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Information on an old ES-125? odd serial number?


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I have this old Gibson ES125 and I've had a lot of trouble coming up with a year? Most everything i read said the serial should start with a letter? I figured i'd post up a few pictures and see if anyone would be gracious enough to help me out.

DSC_0011.jpg

DSC_0018.jpg

DSC_0019.jpg

 

 

If you need anything else from me, I have a ton of pictures of it.

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Hi T.C.T., sorry for the slow response. Just saw your post.

 

It appears that your guitar dates to 1948. Here is more info from this very useful site: http://www.guitarhq.com/gibson.html#serial

 

Gibson Factory Order Numbers, 1942 to 1951.

 

Serial numbers are seldon found on instruments made during WW2. But most (not all) have Factory Order Numbers (FON). These contain a four digit batch number stamped in ink, followed by a two digit sequence number written in red pencil (during WW2 only). After the war, the red pencil wasn't used (and on instruments made during the war, sometimes it's really hard to see the red penciled sequence number). Usually there is no more than 46 instruments (sequence numbers) per batch. Also no batch number with a "1" as the first digit was used during WW2. The FON is usually located on the neck block. The war-time list that follows is not definative but includes FONs that I have seen. Unfortunately I don't have every range of FON's during this period.

Year Factory Order Number

---- --------------------

1941 G (letter code sometimes seen after FON, i.e. 2586G).

1942 907, 910, 923, 2004, 2005, 7000ish (i.e. 7119) - all 'Banner' logo.

1942 H (letter code sometimes seen after FON, i.e. 7116H). Range 5xxxH to 8xxxH

1943 Range generally 9xx to 22xx, depending on the model.

1944 Range generally 22xx to 29XX, depending on the model, some with no FON.

1945 1xx to 10xx, but many with no FON.

1946 n/a ('Banner' logo no longer used, now script logo with no banner).

1947 700s to 1000s

1948 1100s to 3700s ('Script' logo no longer used, block logo used.)

1949 2000s

1950 3000s to 5000s

1951 6000s to 9000s

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