Dan H Posted January 26, 2023 Share Posted January 26, 2023 Hello. I have inherited my fathers Gibson arch top and was curious on the age of this guitar. It’s an L7 numbered 5266 on an oval label. It’s not in the greatest shape but plays well and has sentimental value to me. I would be grateful for any help as I’ve exhausted my internet search with no firm answers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted January 26, 2023 Share Posted January 26, 2023 (edited) From Vintage Guitars Info - Gibson archtop vintage guitar collecting (guitarhq.com) Need more info to nail it down. Definitely 1948 or newer. Per below the number was used in 1950 with an A and in 1961 with the stamping on the back of the headstock. Does it look like there's a faint A before the serial number? Is the back of the head stock stamped? The description of the '56 tailpiece leads me to think it's a 1950. http://www.guitarhq.com/l7n_40.jpg 1940 L-7 with ornate "picture frame" fingerboard inlays.http://www.guitarhq.com/l7n_40.jpg Model: L-7 and L-7C Acoustic Archtop Available: 1933 to 1972 Collectibility Rating: Non-cutaway models: C-, Cutaway models: B-. Essentially a plain version of the L-5, an inexpensive working-man's archtop. 1933 L-7 introduction specs: 16" wide, trapeze tailpiece, single bound top, back, rosewood fingerboard, varied pattern fingerboard inlays starting at 3rd fret, single bound peghead, fleur-de-lis peghead inlay, nickel plated parts, sunburst finish. 1935 L-7 specs: 17" wide, X-braced top, ornate rectangle-enclosed fingerboard inlays, double-handled vase and curlicues peghead inlay, tailpiece with pointed ends and raised arrowheads. 1937 L-7 specs: flat plate tailpiece with cutouts,some engraved with "L-7" on base. 1939 L-7 specs: natural finish available, parallel top bracing. 1942 L-7 specs: triple bound top, double-parallelagram fingerboard inlays, crown peghead inlay. 1944 L-7 specs: standard trapeze tailpiece, some with fleur-de-lis peghead inlay and wood crosspiece on tailpiece. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>1948 L-7, L-7C specs: L-7C (cutaway) introduced, laminated beveled-edge pickguard, pickguard with 1 or 2 pickups available. 1956 L-7C specs: L-7 (non-cutaway) discontinued. L-7C Tailpiece with pointed ends and 2 raised diamonds. L-7C Discontinued 1972. 1950 A-4414 (Jan 3) A-5456 (Jul 3) A-6312 (Dec 4) A-6597 Gibson Serial Numbers, Feb 1961 to 1970. All models, stamped in back top of peghead. No "MADE IN USA" stamp below serial number! Note many serial numbers are duplicated from 1963-1969. In these cases, to figure out which is the exact year for a guitar, see the General Specs section for more details. ALSO note: It is easy to confuse 5 digit and 6 digit serial numbers from this era, and hence get the wrong year for a guitar. That is, 55555 is not the same number as 555555 (but when reading the number off the back of a Gibson peghead, these two numbers do look very similar!) Range Year ----- ---- 0100 to 42440 1961 42441 to 61180 1962 61450 to 64222 1963 Edited January 26, 2023 by Dave F Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksdaddy Posted January 27, 2023 Share Posted January 27, 2023 Gibsons also went from a tapered peg head to a uniform thickness around 1952. About that same time, they also stopped using black cloth tape on the inside of the rims. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 On 1/26/2023 at 4:17 PM, Dave F said: From Vintage Guitars Info - Gibson archtop vintage guitar collecting (guitarhq.com) Need more info to nail it down. Definitely 1948 or newer. Per below the number was used in 1950 with an A and in 1961 with the stamping on the back of the headstock. Does it look like there's a faint A before the serial number? Is the back of the head stock stamped? The description of the '56 tailpiece leads me to think it's a 1950. http://www.guitarhq.com/l7n_40.jpg 1940 L-7 with ornate "picture frame" fingerboard inlays.http://www.guitarhq.com/l7n_40.jpg Model: L-7 and L-7C Acoustic Archtop Available: 1933 to 1972 Collectibility Rating: Non-cutaway models: C-, Cutaway models: B-. Essentially a plain version of the L-5, an inexpensive working-man's archtop. 1933 L-7 introduction specs: 16" wide, trapeze tailpiece, single bound top, back, rosewood fingerboard, varied pattern fingerboard inlays starting at 3rd fret, single bound peghead, fleur-de-lis peghead inlay, nickel plated parts, sunburst finish. 1935 L-7 specs: 17" wide, X-braced top, ornate rectangle-enclosed fingerboard inlays, double-handled vase and curlicues peghead inlay, tailpiece with pointed ends and raised arrowheads. 1937 L-7 specs: flat plate tailpiece with cutouts,some engraved with "L-7" on base. 1939 L-7 specs: natural finish available, parallel top bracing. 1942 L-7 specs: triple bound top, double-parallelagram fingerboard inlays, crown peghead inlay. 1944 L-7 specs: standard trapeze tailpiece, some with fleur-de-lis peghead inlay and wood crosspiece on tailpiece. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>1948 L-7, L-7C specs: L-7C (cutaway) introduced, laminated beveled-edge pickguard, pickguard with 1 or 2 pickups available. 1956 L-7C specs: L-7 (non-cutaway) discontinued. L-7C Tailpiece with pointed ends and 2 raised diamonds. L-7C Discontinued 1972. 1950 A-4414 (Jan 3) A-5456 (Jul 3) A-6312 (Dec 4) A-6597 Gibson Serial Numbers, Feb 1961 to 1970. All models, stamped in back top of peghead. No "MADE IN USA" stamp below serial number! Note many serial numbers are duplicated from 1963-1969. In these cases, to figure out which is the exact year for a guitar, see the General Specs section for more details. ALSO note: It is easy to confuse 5 digit and 6 digit serial numbers from this era, and hence get the wrong year for a guitar. That is, 55555 is not the same number as 555555 (but when reading the number off the back of a Gibson peghead, these two numbers do look very similar!) Range Year ----- ---- 0100 to 42440 1961 42441 to 61180 1962 61450 to 64222 1963 Thank you for your reply. The missing A is what has confused my research. If it’s faded it’s well faded along the the hyphen. There is nothing stamped at the back of the headstock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 On 1/26/2023 at 10:41 PM, ksdaddy said: Gibsons also went from a tapered peg head to a uniform thickness around 1952. About that same time, they also stopped using black cloth tape on the inside of the rims. Thank you for your response. It looks like these have been replaced at some point over the years and probably not original. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JO'C Posted February 1, 2023 Share Posted February 1, 2023 If there is a faded A my source (Gibson Electric Serialization from the11th Edition Blue Book of Electric Guitars) also indicates 1950. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan H Posted February 4, 2023 Author Share Posted February 4, 2023 On 2/1/2023 at 10:08 AM, JO'C said: If there is a faded A my source (Gibson Electric Serialization from the11th Edition Blue Book of Electric Guitars) also indicates 1950. I’m starting to think that the faded A is likely. I’ll have magnify the label and have another look. Thank you for the reply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRichards Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 (edited) I have an L-7 99968 Kalamazoo old-style script Gibson logo can anyone help me date it? That's my Uncle Danny with the L7 that I now have. Edited November 15, 2023 by CRichards 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRichards Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 (edited) Then there is this one. 5702 22 Not sure what model or date this is? I have the bridge and tail bit. Edited November 15, 2023 by CRichards 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimR56 Posted November 16, 2023 Share Posted November 16, 2023 Your L7 would appear to have a serial number (not a factory order number) that dates to 1946: Gibson Non-Hyphen Serial Numbers, 1902 to 1947. Series starts with 1000. Note the format of these serial numbers has NO HYPHEN and NO LETTERS. For a number list with a hyphen and/or a letter, see the previous section under Factory Order Numbers. Year Last Number ---- ----------- 1931 90450 1932 90700 1933 91400 1934 92300 1935 92800 1936 94100 1937 95200 1938 95750 1939 96050 1940 96600 1941 97400 1942 97700 1943 97850 1944 98250 1945 98650 1946 99300 1947 99999 (April 28, 1947) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimR56 Posted November 16, 2023 Share Posted November 16, 2023 Your other guitar (perhaps an L50), has a factory order number that suggests 1950: 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 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRichards Posted November 16, 2023 Share Posted November 16, 2023 Thanks for the help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRichards Posted November 16, 2023 Share Posted November 16, 2023 9 hours ago, JimR56 said: Your L7 would appear to have a serial number (not a factory order number) that dates to 1946: Gibson Non-Hyphen Serial Numbers, 1902 to 1947. Series starts with 1000. Note the format of these serial numbers has NO HYPHEN and NO LETTERS. For a number list with a hyphen and/or a letter, see the previous section under Factory Order Numbers. Year Last Number ---- ----------- 1931 90450 1932 90700 1933 91400 1934 92300 1935 92800 1936 94100 1937 95200 1938 95750 1939 96050 1940 96600 1941 97400 1942 97700 1943 97850 1944 98250 1945 98650 1946 99300 1947 99999 (April 28, 1947) Here is the L7 with Danny Richards on the truss rod cover. He used to get covers from Gus Zoppi in Detroit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimR56 Posted November 18, 2023 Share Posted November 18, 2023 What a treasure that L7 is. Thanks for the added images. I've always loved that slanted script "Gibson" logo of the late 1940's, and the personalized/engraved truss rod cover (which are uncommon but not extremely rare on vintage Gibsons) is also an eye-catcher. These truss rod covers were manufactured by the "Mono-Plak" company of Oswego, IL, and could be ordered in different finishes and of course with custom engraving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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