Danelectro Reissue Serial Numbers
Essentially a slab of solid wood, the early Fender models were the antithesis of the much more complex and expensive electric guitars-such as those manufactured by Gibson-and had the added advantage of the exchangeability of parts. Replacing a neck was as simple as unbolting one and bolting on the other, something which simply could not be done with guitars having a set neck.
My 56-U2 reissue has a sticker on the back of the headstock with a 9 digit serial number. From what I understand, the numbers are pretty much meaningless as far as dating. There are no numbers inside my control cavity. Oct 04, 2014 On the tenth anniversary in 2003, the serial numbers reset and duplication of numbers began. I estimate that The Custom Shop produces somewhere around 3000-5000 Historic reissue Les Pauls every year. Each of these shares a serial number with a guitar built 10 (or 20) years earlier. I've always felt that a better system. I purchased the lipstick pickup early on and installed it, but as of late I decided it's better as an acoustic (that, and I picked up a danelectro 56 U2 reissue) I removed the electronics, but now I have three empty holes (two for knobs, one for jack).
The design also greatly simplified production and allowed the owner to do more of his own work on the instrument. Leo Fender listened to his critics-often well-known musicians who road-tested his products. The designer, who ironically was not a guitarist himself, continued to tweek and improve on the design of the Telecaster, hoping to completely replace the model with the even more modern Stratocaster design. With its integrated floating 'tremolo' arm, triple single coil pick-ups with unique tones, shaved shape to fit the body of the player, and all the advantages of the solid construction and interchangeability of parts enjoyed by the Telecaster, the Stratocaster would take over the rock and roll world and become the most imitated design in the industry. In early 1965, the CBS corporation bought the Fender Musical Instruments company and immediately began to streamline production processes in an attempt to reduce costs and maximize the profitability of their investment. Indeed, CBS greatly increased the output of the Fender organization, making the instruments even more available world-wide and constructing the huge, new Fullerton factory complex. However, not all of the changes were welcomed by musicians.
The headstock decals changed. Pick guards that turned green with age were replaced. The headstock itself was enlarged so that the logos would be more noticeable. Paint formulas changed. Electronics were re-designed as a money-saving measure, and wood quality was not as aggressively controlled. The Strat received a three-bolt neck design to replace the four-bolt. Most of the changes were made with good intentions, mainly to increase the durability of the instrument.
The new pick guards resisted fading. The revised paint formula was thicker and also held up better to hard use. The three-bolt neck was easier to adjust.
Danelectro Guitar Models
However well-intentioned, the net effect of these 'improvements' was a gradual change in playing characteristics that became pronounced enough for guitarists to notice. In addition, the huge output of the conglomerate could not compete with the relatively low-output and attention to quality and detail that the original company had enjoyed.
Players and vendors began to refer to vintage guitars as 'Pre-CBS' and demanded a higher premium for them than the new instruments. 'They don't build them like they used to' became the mantra adopted by many in the guitar-playing public. The problem, however, did not go unnoticed by the company. In an effort to regain the reputation of the brand and align the product with its profound heritage, plans to return to the Pre-CBS roots began with a line of 'Vintage Series' reissues based on the original designs. In the waning years of CBS ownership, the product was to undergo a re-design as a nod to the past, just as key employees were planning to buy the company.
Free Software Serial Numbers
The Vintage Series Reissue Production of the Vintage series began in 1982. Although the emphasis was on emulating the 'real' 1957 Stratocaster as closely as possible, early new models suffered from a number of production issues that did not affect playability but which make these examples highly sought-after today.
The bodies of these early guitars had to be hand modified by the line workers to make the pick guard and electronics assembly fit. This quick fix continued until production line changes were adjusted to address these problems. In addition, a certain number of parts from the first batch used was unique to these very early production instruments. Thus, the first guitars to come off the line were barely more than factory prototypes-quite rare, and becoming more valuable all the time.
One such example is this '57 American Vintage Reissue Stratocaster. Purchased in 1982 from Wilken Music in Sedalia and intended as a Christmas gift, this guitar was shown to my parents by a young sales clerk who steered them away from a regular production olympic white three-bolt model. 'This is something special' is the standard line of any salesman, but in this case it turned out to be true. More expensive than the standard model, the Vintage '57 became the choice instrument. 'It looked better too,' my older brother Jim, who had accompanied my parents, later told me. He added that the olympic white example looked a little plasticky in comparison, with the white having a tinge of green to it. The Vintage model was obviously better-built, and much more attractive.
'Besides,' he said, 'The sunburst is classic.' This is the author's guitar, manufactured extremely early in the first run of '57 Reissues made in 1982. These guitars are known as 'Fullerton Reissues' since they were manufactured at the Fullerton, California plant. Following the sale of the company to former employees and investors, the Corona plant was built, and those guitars are known as 'Corona Reissues'.
The Fullerton units were designed in the waning times of CBS ownership, and the impending sale of the company, along with the complexities of the subsequent changeover, contributed to the production snafus. The above example still has the 'ash tray' bridge cover, early style case, and is in nearly perfect condition due to nearly a decade and a half of storage. Most of the 'case candy'-that is, the accessories that came with the guitar-are still present, and include the Fender cable and strap, owner's manual, and the extra 'tremolo' arm springs in the stock envelope. Some of these guitars for sale still claim to have their original yellow wipe cloths. These did NOT have the 'Fender' logo in black on them, and any such cloth is a replacement. I visited Quigley Music in Kansas City to investigate my options regarding the issues I had with the Vintage '57.
The 'primitive' design of the guitar allowed for difficulty in maintaining tune. The electronics tended to pick up interference and hum at higher volume due to a lack of shielding-and, of course, the tremolo arm had broken off. The tech there suggested modifying the Vintage '57 with a modern, after-market tremolo mechanism. He wanted to address the humming with modified or replaced pick-ups.
In effect, the young man wanted to 'hot rod' the existing instrument. Even at that time-before knowing what the significance of this guitar was-I was leery about changing anything.
I never was much into 'customizing'. Delphi ds150e crack download. In January of 2007, stuck in the house due to a prolific snowstorm, I got a wild hair and for some reason opened the case. It was probably the first time since the early 90's that I'd taken the guitar completely out.
Since I had the Strat Plus for regular playing duties, I really didn't have a need to do anything with the '57. The case still smelled new.
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Other than some small dings along the edges caused by bumping into things while I wore the instrument, the guitar looked new. The finish was completely free of wear and any checking. The neck looked like it had never been played. Only some worn paint on the volume knob and the slightly yellowed plastic nut gave indication of any kind of age. Otherwise, it could pass for a contemporary model.
BELOW LEFT: The red bobbin (or bottom) pick ups are indicative of an early unit in the model run. Guitars containing these pick ups are extremely rare and highly collectible. MIDDLE: A scan of the headstock. The Reissue headstocks are original in shape after a long CBS run of larger, 70's style headstocks. Decals are above the varnish finish and is in mint condition on this example. Frets show a little bit of wear from finger vibrato; the fretboard itself is also mint. Machines are Klusen-style tuners.
RIGHT: The 'CTP' stamp on the reverse of the neck plate. BOTTOM: reverse end of the neck with inspection stamps. I had always been intrigued by the low serial number, but other details hinted at an extremely early build date.
The exterior, however clean, belied what the innards revealed. The neck date showed May 25, 1982-although this is only the date of the neck-which likely was not installed on that exact date. The neck pocket contained the serial number sticker-a rare feature reserved for the earliest units. But unlike later examples that had a date stamp or a hand-written date, the neck pocket of this guitar contains no such indication. The serial numbers of Vintage Series Fenders are not chronological.
These metal plates were stamped and most likely put into a bin from which the assembly worker drew parts at random-and this process likely applied to necks as well. The number V000683 does not mean that this was the 683rd guitar made-and most probably it was not. Likewise, the 5-25-82 neck date does not guarantee that the guitar was built on that particular day, but soon after it. Some units have much lower serial numbers but much later neck dates. Further characteristics hint that this particular guitar was assembled very early in the production run. The wiring is plastic, as opposed to a cloth covering that was used later.
The pots have the serial R1378206-indicating they were manufactured about the middle of February (week 06), in the year 1982. According to, the earliest known neck date is 5-11-82. If so, production could have begun only on or after that date. The pictured example's neck date of 5-25-82 is certainly indicative of an early Vintage Reissue guitar.
However, it should be noted that a lower serial numbered guitar could possess a LATER neck date-and that the reverse is also true. The best evidence that this is indeed an early Reissue comes from the pick ups and the way the routing was done into the guitar body. The pick ups here have red bottoms-sometimes referred to as 'bobbins' (due to the fact that the copper wire was wound around posts which in this case had red bottoms)-that tended to be used during the earliest assembly.
Another feature on the earliest Strats during the first year of Reissue production involves hand-routing-also present here-to make the pick up guard assembly fit into the body cavity. Due to a production error, the assemblies did not line up with the original routing and a hand router was required to make the adjustment. Here, the control cavity as well as the bridge pick up cavity appear to have been factory-modified.
Pots are indicative of the early production run based on the serial number R1378206. Note the splattered chemical on the electronics and shielding-not as evident in the photos as in actuality.
Pick up numbers are almost consecutive: 21 29 82 (bridge); 21 30 82 (middle); and 17 28 82 (bridge). If the middle digits indicate a consecutive serial, two of these pick-ups could be the 29th and 30th of the pick up production run.
But what does the first set of digits mean? The lot number is a reasonable guess.
A couple of curiosities of the featured guitar include a penciled '57' inside of the tremolo cavity, and quite a bit of varnish splatter on the electronics. What resembles rust but which is actually splatters of a chemical appear on the underside of the pick guard as well-but mostly all over the pot housings. A 'CTP' also appears stamped on the underside of the neck plate. This guitar also retains its three-way pick up selector switch, usually swapped out for a 5-way by dealers and players alike, making the original switch a rare find. Some claim that the metal Fender tag on the cases between the hand hinges was not used until several months into production-and that may be true. However, this unit-with all the indications of it being an ultra-early 1982 guitar-came with a case that did have this tag. Either the cases had the same inconsistencies in parts as the guitars had-or the dealer swapped the case.
Either way, the contents of the case-including the guitar itself-are correct. The metal Fender tag on the case of this guitar was installed curiously crooked.
Any Page fan knows this guitar of course. I always wanted one of these but never really did anything seriously about it. I was at the guitar shop last week to pick up my '93 LP Std. That had some work done to it and I spotted this baby hanging there. It's cheaply constructed out of Masonite and Pine but it has a certain unique sound that is very fun.
It has a very sharp clean bite when played without distortion and with it has a vicious primitive growl. In general its a small, light fun little guitar. Would I have gotten one if not for Page? Probably not. I'm not sure it's even a Danelectro or some re-issue.
There are no numbers on the guitar at all. They call it the DC-59 but originally it was just called the Danelectro Standard or 'short horn'. Unlike the original, mine has some nice brushed aluminum hardware. It was really cheap and a nice toy for a major JP fan.
This is the model. Dano's are a bit of an aquired taste, but I love them.just as much as my LP or Tele. I'll never part with mine, that is until I find the right 50's Dano to replace it with. I have the same exact model and love it. These are great for slide guitar too.
Super comfy neck and very low action. I love the weight of it. It's the perfect guitar for lounging around the couch at night. I prefer the bridge/tuners on this later reissue.
Some say the rosewood bridge on the originals/early reissues is preferable to the innotatable bridge on ours, but I disagree. Even Jimmy Page threw an Quan badass bridge on his, and it certainly didn't ruin the tone. If you look, just about every player from the 60's (Hendrix, Rory Gallagher, Syd Barrett, Joe Perry, etc.) had one of these even though it's most widely associated with Page. Here's an old pic of mine.I should take some more. Very glad to see we have some Dano appreciators here.
I still don't quite understand what company actually made the one I have? It's not actually Danelectro but somebody who has rights to the name? Because as far as I can tell at the Danelectro website they do not show that model.
@Kate - everything you said is so true. I like it as much as my Tele too. Comfortable couch lounging guitar if there ever was one.
How do you like the aluminum nut? One thing I found it is very useful for is Open G tuning like Keith Richards uses. I'm surprised these guitars never caught on with Punk bands. The sound, looks and 'cheapness' is perfect for that. Nice Danos ppl, I hope more get posted. Click to expand.Actually, yeah I do like the aluminum nut. I normally do not like aluminum or brass nuts on any guitar, but in this case (along with the hollow masonite body and lipstick pups) I think it contributes a lot to that unique Dano tone.
I saw a tape of Jimmy playing White Summer at Royal Albert Hall when I was quite young. Blew me away. It's THE song that really opened my mind up to the world of music. It was the first song I ever learned to play on guitar (before chords or anything.yes, I know I'm crazy to have attacked that song first, but it inpired a love affair for the guitar that I would not of had playing f chords and mary had a little lamb ) so you know I had to get a Dano for that tone! I keep mine in DADGAD tuning 95% of the time, and I use it for a lot of 'unusual' tunings and slide playing.
I know a lot of people don't like these guitars for the bitey treblely tone and 'cheap' feel, but that's exactly what I love about them. I don't have a single complaint about mine. I did end up throwing in a PIO tone cap just because I had a spare in the drawer. Eventually, I'd like to pick up an original beat up 50's U2 or something. I see them on ebay go under $500, which is a STEAL for a vintage guitar if you ask me, even if it's only a Danelectro/Silvertone. Yeah, Hodad is the name.
I got it as a gift from my sister in law. A room mate had left it there for like 4 years and said she didn't want it anymore. So i took all of the stupid stickers off it. Then i removed the strings that had been on since the dawn of time and the plastic nut came off with it. Spent alot of time removing rust stains and cleaning the rosewood fingerboard cause it was coated in crap. Headed straight down to the guitar shoppe at laguna beach and had them do a full service, setup and custom bone nut on it. Plays like a dream now!
I have that exact same model as the OP. I got bored of playing Kashmir so mine is permanentley tuned to open G these days for playing the live version of 'In my time of dying' I love that song live with the lowered tuning. Makes it sound so much more nasty. It nails the Jimmy Page sound which is all I could have asked for.
FWIW mine has a sticker on the back of the headstock with the serial number and 'Made in China'. I think they first started making these particular reissues in the last few years and make a limited run each year.