Gibson_Lover Posted April 22, 2022 Share Posted April 22, 2022 Hello all! I recently started dating a Gibson mandolin but I'm afraid she's seeing other people. What should I do? Just kidding, I have a friend who recently offered to sell me his Gibson mandolin. He bought it in the States but can't really tell me much about it other than that, so we're not sure what would be a reasonable price for it. It sounds absolutely great and I want to offer him a fair price for it. Can anybody help us to identify its year and give a rough idea of its value? It comes with its original hard case. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted April 22, 2022 Share Posted April 22, 2022 Nice looking! Can you make out all the numbers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gibson_Lover Posted April 29, 2022 Author Share Posted April 29, 2022 On 4/23/2022 at 12:21 AM, Dave F said: Nice looking! Can you make out all the numbers? Hi Dave. Thanks for your comment and sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you- I didn't realise that this forum doesn't automatically follow posts that you create! The numbers are tricky- the last one before the red 7 is basically illegible. I believe it's 462_ -7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted April 29, 2022 Share Posted April 29, 2022 can you post a picture of the headstock? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted May 1, 2022 Share Posted May 1, 2022 (edited) An 'A' model with F-holes was introduced in 1934 and discontinued in 1943 Per Spann's book this range of FON numbers fall between 1940-1945 so I would narrow it down to 1940-1943 You may want to re-post this in the Acoustic forum. Quite a few members have these models and some members have copies of the shipping ledgers. The head stock may help nail it down. Edited May 1, 2022 by Dave F Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted July 31, 2022 Share Posted July 31, 2022 (edited) I am far from an expert on Gibson mandolins. This is one of those it is easier to say what model it is not than what it is. Regarding the FON though the "7" following the hyphen is a bin number which provided Gibson a means to track the number of instruments built in any particular batch. The first three digits are the FON which can give you a build date. While Gibson did use three-digit FONS in the early-1930s (my 1932 L1 has one) the fact the last number is written in red pencil may be significant . Somewhere in the dim reaches of my mind I associate this with instruments (at least when it comes to guitars) produced during WWII which if so would line up with what Dave F is saying about the build date. Edited July 31, 2022 by zombywoof Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted November 11, 2022 Share Posted November 11, 2022 She's a beaut. I have a 1933 A-oval which had MUCH more wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevo58 Posted November 14, 2022 Share Posted November 14, 2022 Ask over at the Mandolin Cafe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimt Posted November 15, 2022 Share Posted November 15, 2022 (edited) Looks like a A50 bound back. Does the case have red stitching? 1500 to 2000 from what I see in retail stores Edited November 15, 2022 by slimt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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