Tobias Bass Guitar Catalog Gibson era c.1999 The Classic, Growler Etc. $10: 1999 Tobias Steinberger Gibson Bass Dealer Packet: $19: Tobias Classic 5 low serial no. W/ Ohsc: $1725: Tobias Kb4 Bass Guitar, Micheal Tobias: $999: 90's Tobias Growler Bass - made in Usa: $1495: Tobias Basic 5 five string made in Usa bass with Preamp, Bartollini p. The first serial number was 0178, instead of the usual 0001, as a reference to the month the first bass was completed, January 1978. In 1990, Gibson Guitar Corporation purchased Tobias and moved production to Nashville. The first Tobias bass under Gibson ownership bore the serial number 1094.

Gibson serial numbers 1952 to 1961, solidbody model

Pre Gibson Tobias Serial Numbers; This is serial number 1030. Beautiful goncalo alves top on a walnut body. The fingerboard is pau ferro on a flamed maple and purpleheart neck. Bass guitar museum is a free webspace. Tobias Pre Gibson Classic 5 This bass is for sale. Pre Gibson Tobias Signature 6 string sn 18xx. For Sale Pre-Gibson Tobias. Gibson USA 2014 to present – These serial numbers cannot be dated to a specific day of the year. The new model year typically launches in the fall as the current model year winds down. It is not uncommon for a new model year model to be produced during the previous model year (example – a 2015 model may have been built in late 2014).

A number stamped with ink on the back of the headstock.
Gibson's solid bodys were released in 1952. Gibson did not use serial numbers at that time but started in 1953.
The first digit of the series number is the last digit of the year. If the stamped number consists of 5 digits, there is a space between the first and second digit (a separation between the last digit of the year and the actual serial number).
If it concerns a 6-digit serial number, there is no space, because the highest 4-digit number (9999) has been exceeded and the space therefore fills up. This was the case in the years 1955, 1956, 1959 and 1960.
In 1955, Gibson forgot to reset the series of serial numbers to 0001.
So they had only set the year from 4 to 5. For this reason the series of 4 digit serial numbers was exceeded after 9999.
Hence 5 digits and no space between the year (5) and the serial number. (after 5 9999 came 510 000)
Apparently the production was high in 1956 because 6 9999 is exceeded. Also in 1959 and 1960 there was a high production, 9 9999 is exceeded to 932 000 or higher.
Thus, from the production in 1959, a 1, 2 or 3 may be the second digit.
Gibson stopped the stamped serial numbers at the end of 1960, although a few instruments were made in 1961 with a 1 as a prefix. Some lap steels and Les Paul's from 1961 have such a serial number.
Another exception to the above rules is in the fall of 1958, where some Les Paul Juniors and Specials had a four-digit serial number.

Gibson serial numbers, from February 1961 until 1970
Gibson started in 1961 with a new series numbering system.
They wanted to apply a more structured series of sequences, but in practice the opposite happened. Numbers were reused during this period, and in many cases the numbers were not strictly applied for successive years.
For all models, the serial number is stamped on the back of the headstock. A number of serial numbers were duplicated from 1963
to 1969.
From this period the 5-digit and 6-digit numbers are easy to confuse and give an incorrect year.

Pre Gibson Tobias Serial Numbers

Gibson Tobias Serial Numbers