Old Guitar Identification By Matt McKay; Updated September 15, 2017. Serial numbers may seem to be the most reliable method of identification, but not all manufacturers used them, and they are not always reliable. ESP Guitars & Serial Number Identification. How to Find a Gibson Model Number. Mar 13, 2008 The first letter is the factory the guitar was made in (W is the Korean factory). The next two digits are the year. Next two is the week in the year. Next one is the day in the week (i.e. And the rest of the digits is the number of the guitar that came off the assembly line.
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