How old is your stratocaster

This period also saw a switch from the orginal four-bolt neckplate of the '60s to a three-bolt neckplate in just one example of cost-saving costs introduced under CBS. Starting in , Fender transitioned to a new serial number scheme and moved the placement of most serial numbers to the headstock of the instrument. Depending on the era and model, the number can be found on either the front or back of the headstock. After a short period of overlap with the old system, the post numbers will start with a letter that indicates the decade, followed by a number that indicates the year of that decade.

In the s, you'll also see serials starting with a DZ which indicates the Deluxe series, but the format is otherwise the same. For example, a serial number with N4 would be from One starting with Z5 would be from This is particularly pronounced in the transitional period of the mid-'80s, though the system has been pretty much on point since about After , the letter changed to a format starting with US then two digits that tell the year of the current decade.

American-made signature series instruments follow a very similar scheme to the above, but use a prefix S before the decade letter. For example, a Signature Series guitar from would have a serial starting with SN8 followed by five digits. These have serial numbers starting with V and do not strictly correlate to years.

The neck dates on these guitars, however, are usually reliable. Fender Japan serial numbers can usually be found on the back of the neck near the neck joint. Though examples also exist with the number on the headstock or the neck-plate in the case of certain early reissue models.

Up until , the serial was paired with the words "Made in Japan. In , Fender expanded operations with a series of instruments produced in Japan by the Fuji Gen Gakki company. Like the US serial numbers, MIJ made in Japan serials start with a letter or pair of letters that indicate the rough year of production.

This system, however, is notoriously inconsistent and incomplete, which makes dating by serial number even less reliable for MIJ Fenders.

After , Fender Japan switched back to marking Fenders as "Made in Japan" though for a few years instruments with both decals were made. Serial numbers since this transition have continued the same sequence as the "CIJ" era. Fender opened a factory in Ensenada, Mexico in the late '80s and instruments started coming off the line in The MIM serial number scheme is actually very straight-forward. For Mexican Fenders made in the s, the serial will start with an MN followed by a number that indicates the year of the decade.

Instruments made in the s follow the same form but start with MZ. For the s, the prefix is MX1. For example, a serial number starting with MN2 would be There are a number of exceptions to all these serial number schemes.

As mentioned above, many reissue models use serial numbers that don't really correlate to their age. It had not one or two but three pickups, with switching and controls that created great tonal versatility although, curiously, the switching configuration allowed only three of several possible pickup combinations.

This consisted of two then-common paint colors—a brownish-black outer hue called dark Salem, which graduated to a golden inner hue called canary yellow. Sunburst finishes also conveyed the extra advantage of lessening the apparentness of mismatched wood grain in the ash bodies, which typically but not always consisted of two or more pieces glued together.

In response to player feedback on the Telecaster, Randall wanted the new guitar to have some kind of vibrato system, and Leo was eager to better the designs by his former business partner, Doc Kauffman, and by his contemporary, Paul Bigsby. The vibrato system had to offer solid tuning stability without compromising tone, sustain, player comfort and ease of use, and Leo immersed himself in the task with his customary focus.

In this design, the strings actually moved over the bridge on the rollers. Leo invested a great deal of time and money into trying to perfect the system well into before scrapping the entire design and starting over. Randall and his salesmen were chomping at the bit to get the new guitar out, and there was considerable pressure on Leo himself to devise a new Stratocaster vibrato system. Inspired by a gram scale, he hurriedly completed an entirely new design in late in which the whole bridge assembly moved with the strings rather than having the strings move over rollers with the bridge remaining stationary.

The rear of the bridge plate was unanchored and bent slightly upward; the front was fixed to the guitar body with six screws, one in front of each bridge saddle. In the compartment routed into the back of the guitar, the whole assemble was anchored by springs three at first but soon five that attached to the inertia block at one end and an adjustable anchor plate screwed to the forward wall of the cavity at the other end.

Leo and his staff envisioned a steel guitar-like sound with only very slight pitch changes, but his design actually enabled a pitch span of up to three half steps or more. Simply put, it was better than it needed to be, and within a decade or so players would be using it to create swooping, dive-bombing sounds never envisioned at Fender headquarters.

Other Stratocaster innovations included single-coil alnico 3 pickups with staggered-height pole pieces that effectively addressed the varying output of the heavy string gauges in use at the time, and a slanting output jack mounted on the face of the guitar rather than the side.

All along as design refinements preceded throughout late and early , Leo and his staff were ably abetted by several western swing guitarists in addition to Gallion and Carson who were happy to field-test Stratocaster prototypes in local nightclubs. It was a sleekly beautiful instrument bursting with great features and producing full, clear and sparkling tones. The Stratocaster got off to a rather slow start.

Such was the uphill climb the Stratocaster faced on its introduction; indeed, its ascent was long and gradual rather than immediate and meteoric.

And so the Stratocaster bided its time during its first few years—a period during which the saxophone and the piano slowly ceded their lead roles to electric guitar, which could with rapidly increasing prevalence be heard louder and clearer than ever before.

By , the Stratocaster was basically perfected into the form that has remained largely unchanged ever since. Fender switched to less-expensive and more easily workable alder instead of ash for Stratocaster bodies in mid The brittle plastic originally used for Stratocaster pickguards, control knobs and pickup covers was replaced with a more durable plastic in For US instruments, the serial number will start with a letter.

That letter indicates the decade. That number indicates the specific year. S9 means E4 means N8 means Z5 means US11 means The remaining digits are important for product identification, but the first few characters are all you need to determine the instruments age. Serial number coding for Mexican-made instruments is largely the same, except they will start with an M.

MN2 for in Mexico MZ8 for in Mexico Shop our selection of Fender Guitars Gibson Serial Dating Gibson serial numbers are even more interesting, because you can find out the specific date that your instrument was completed!

Here's how: Gibsons have this pattern stamped onto the back of their headstocks: YDDDYRRR 8xxx6xxx for 0xxx7xxx for xxx for the th day of the year of August 5, xxx for the 2 nd day of the year of January 2, The remaining characters RRR can indicate the order of instruments created that day, as well as which factory the instrument was made in.

There are some exceptions. A serial number ending in could be the first instrument made at factory 5 that day, or it could be the st instrument of the day.