DATING EPIPHONE GUITARS AND MANDOLINS BY REFERENCE OF SERIAL NUMBERS
Epiphone guitars are manufactured in various factories across different countries, making it challenging to identify their origin or manufacturing date. However, each Epiphone guitar is marked with a serial number that, once decoded, can reveal details about its production location and date.
Where to find the serial number:
To find the serial number of your guitar, look for it on the headstock. For Semi-Hollow models, it can be found on the label inside the top f-hole, while for acoustic guitars, it can be found on the label inside the sound hole. The serial number usually contains a combination of digits and one or two letters.
To determine the year of production for your Epiphone guitar or mandolin, you have two options: use Epiphone serial numbers decoder or refer to the explanation of the dating system PROVIDED BELOW.
Anastasios Stathopoulos was a Greek luthier born in 1863 who founded a mandolin and violin company in Pellana, Greece in 1873. In 1903, he immigrated with his wife to New York and a year later, started a company that primarily produced mandolins. The business was successful, leading Stathopoulos to hire Italian professional Henry Cappielo.
Following Anastasios’ death in 1915, his son Epaminondas (Epi) took over the company and expanded it into one of the largest of its kind. Epi then opened a factory for the production of banjos, leading to his purchase of the banjo company Favoran and the introduction of the Epiphone Recording line, which proved to be a great success due to its high quality and elegant design.
The success of the banjo Recording line prompted Epiphone to establish a Recording line for guitars in 1928 and to introduce a full line of f-hole archtop guitars in 1931, including 12 models such as the Broadway, Triumph, and DeLuxe. Competing with Gibson, Epiphone dealt a serious blow to its competitor with the introduction of the Epiphone Emperor in 1935, and in 1937, the company introduced the Electar series of electric guitars with adjustable pickups.
Epaminondas passed away in 1943, and the company was taken over by his two sons, Orpheus (Orphie) and Frixo. However, the cooperation between the two brothers deteriorated, and the company struggled in the post-war years. By the mid-1950s, Epiphone was producing very few instruments. In 1957, the company was sold to CMI, Gibson’sparent company, for $20,000.00. A complete range of newly designed acoustic and electric guitars was introduced in 1958, and in 1960, production moved to the Gibson plant in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
In the early 1970s, production under license from Gibson moved from the USA to Japan, and from 1983, Epiphone guitars were also produced in Korea, followed by Indonesia in 1995. In 2004, Gibson opened a factory in Qingdao, China for the production of Epiphone guitars. Although the vast majority of Epiphone guitars are produced in these countries, some more exclusive models are still manufactured in the USA.
Serial numbers
The stamped serial number can consist of a series of numbers, or letter(s) and numbers.
Only numbers For an eleven digit serial number, the encoding is as follows: Example: 11051500160 The first two digits are the last 2 digits of the year. (11) The next two digits represent the month. (05) The 5th and 6th digit represent the factory code.. (15) (See list numbered factory codes) The last 5 digits form the series sequence number. Serial number 11051500160 is the 160th guitar built in May 2011 at the factory of Qingdao in China. (Since 2004 Epiphone guitars have been produced in China)
Five digit serial numbers. Five digits with a space after the first digit and custom shop on the back of the headstock, applied from 1990 to 1999. The first digit is the last digit of the production year, the following four digits are the serial number. Five digits no space after the first digit were used from 1951 to 1956 and from 1961 to 1967 for both acoustic and electric models.
Six digit serial numbers From 1961 to early 1970, Epiphone used 6-digit serial numbers in the Gibson serial number line. However, many serial numbers were duplicated during this period, making the exact production year difficult to trace. It is certain that the models with a 6 digit serial number starting with 0 were produced in 1967.
Seven digit serial numbers do not have a factory code. Here is the first digit the last year of the decade. The 2nd and 3rd numbers represent the month. These were manufactured in Korea by Samick between 1984 and 1995.
Eight and nine digit serial numbers without a factory code. These were used respectively from 1990 and 1988 and also manufactured by Samick in Korea.
Letter(s) and numbers
One letter five digits This combination was applied to the Elite/Elitist models. The letter indicates the factory code and the first digit is the last digit of the year (since 2002). The factory code can be an F or a T here. (See list Factory code letter) Example: Serial number T32222 is the 2222th guitar of 2003 built in the factory of Terada Gakki Seisakusyo, Japan.
One letter six digits The letter indicates the factory code and the first and second digit are the last two digits of the year. Example: Serial number Z051234 is the 1234th guitar built in 2005 at the Zaozhuang Saehan factory in China.
Between 2001 and 2010 only 1 digit was used for the production year.
Two letters five digits The letters indicate the factory code and the first digit is the last digit of the year. Example: Serial number CI21234 is the 1234th guitar built in 2002 at the Cort, Indonesia factory.
One letter seven digits The letter indicates the factory code and the first digit is the last digit of the year. The 3rd and 4th digits represent the month. The last 4 digits form the series sequence number. Because the year is only represented by 1 digit, guitars with this coding from the 80s, 90s or a decade of 2000 (depending on the factory code). Example: Serial number S6031234 is the 1234th guitar built in 1986, 1996 or 2006 at the Samick factory in Korea.
Two letters six digits The letter indicates the factory code and the next two digits are the last two digits of the year. The second letter (fourth character) stands for the month. (A = January, B = February, etc.) The last 4 digits form the series sequence number. Example: Serial number R04G0123 is the 123th guitar of July 2004, built in the Peerless, Korea factory.
One letter eight digits The letter indicates the factory code, the next two digits are the last two digits of the year. The 3rd and 4th digits represent the month. The last 4 digits form the series sequence number. Example: C99040233 is the 233rd guitar of April 1999, built in the Cort factory, Korea. (This coding method was used until 2010).
Two letters seven digits The letter indicates the factory code, the next two digits are the last two digits of the year.
The second letter (fourth character) stands for the month. (A = January, B = February, etc.) The last 5 digits form the series sequence number. Example: S07C00122 is the 122th guitar of March 2004, built at the Samick factory in Korea. (This coding method was used until 2010)
Two letters eight digits The 2 letters indicate the factory code, the next two digits are the last two digits of the year. The 5th and 6th digits represent the month. The last 4 digits form the series sequence number. Example: SI02060234 is the 234th guitar of June 2002, built at the Samick factory in Cileungsi near Bogor, Indonesia.
Two letter nine digits This coding is the same as the coding of two letter eight digits with the difference that here is 5 digits for it sequence number are used.
Acoustic guitars
Japan
The acoustic guitars from Epiphone, which were manufactured by Matsumoku in Japan from 1970 to 1987, are not reliable serial numbering system, but can be approximately dated by color and inscription from the Epiphone label. Blue label 1970-1975 The first blue labels that were used were leftover labels from the Kalamazoo factory. In the bottom left corner of these labels is printed “Union Made” and stamped, “Made in Japan”. Until supplies ran out, they were used from 1970 until the beginning of 1971. Some of these first labels do not include Made in Japan or Union Made. After supplies ran out, new blue labels were used where in the lower right corner “Made in Japan” is printed. Brown or white “Lincolnwood” label 1976-1979 The Lincolnwood label was also used for the acoustic guitars of the Taiwanese “Ep” series from 1979-1980. These labels in the bottom right corner say, ‘Made in Taiwan’. From 1980 to 1987 a mottled label was used.
China
In 2004 Gibson opened a factory in Qingdao, China, which produces Epiphone guitars.
No labels have been used here, but stickers with “Made in China” are glued to the neck of the guitars. With the exception of the Masterbilts, these do have a label with a serial number in the resonance box.
Numbered factory codes
NUMBER
FACTORY
COUNTRY
10
unknown
China
11
Qingdao
China
12
DeaWon or Unsung
China
13
unknown
China
14
DaeWon
China
15
Qingdao (electric)
China
16
Qingdao (acoustic)
China
17
unknown
China
18
unknown
China
19
Fine Guitars
China
20
DeaWon or Unsung
China
21
Unsung
Korea
22
unknown
Korea
23
Samick
Indonesia
Factory code letter
NUMBER
FACTORY
COUNTRY
B
Bohêmia Musico-Delicia
Czech Republic
BW
unknown
China
C
Cort
Korea
CI
Cort
Indonesia
DW
DaeWon
China
EA
Qingdao (acoustic)
China
ED
Dongbei
China
EE
QingDao (electric)
China
F
Fuji-gen (Elite/Elitist models)
Japan
F
Fine Guitars
Korea
FC
Fuji-gen (nineties)
Japan
G
QingDao (acoustic)
Korea
GG
unknown
Korea
GR
Farida, Guang Dong
Indonesia
I
Saein
Korea
IS
Samick, Bogor
Indonesia
J
Terada Gakki Seisakusyo
Japan
K
Korea Ins.
Korea
L
Leader Musical Instrument Co Ltd.
Korea
MC
Muse
China
MR
Mirr factory
China [Korea to 2004]
O
Choice
Korea
P
Peerless
Korea
R
Peerless
Korea
QG
Qingdao Gibson
China
S
Samick
Korea
SI
Samick, Bogor
Indonesia
SJ
SaeJun
China
SM
Samil
Korea
T
Terada Gakki Seisakusyo
Japan
U
Unsung
Korea
UC
Unsung China
China
Z
Zaozhuang Saehan
China
Unclear Letter factory codes
NUMBER
FACTORY
COUNTRY
H
unknown
Probably Hunan, China
GP
unknown
Probably Korea
JK
unknown
Probably Korea or Indonesia
SK
unknown
unknown
SN
unknown
Probably Indonesia
SW
unknown
unknown
WF
unknown
Probably China
X
unknown
Probably China
Y
unknown
Probably Korea
If you are unsure whether the serial number corresponds with the year of manufacture, you can do a potmeter-check with an electric model.
FAQ
How can I tell what year my Epiphone guitar was made?
Epiphone guitars are manufactured in various factories across different countries, making it challenging to identify their origin or manufacturing date. However, each Epiphone guitar is marked with a serial number that, once decoded, can reveal details about its production location and date. To determine the year of production for your Epiphone guitar or mandolin, you have two options: use the serial number decoder or refer to the explanation of the dating system.
How do I find Epiphone guitar serial number?
To find the serial number of your Epiphone guitar, look for it on the headstock. For Semi-Hollow models, it can be found on the label inside the top f-hole, while for Epiphone acoustic guitars, it can be found on the label inside the sound hole. Epiphone serial number usually contains a combination of digits and one or two letters.