Epiphone PR720S

[stenz]

Hey guys and gals,

 

I am new hear and just picked up a Epiphone/Gibson acoustic. The sticker inside said its a PR720S the serial # is 9191200.

 

My question to you is can you tell me anything about it? I have looked online and havent found anything.

 

Thanks,

 

Jake

[Ship of fools]

the PR720S, dread style,solid spruce top, round soundhole,no pick guard, three stripe rosette, bound body, African ovangkol back/sides, mahogany neck,14/20 frest rosewood finger board with pearl diamondinlays, roeswood bridge with white pins, three /side gold tuners.Available in Natural finish made in 92 only, one in excellent shape can sell for about $150 to a high of $275.00.hope this is what you wanted.Ship

[TommyK]

Looks like you got that covered SOS.

 

Curious, when did Norlin sell off Gibson / Epiphone / Baldwin, et. al. to the current management? Were PRs a late Norlin thing or did they start that nomenclature post-Norlin?

 

I plugged the serial number into the Guitar Dater Project and came up blank.

[avidkut]

Curious' date=' when did Norlin sell off Gibson / Epiphone / Baldwin, et. al. to the current management? .[/quote']

 

'86 or so wasn't it?

[Ship of fools]

Norlin actually sold Gibson is 1980, they closed the Kalamazoo plant in 83, with final productions in late 84.Ship

Oh and Tommy like all dating of guitars their recordings also were often off so the dating of some gutiars dont really always work, of course as time went on they realized more folks wanted that info. So someone actually started to keep track.

[TommyK]

So, if I understand the time line correctly,

 

1970 Norlin purchased Gibson, Epiphone and various other CMI names.

1970, Norlin moved Epiphone production out of K'zoo to Matsumoku of Japan and rebrand Aria models 6xxx as a temporary source of Epiphone flat tops. Some of these 6xxx model numbers have an 'E' suffix that differentiates the Epiphones from Arias. Left over K'zoo labels are moved to Japan and 'Union Made' is lined out and re-stamped 'Made In Japan'

 

Somewhere in here Aria makes it's own label that copies the K'zoo label except for "Made in Japan" pre-printed in the Lower RH corner instead of "Union Made" in the lower left.

 

1971, The Aria model numbers are supplanted by FT series of acoustic guitars.

1980, Norlin sells Gibson, et.al. to some Gibson execs and Gibson is once again a stand alone company

1983, K'zoo is abandoned for Nashville

19??, Acoustics production is moved to Bozeman.

 

19??, Epiphone production moved from Aria to Korea and / or Indonesia

20?? Epiphone production moved to China.

 

 

Please feel free to correct / fill in the blanks. Would like to know when the FTs were replaced by the PR series.

[Larens]

So' date=' if I understand the time line correctly,

 

1970 Norlin purchased Gibson, Epiphone and various other CMI names.

1970, Norlin moved Epiphone production out of K'zoo to Matsumoku of Japan and rebrand Aria models 6xxx as a temporary source of Epiphone flat tops. Some of these 6xxx model numbers have an 'E' suffix that differentiates the Epiphones from Arias. Left over K'zoo labels are moved to Japan and 'Union Made' is lined out and re-stamped 'Made In Japan'

 

Somewhere in here Aria makes it's own label that copies the K'zoo label except for "Made in Japan" pre-printed in the Lower RH corner instead of "Union Made" in the lower left.

 

1971, The Aria model numbers are supplanted by FT series of acoustic guitars.

1980, Norlin sells Gibson, et.al. to some Gibson execs and Gibson is once again a stand alone company

1983, K'zoo is abandoned for Nashville

19??, Acoustics production is moved to Bozeman.

 

19??, Epiphone production moved from Aria to Korea and / or Indonesia

20?? Epiphone production moved to China.

 

 

Please feel free to correct / fill in the blanks. Would like to know when the FTs were replaced by the PR series.

[/quote']

 

1957- Chicago Musical Instrument (CMI) purchases Epiphone (announced May 10, 1957). It had previously acquired Gibson in the spring of 1944.

 

December 19, 1969- ECL Industries Inc. ( "Ecuadorian Company Limited"-incorporated in Delaware and a U.S. subsidiary of a Panamanian corporation of the same name)officially takes over CMI. Norlin is an amalgamation of the first syllable of ECL's chairman's first name, Norton Stevens and the last syllable of CMI's president M.H. Berlin's last name.

 

1970- ECL's U.S. operation becomes "Norlin Industries Inc." and the Panamanian corporation becomes "Norlin Corporation". CMI remains a subsidiary of the U.S. operation.

 

August 1970- Epiphone production in Kalamazoo is halted. Domestic Epiphone guitars are still shipped into early 1971.

 

1971- Beginning in the spring of 1971, Norlin imports Matsumoku/Aria-made models from Japan which have been re-branded as Epiphones. These models use the familiar blue "Kalamazoo"-type Epiphone interior labels and early models make use of actual left-over Kalamazoo labels bearing the "Union Made" designation. The first year (1971) the model nomenclature was carried-over from the Aria models. In 1972 new model designations using the alpha prefixes "FT", "EA" and "ET" were used on these imported Epiphones.

 

1972- A merger of Norlin Industries Inc. and CMI operations creates "Norlin Music Inc." A few years later the name was again changed back to "Norlin Industries Inc.

 

1975- Matsumoku begins production of a Japan-exclusive line of higher-end Epiphones. These at first are sold only in Japan but by 1979 the arch top line is distributed world-wide.

 

1975- Norlin opens the Nashville operation producing the higher volume instruments such as the Les Paul models while the Kalamazoo operation, now antiquated, continues making the lower volume models. By 1977 the corporate center of Gibson's universe was Nashville. Epiphone corporate operations are moved to Lincolnwood, Illinois. At about this point Epiphone began using the "Norlin" square label replacing the blue K-Zoo-type label. The higher-end line of Matsumoku-made Epiphone labels continue to reference "Epiphone/Kalamazoo"

 

June 1979- Norlin merges Gibson Inc. into Norlin Industries Inc. and Gibson ceases to exist as a manufacturing operation becoming only a brand name as Epiphone had previously become.

 

1979/1980- The "FT" acoustic line is replaced by the "PR" Presentation line of acoustics. The "PR" series continues production in Korea after production is moved there in 1983.

 

July 1983- he decision to close the Kalamazoo factory is made and a year later in September,1984 operations ceased in Kalamazoo. For the last year of operation the Kalamazoo factory diversified into making things like clock cases, water bed frames and conversion van parts to keep the employees working.

 

1983- Most Epiphone guitar production is moved to Korea and contracted out to Samick. Matsumoku continues to make the higher-end line of Epiphone instruments in Japan. Some Epiphone instruments at this point in time are also made in Taiwan and Indonesia

 

January 15,1986- "Gibson Guitar Corp." is created when Henry Juszkiwwicz, David Berryman and Gary Zebrowski purchases Norlin's fretted instrument division. GGC later becomes Gibson Musical Instruments (GMI).

 

1985/1986- While Henry J and company were negotiating for the Gibson name, three former Gibson employees, Jim Deurloo, Marvin Lamb and J.P. Moats were working their own deal to take over the former Gibson factory at 225 Parsons Street in K-Zoo and begin making "Heritage" guitars.

 

June, 1989- Gibson opens up their Bozeman, Montana acoustic operation Gibson having previously used the Nashville factory whose climate was determined to be unsuited for acoustic production.

 

 

Hopes that clears some things up regarding dates and such. For more fascinating information check out " Gibson Guitars: 100 Of An American Icon" by Walter Carter.

 

If I were one to wager, my bet would be that the PR-720S, the subject of the original post, was made by Samick and dates to September of 1991.

 

Have to go mend my nets and tend my lines.

 

 

Larens