posted 20 February 2001 03:13 PM         

[This message was edited by Jay Ganz on 14 June 2002 at 07:34 PM.]

posted 20 February 2001 03:24 PM         

As the proud and happy owner of #2185, #1209, #1164008, and #5065023, I welcome you to the fraternity. May you bear the mantle of "Wraparounder" with as much dignity and honor as you can possibly dig up!!! Wear the diamond horseshoe ring proudly, but you know the penalty if you tell anyone the secret.

Say, didn't you also score the world's cleanest '66 Emmons on eBay as well?! Whassup w' DAT?!

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 20 February 2001 at 03:30 PM.]

posted 20 February 2001 10:32 PM         

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 20 February 2001 at 10:32 PM.]

posted 21 February 2001 10:04 PM         

The latest serial numbered wraparound that I've seen with the month/year/number format is 5065023, though there might be others with a later date. The company then went to invoice numbers and 1209, 2183, 2185, etc. are those. These were not sequential, as the company wrote invoices for strings, etc, as well as guitars.

As far as I can tell, the invoice numbering scheme went through the bolt-ons, into 1967. When the split-tail came out, they went to the second 1000 series, these being a consecutive numbering scheme. This probably occurred around 1967, when the guitars were being distributed by Norlin, the owners of Gibson at the time. So a guitar with a 2000 number could be a 1965-67 guitar, or a 1970's guitar. The way you tell is by the other features of the instrument.

To confuse things further, the S-10's had a different numbering scheme than the D-10's, though when that started I don't know. I also own an S-10 wraparound with black flocking that has a 1000 series serial number, so that's most likely an invoice number guitar.

I have a list of about 70 1964 through 1968 D-10's, their numbers, features, and current owners, and the above info is what I've been able to ascertain. But the dates of manufacture and the numbering scheme gets fuzzy in 1967, when there was the switchover.

Anyway, 1209 is a black mica wraparound with black flocking, as is the other 2000 series wraparounds mentioned here. The month/year/number guitars, such as 764005, 1164008, 1264018, and 5065023, are black mica with red flocking, known affectionately as "red bellies."

Incidentally, my guitar 1164008 is a wood neck model, not a wraparound.

These very early guitars, the 1964 models from the "Emmons Stereo" era, originally came with "soapbar" style pickups. Unfortunately, I've seen only 2 of these guitars with the original soapbars in them. One, #1164007, I used to own, but it's now in Japan, probably never to return. Mike Cass is restoring #3, owned by the Emmons Company, with the original stereo pickup. #'s 1 and 5 have the second-generation pickups that were replacements.

If there are any lucky owners of the original blue/black Emmons brochure, these soapbar pickups are clearly shown.

The original guitars had square-cornered cases with tan covering and brass corner protectors and red crushed velvet interiors. I've seen some bolt-on cases that were white tolex with red crushed velvet. The bolt-ons that were distributed by Norlin had the rounded corner cases affectionately known as the "hope it don't rain case."

Now y'all know everything I know, or at least what I've been able to piece together from studying these things the last few years.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 21 February 2001 at 10:08 PM.]