentioned for an EPi FR212 in the Wiki or web. I wonder if it's another makers model they slapped a sticker on for a short run? Or for a special sell, like a this store only model. I have a Sigma like that. It's a Yamaha with a Sigma label on it. This is the actual Guitar! any info would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L8_4thesh0w Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 Looks like Remellick and Scootch are both right. This is all there is about it from the Epiphone serial key: "The Aria Epiphone Japan models that were made by Matsumoku from the early 1970s and ending before 1987 do not have a reliable serial numbering system but can be approximately dated using their Epiphone label colours. Blue label: early 1970s-1980 Light brown label: 1980-1985 Brown label: 1985-1987" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 The first two digits of the serial number most likely indicate the year of manufacture..... 1986. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the other side Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 According to the Epiphone Dater Project serial number decoder: 86030217 Shows to be made in "Korea" March 1986 Production number 217 It appears it only supports serial numbers from 1932 thru 1970. Ser#s from 70's to 80's, made in Japan, are not supported because there is no reliable documentation available. I'm just going by what I read on the site. Hope this helps. I ran my 2012 epi bird and it only shows serial # support and country of origin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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