Help with decoding body & neck dates...

Hi all,

I have an early '90s Legacy that I'm trying to date. The SN is G031270 and when I pulled the neck, I'm not sure there IS a date stamped on either the neck or the body... Let me post the photos I took and it might become clearer...










Not sure if it'll post the images directly or not, but those urls should be valid.

Thanks in advance!

Last edited by Weatherby on Fri Mar 25, 2016 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.

No pix that I can see.

edg

Oh... Hmm, are there links? All I'm seeing are links myself.. When I tried to use the Img tag it kept telling me that it couldn't determine image size... so I used the timage= tag thinking it would allow me to manually enter the image size... Hmm....

Ok, think I fixed it. Hopefully they show now.

You have to do 2 things different to get the pics to show.

Your links are to the preview, if you click on the picture you'll get the gallery view,
where you can get the photo url (right click...copy image address).
You then have to keep the dimensions under 1024x1300 , keeping the proportions.

viewtopic.php?f=118&t=10450

edit: I see you got it !

Has the guitar been refinished? I ask because I see the red and black in the neck pocket but none on the body.
It would be cool to see some full shots. The body date looks like xxx 4 1992 to me.

There is a date stamp in th neck pocket. Your 1st and 2nd pic show the top of a MMM DD 199(2?) date stamp (I cannot make out month or day of month). The neck doesn't have a date stamp. The stamp on the butt end of your #1 neck is like a "#"; I've seen those frequently placed there. The range in which your S/N falls jibes with a '92 instrument.

The black in the pocket is more than likely from a Sharpie where the person assembling the guitar traces out the bottom edges. The red stain is as much a puzzle to me as for Elwood.

- Jos

You know, the stains and such in the pocket might tie into another question I have with this guitar...

It almost appears as if the assembly of the guitar took place before the finish was cured. Under the pickguard, both back plates, input jack, and neck plate there are marks in the finish that mirror the black textured finish on the metal parts, or under the pick guard and input jack, show that the finish had been compressed while still soft. Hopefully some of these photos I took will illustrate them better than I can describe them. Currently I have the strings off as it needs re-setup to go from 12G strings down to something like 10G, also for oiling the rosewood.

The last couple shots which show the area around the trem cavity show the finish issue. That isn't white on the finish that's the sun reflecting off the gnarled imprint from the black cover. Those markings are under each of the black textured plates, and similar ones are under the pickguard and input jack as well....


But other than that, no it's original in every way. There are gold-ish flecks in the red paint but I'm not sure if any of these shots capture that or not. It's clear in sunlight, but my phone camera might not be up to the task.

















Also, I agree, it does look as if 1992 is the year it was built... 1992 is the first year for the Legacy, correct? I was told by the G&L rep when he delivered this and the others the store I bought it from got that these were the first run of a new guitar... Not that it's important, but just wanted to verify first year of Legacy production to be 1992.

I see now...looks great! and original.
Probably Candy Apple Red then since it has the gold shimmer.

The finish might have been a touch soft when assembled,no biggie.
It'll like 10's.

elwood

CAR look really dark normally? This looks Burgundy or something of that nature. The gold flecks can only be seen in bright lighting, most of the time it doesn't look metallic at all.

I bought it based on how it plays and sounds really. Color was not even a consideration. In fact, I almost bought a Belair Green one instead, but it got sold before I could get to the store.

Yeah, it loved 12g strings too! Sounds and plays awesome. I'm just too out of shape to play 12s. I'm thinking 10s should be a good solid sound without being overly harsh on my out of shape fingers.

Also, I agree, it does look as if 1992 is the year it was built... 1992 is the first year for the Legacy, correct? I was told by the G&L rep when he delivered this and the others the store I bought it from got that these were the first run of a new guitar... Not that it's important, but just wanted to verify first year of Legacy production to be 1992.

Yes, the Legacy was introduced in 1992 after BBE had taken over G&L. It was their first new model.

- Jos

FWIW, I owed a '92 Legacy for a few months (a trade in which the other party begged to have back) - it was a stellar guitar. IMO the first ones have much better attention to detail and than the latter ones (but that is just in my experience). I don't believe there an issue with the finish not being cured. Perhaps but I've seen that white flakey stuff in Leo-era models as well as heaps of Fender guitars, MIA & MIJ…. One other thing that sets the early models apart is that they have SD pickups which I think sound Fab. Anyway, nice guitar you have there.

Cheers,
KF

Yeah, I'm not so worried about the marks in the finish under the hardware, it was just a surprise to see it.

As for the white soapy substance, it may be just that or a variation of it at least.... My grandfather was a master upholsterer and would frequently use common bar soap to ease screws into wood so as to not cause a lot of heat or cracking of the wood/finish. Works like a charm. Bee's wax works well too. The bee's wax would leave a white flaky residue, while the soap usually wiped away or flaked off.... So I wonder if that was just a byproduct of assembly and that's why it's only showing up in the unexposed cavities.. I noticed the plate screws thread holes are lined with white as well, so I'll bet it is some sort of material used to help ease screws into new holes without damage...

At any rate, this is one of my favorite guitars. I love this thing, it plays awesome, and sounds fantastic! I'm so glad and lucky that I had the $ and sense to purchase this guitar when I did and didn't miss out on such an epic piece! Having Leo's name on the headstock is just a cool plus for me too!

Of course, now I'm really joansing to order a new Legacy with a maple fretboard! Been going back and forth between a new Legacy custom ordered or an off the shelf American Standard Strat.... and right now, the idea that I can get a custom ordered G&L for about what the 'off the shelf' Fender costs makes me really lean towards a new G&L!

There's also the white of the primer :
(Borrowing FZTNT's invader image)

Yes, my Red Invader has that white stuff everywhere. My red F-100 also has some but not as much. Could even be aftermarket car wax?

Tom

Oh, I see the Invader has the stippling in the finish where the plate covers too...

Yeah that looks familiar ... the white stuff... And now that you mentioned it, wax is a good possibility too! It would work for working the screws into the wood as well as polishing the finish etc...

Awesome!

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the information!


Oh, one last question:

The certificates of authenticity on G&L's website, are those for all models or just the rare stuff? IE: Should I order one for my Legacy as well?

The certificates of authenticity on G&L's website, are those for all models or just the rare stuff? IE: Should I order one for my Legacy as well?

These COAs on the G&L Web Store are for BBE-era instruments. Beyond ordering the COA, you'll have to send them pictures of the guitar for identification. Instructions are given in the item description.

You cannot order a spec sheet because they only came into existence when G&L started to PLEK their instruments (~2006 and onwards).

- Jos