Dean Guitars Serial Number Lookup

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  1. Dean Guitars Serial Number Identification Lookup
  2. Dean Guitar Identification
  3. Dean Guitar Serial Number Lookup

Want to know how to date your Fender guitar by serial number? Then you’re in the right place.

Just enter the number below, hit the ‘Decode’ button and our lookup tool will tell you the year your guitar is from, which country it was manufactured in, and even the plant it came from.

Guitars

You can add any model of Fender guitar: Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jaguar, Mustang, Jazzmaster, you name it! (scroll down below if you need help finding the serial number).

(.Search by Description, Color, Artist, Body Shape, etc.) Support. About Us; Warranty Registration; Charitable Donations. Dean Zelinsky Guitars offers a Five-Year Warranty to all guitars. The Five-Year Warranty guarantees to the first end user, under normal use, that the product will be free from defects in workmanship and in materials for a period of five (5) years from the date of purchase.

Where to Find the Serial Number on Your Fender Guitar?

The location of the serial number has annoyingly changed from model to model over the years. So where do you find it?

Korea

Locations include:

  • At the top of the neck plate
  • On the front or at the back of the headstock
  • On the cover plate of the vibrato (on Stratocasters)
  • On the back of the vibrato cover plate (on early ’50s Stratocasters)
  • At the end of the heel of the neck
  • Between the pick-up and the saddles (some Telecasters)

Some General Rules

The naming convention is a bit haphazard (it’s no different with Gibson serial numbers), but here are some general rules that should ring true 99% of the time – but beware, there are plenty of exceptions:

Korean dean guitars serial numbers
  • The prefix ‘L’ at the beginning of a serial number indicates a guitar from the early ’60s
  • The prefix ‘S’ at the beginning of a serial number stands for the decade of the seventies
  • The prefix ‘E’ stands for the decade of the eighties
  • The U.S. Vintage Series (launched in 1982) uses ‘V’ as a prefix for the serial number
  • The prefix ‘N’ at the beginning of a serial number stands for the nineties
  • The prefix ‘Z’ stands for guitars made in the noughties (2000 – 2010)

Note that made in Mexico Fender guitars (MIM) and made in Japan guitars (MIJ) have their own unique serial number system.

Pre-1976 Model? Check the Heel Too

Before 1976, frustratingly they often randomly assigned serial numbers. If you want to double-check the year of production year, it’s often a good idea to look at the heel of the neck (which entails removing the neck). Sometimes the potentiometers are worth checking too.

Dean Guitars Serial Number Identification Lookup

That’s all for now. We’ll keep adding more info as and when we find it.

Serial

Good luck!

Dean Guitar Identification

Home > All Guitars > Kramer Guitars & Basses

Dean Guitar Serial Number Lookup

If the serial number of your Kramer starts with the following serial numbers, it is NOT a USA Made or 'American' series Kramer:

1) Two letters followed by a serial number (e.g. AA1234, AC1234, FA1234, FC1234, SA1234)

2) One letter followed by five letters (e.g. b12345) The only exception to this would be some of the 'E' series neckplates did have one letter followed by five letters (e.g. e12345).

3) Five numbers, no letters (e.g. 12345)

4) Model numbers preceding serial number (e.g. XL-1234)

5) A chrome or black neck plate with nothing on it but a Kramer headstock and a serial number stamped on them. These neck plates are smooth flat neck plates with no 'Neptune, N.J.' stamped on them

Keep in mind that just because the neckplate is imprinted with 'Kramer, Neptune, NJ' does NOT mean that the guitar was Made in the USA or an 'American' series. Kramer was very careful to not stamp 'Made In USA' anywhere on its neckplates starting in about 1985/1986.

Starting in late 1985, virtually all Kramer guitars were being made by ESP Guitars in Japan. Although the 'American' Series guitars were made by ESP in Japan, they were assembled in the US. In general, the following is a good way to determine if your Kramer is USA made or an 'American' series:

  • If your Kramer has a Strat or Classic headstock and has a Kramer logo with a capital 'K' followed by a lower caser 'ramer', the guitar is an early 1981-1984 USA made Kramer guitar.
  • If your guitar has a banana headstock and a block style Kramer logo in all caps 'KRAMER', it is a 1984-1986 USA Made/American Series Kramer Guitar.
  • If your guitar has a pointy headstock and a block style Kramer logo in the same sized lettering in all caps, it is a 1986/1987 American Series Kramer Guitar.
  • If your guitar has a pointy headstock and a diminishing sized Kramer logo with the letters diminishing in size from the K to the R and, there is a script 'American' decal after the 'KRAMER' logo, it is a 1987-1994 American Series Kramer Guitar.
  • If your guitar has a pointy headstock and a diminishing sized Kramer logo but does not have 'American' in script after the logo, it is NOT an American series guitar.

The following wood neck guitar models were the ONLY Made in USA or 'American' Series guitars:

  • Baretta Series, Pacer Series, Stagemaster Series, Vanguard Series, Voyager Series, Classic Series, ProAx Series, NightSwan Series, Ripley Series, Spector Series, Paul Dean Series, Richie Sambora Series, Triax, Enterprize, Elliot Easton Series, Sustainer Series, Liberty Series, & Condor Series.

The following wood neck guitar models were NOT Made in USA or 'American' Series guitars. These guitars were made either in Korea, Indonesia, or Japan.

  • Striker Series, Focus Series, Hundred Series (e.g. 410, 610), Thousand Series, XL Series, Aerostar Series, Showster Series, and Ferrington Series. Furthermore, the Gorky Park special edition model is also an overseas made guitar.

Another good way to tell if your Kramer is an overseas made model is if it is made out of plywood or composite wood. Also, if your Kramer has 'non-name' pickups or 'Designed by Seymour Duncan' pickups, it is an overseas model. Finally, if your Kramer came with a Floyd Rose II, Floyd Rose with no fine tuners, or a Floyd Rose unit that does not require the ball ends of the strings to be cut off, it is an overseas model.

Oh yeah, If you bought your Kramer from Music Yo' you can be sure it is a low cost Korean instrument. Please don't confuse any product that comes from Music Yo' with the original.

Logo circa 1976-1977

Logo circa 1979

Logo circa 1978-1984

Logo circa 1985-1986

Logo circa 1987-1990