- National Resonator Guitar Serial Numbers
- National Guitar Serial Number Registry
- National Tenor Guitar Serial Numbers
- National Steel Guitar Serial Numbers
Dating Valco Instruments
Looking at the back of your guitar, it appears to be a Spanish-style guitar. With round-neck Nationals, there should be a serial number stamped into the body by the endpin or on top of the headstock. Take another look for the serial number, and you should be able to date your instrument as well. Oct 12, 1999 Topic: National serial numbers Steve P Member. Steve, but if you want to date a National resonator guitar, look in the back of Bob Brozman's book on Nationals. If you're looking for something on, say, a 1960 Supro resoglass I think you are out of luck. Brozman does a good job of covering a lot of the pre-war resos, though.
The most effective way to date a Valco guitar or amp is by its serial number. From the ‘40s until 1964, the serial could be found stamped into a small metal plate that was tacked onto the back of the headstock or the back of the cabinet. From 1964-1968, the serial was ink-stamped onto a silver foil sticker that is found in the same place. The following is a key for decoding the serial number, but keep in mind that the numbers are approximate.
National Resonator Guitar Serial Numbers
'N' prefix: 1935
'S' prefix: 1935-36
'A' prefix: 1936-37*
'B' prefix: 1937-38
'C' prefix: 1938-40*
'G' prefix: 1941-42
'G' suffix: 1943-47
V100-V7500: 1947
V7500-V15000: 1948
V15000-V25000: 1949
V25000-V35000: 1950
V35000-V38000: 1951
X100-X7000: 1951
X7000-X17000: 1952
X17000-X30000: 1953
X30000-X43000: 1954
X43000-X57000: 1955
X57000-X71000: 1956
X71000-X85000: 1957
X85000-X99000: 1958
T100-T5000: 1958
T5000-T25000: 1959
T25000-T50000: 1960
T50000-T75000: 1961
T75000-T90000: 1962
T90000-T99000: 1963
G5000-G15000: 1963
National Guitar Serial Number Registry
G15000-G40000: 1964
Starting with '1-': 1964-68
Starting with '2-': 1968
National Tenor Guitar Serial Numbers
*'A' and 'C' prefixes also occur in some pre-1936 serials.
National Steel Guitar Serial Numbers
However, some of these plates and many of these stickers have disappeared over time. Often the speaker codes or potentiometer codes can help, assuming that these parts are original and legible. Pot codes can be decodedhere, and speaker codes can be decoded here. For dating pre-Valco acoustic instruments,see this page.