Hey Zach,
I have a Gibson Les Paul I’m trying to identify. The serial number
is 676323, and “Made in USA” is stamped below that. I was told
to check the potentiometer date codes, which all have “1377142”
impressed into them. I read on a Gibson forum that, on seven-digit
pot codes, the fourth and fifth numbers represent the date. Can you
tell me what model this is and how much it is worth today? Dating
Gibson guitars is not easy—thank you!—Brian Page
Left: The mystery ’70s Gibson Les Paul. Upper Right: Starting in 1970,
Gibson began stamping “Made in USA” on the back of the headstock.
Lower Right: The fourth and fifth numbers of this seven-digit potentiometer
date code reveal the last two digits of its year of manufacture.
Here, the “71” indicate 1971. |
Hi Brian,
There’s no question that dating
Gibson guitars is challenging—and
sometimes downright impossible.
There are two basic components
to your Les Paul question: dating
it and identifying it. I’ll start with
trying to date the instrument, but
keep in mind that dating and identifying
Gibson guitars typically go
hand in hand.
I get several questions about
Gibson serial numbers every day,
and my initial answer is always
to not expect or rely on the serial
number alone to determine the year
of manufacture. For many Gibson
owners, it’s hard to believe that
an individual serial number won’t
automatically indicate the year and
model of the guitar in question. In
fact, without any other information
about the guitar, the serial number is
essentially worthless. This was mainly
caused by Gibson trying to keep
up with production while attempting
to serialize everything accurately,
as well. Unfortunately, during
extremely busy times, production
simply trumped serialization.
Gibson has used numerous
serialization systems over its
100-plus-year history, and a majority
of these numbers were used
haphazardly—and rarely in consecutive
order—until the system
was standardized in 1977. Up until
the early 1960s, serial numbers
were fairly consistent, but for most
of the 1960s and 1970s, six-digit
numbers were used pretty much
at random. Based on the charts
originally compiled from Gibson’s
shipping ledgers by author A.R.
Duchossoir, the serial number you
provided could have been used on
Gibson guitars produced in 1970,
1971, 1972, 1974, or 1975. The
most important dating feature
on guitars with six-digit serial
numbers is that, starting in 1970,
Gibson began stamping “Made In
USA” near the serial number on
the back of the headstock. Since
the value of a Gibson Les Paul
differs widely between 1970 and
1975, it is very important to pinpoint
the year.
As for dating pots, you are correct
that the fourth and fifth numbers of
the potentiometer date code indicate
the last two digits of the year (that
is, the “71” in your serial number
stands for 1971). Checking the date
codes on pots is usually the second
step (after approximating the date of
the serial number) in determining the
guitar’s year. This only works if the
pots are original. And because many
manufacturers purchased pots in large
quantities, the pots could sit on the
shelves for weeks—if not months—before they were installed. Basically,
dating the pots only confirms the
earliest
time the guitar could have been
produced. Since your guitar has pots
dating from 1971 and they appear to
be original, we know it was produced
in 1971 or later.
Now comes the identifying part.
Your guitar has cosmetic features and
specifications similar to a Les Paul
Standard. However, the Les Paul
Standard model was not produced
between 1970 and 1975 (it was
officially reintroduced in 1976). The
Gibson Les Paul Deluxe, which was
nearly identical to the Standard with
the exception of mini-humbucker
pickups, was produced during this
time. Further, beginning in 1972,
Gibson began offering the Les Paul
Deluxe with a special order of full-size
humbuckers. Many of these
Deluxes have “Standard” stamped on
their truss-rod cover.
I believe your guitar is a circa-
1972 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe with
optional full-size humbuckers.
While the serial number could apply
to 1974 and 1975 as well, it is widely
reported that the pots were used
in a timely manner from this era at
Gibson. Guitar production wasn’t
nearly as fast paced during that
period as it was in the 1960s, which
meant Gibson ordered fewer parts
at that time. Also note that, in mid-1972, the “Les Paul” signature and
“Model” inscription were changed
from a silkscreen to a decal.
It appears that your pickups
were changed at some point
(although the pickup openings
seem to be originally cut for full-size
humbuckers), the pickguard is
absent, and the tip of the pickup
switch is missing, as well. Most of
the body appears to be in “very
good plus” condition, and based
on all of this, your guitar is valued
between $2200-$2500.
To recap: Inconsistent serialization
and the fact that many Gibson
guitars do not have the exact model
marked on the instrument, dating
and identifying older Gibsons isn’t
easy. It usually takes more than
just a serial number to accurately
identify and date them, and there
are numerous other dating systems
and tools that I haven’t mentioned
here. Some serialization systems
only apply to certain guitars, and in
some cases the same serial number
has been used on multiple guitars!
For more information on Gibson
or potentiometer serialization and
model identification, please refer to
our website (
bluebookinc.com) or
visit
gibson.com.
Zachary R. Fjestad
is author of
Blue Book
of Acoustic Guitars, Blue
Book of Electric Guitars,
and
Blue Book of Guitar
Amplifiers.
For more information, visit
bluebookinc.com or email Zach at
guitars@bluebookinc.com.