unidentified Gibson SG

[el_negro]

i have an older model SG and judging by the "Made in USA" imprint on the back of the head stock i think it dates from 1970 to 1975. The serial number is a little worn but I can tell that its a 6 digit number starting with 61 but the rest is hard to read. if anyone could help me date this guitar i would greatly appreciate it.

[ksdaddy]

You can narrow it down by the codes on the back of the volume and tone pots. It only works if you are confident they are original. Given that you know it was made between 70-75, that will help. If you found codes from 1987 that would tell you they have been changed.

 

You will find a 7 digit number stamped into the back of the pots, likely beginning with 137 or 304. Those are codes for the manufacturer. The next two digits are the year. The final two digits are the week of that year.

 

So if you found 1377209, that pot was made in the 9th week of 1972. You could then call the guitar a '72. If you found pot codes very late in the year, the 48th or 49th week let's say, then the guitar was likely made in the following year since there is a time gap between the pots being made and the guitar being built.

 

It's not an exact science but it will get you close.

[el_negro]

thanx for your help man. i opened it up to take a look at the pots and this is what i found 1376620. from what your saying that would make this a 1966 SG. i think my uncle said that the neck had been replaced but he was positive that everything else was origanal.

[el_negro]

I think that I found out what it is... Im pretty sure that its a Gibson SG-200 but the only thing that throws me off is that it only has a single coil pickup on the neck and all the pictures that i found have a neck and bridge pickup.

[ksdaddy]

Sounds like an SG-100.

 

 

They didn't make them until around '71 so it's more likely the pots were changed at one time.... oddly enough with older ones. I suppose it's possible they had some old leftover pots at the factory.

[el_negro]

Hell yeah thats exactly what I have. I was confused by the pickups because they were the '66 model but maybe you're right. Do you know how much it might be worth?

[jimmiJAMM]

Pots DO NOT necessarily prove year of guitar. They were made in large batches and often used in subsequent years.

[el_negro]

thanx guys... you really helped me out with this guitar. i took it to a show that my band played in Ann Arbor and some guy was asking me all these questions about it that i didnt know. thats what really got my gears rollin' and since then i've been looking up everything i can find on the SG-100. A lot of the other forums that i've read people criticize the SG-100 but personally i think its got an awesome tone and the action is magnificent.

[duane v]

Yeppers an SG100

 

I have a SG200 and it's a true player... Got it when I was 10