Vintage Fret

Decoder / Brand

Guild serial numbers

Year-end records are good for 1960 to 1979. From 1965 to 1969 each model had its own prefix sequence, so a number alone is not enough. A serial is evidence, not proof.

This is an example number. Replace it with yours. Hyphens matter, so keep them.

Brand

Your number, read character by character

2digit8digit9digit4digit3digit

Entries

Ranked by confidence. Select a row for its rule.
Likely
One rule fits. Verify with features.

The rule

Plain sequential number with year-end figures recorded. Last serial of that year: 28943.

Year-end last serial numbers from Guild records.

Usually found

Inside the body.

5 ruled out
  • Fender, Four and five-digit numbers, 1950 to 1964: 1956 to 1959 Ruled out by: brand set to Guild.
  • Gibson, Loosely numbered runs, 1961 to 1972: 1961 Ruled out by: brand set to Guild.
  • Gretsch, Sequential numbers, 1939 to 1965: 1958 Ruled out by: brand set to Guild.
  • Gretsch, Month and year-digit code, 1966 to 1972: 1968 Ruled out by: brand set to Guild.
  • Martin, Martin sequential serial, 1898 to 2025: 1927 Ruled out by: brand set to Guild.

Where to look

  • Inside the body, on the back centre strip or label
  • Neck block
Generic acoustic guitar outline with three marked places where a serial number may be found 1 inside, through the soundhole 2 neck block 3 back of headstock
Generic outline, not any maker's model. Marks 1 to 3 are the usual places; which apply depends on the format and year.

The formats, in order

Each row is one rule the decoder applies. Where two rows overlap in years, a number can match both, and the decoder shows both.

YearsFormatHow sureUsually found
1953 to 1960 Early numbers, 1953 to 1960
Plain sequential number, from about 1000 in 1953.		 Ambiguous (estimated) Inside the body, back centre strip or label.
1961 to 1964 Sequential numbers, 1961 to 1964
Plain sequential number with year-end figures recorded.		 Likely Inside the body.
1965 to 1970 Per-model prefix era, 1965 to 1970
Each model had its own prefix sequence, so the number alone does not give the year.		 Ambiguous (estimated) Inside the body.
1971 to 1979 Sequential numbers, 1971 to 1979
Plain sequential number again, with year-end figures recorded.		 Likely Inside the body.
1979 to 1994 Model-family prefix, 1979 to 1994
A two-letter prefix for the model family, with numbers restarting.		 Cannot tell Inside the body.

Traps

  • Early numbers, 1953 to 1960. Early records are incomplete.
  • Sequential numbers, 1961 to 1964. Year-end last serial numbers from Guild records.
  • Per-model prefix era, 1965 to 1970. Use the prefix to identify the model, then check the model chart.
  • Sequential numbers, 1971 to 1979. The 1979 figure runs to about September 1979.
  • Model-family prefix, 1979 to 1994. Not decodable without the model.

Dates that matter

  • 1952. Guild founded. Alfred Dronge founds Guild in New York.
  • 1966. Production moves to Westerly, Rhode Island. Manufacture moves from Hoboken, New Jersey.

See these on the timeline.

Features that help date it

  • Westerly, Rhode Island factory (1966 to 1990). Label or stamp naming Westerly, Rhode Island.
  • Hoboken, New Jersey factory (1956 to 1966). Label naming Hoboken, New Jersey.

Filter all features by brand and year.

Where the rules come from

  • Guild serial number guide (guitarinsite.nl)

Rules are rewritten as logic, not copied tables. See About for known gaps.

Other brands

Martin, Gibson, Fender, Gretsch, Epiphone, Rickenbacker, Harmony, Kay, Silvertone and Danelectro, Other makers.