Serial number question

[dhanners623]

I’m sure this has been asked and answered somewhere here so I apologize in advance if that is the case. But here goes:

I know the second, third and fourth number of contemporary Gibson serial numbers denote the day of the year the guitar was “built” but does it mean the day the guitar was started, the day the box was finished, or the day everything was done and it rolled out of the factory — or some other event in the guitar’s manufacture?

For example, with my ‘16 J-35, the number is 118. What happened in this guitar’s life on the 118th day of 2016?

Thanks.

[Twang Gang]

I don't know for sure.  But since a guitar is made up of many parts and then assembled my guess would be that the day in the serial would be the day it was finished.

[pohatu771]

It's somewhere in the middle. The date is simply when that guitar gets a serial number. Based on the time between that stamp and when I find them in stores, it happens late into production; probably the last step before finishing and hardware installation.

My Texan was stamped February 14, and was in my store in early March. Slightly slower on my new Casino; stamped March 11 and arrived at my store April 29. That could be the difference between how much post-finish work is required on an electric guitar over an acoustic guitar, the volume difference between Bozeman and Nashville, or just the longer production time caused by pandemic staff reductions.

[Dave F]

The stamp is beneath the stain/paint/nitro so it must just mean the day it was stamped in the process. 

[DanvillRob]

I built heavy duty vehicles for 53 years.   We established a place where we determined the vehicle was a 'complete vehicle'..and THAT'S the date we used for the VIN and data plate.

We considered the vehicle, (trucks & buses) when it rolled of the assembly line to be a complete vehicle...and THAT's the date we used....NOT the date the vehicle was started, or the day it got painted, or the day it was shipped from the factory.   After the vehicle came off line it still had to go through 'final'; road test; dynamometer; testing, touch-up paint, etc.

[zombywoof]

Back in the day an FON batch number was assigned on paper early on.  It was a way of tracking production and costs.  How that changed when they went from FONs and bin numbers to serial numbers though I do not have clue.