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Anyone know what year this aria was made


kirby007

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the serial is 02006145 it says made in japan and adjustable steel neck on the neck plate, iam pretty sure it was made in the 70's but iam not entirely sure, it is a les paul copy and the original paint was black, had gold hardware and two humbuckers with a 3 way toggle and 2 tone and 2 volume knobs

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"Dating Aria guitars is a mix of fair precision and historical triangulation. The early guitars did not contain serial numbers, so you have to go by the rough historical outlines here.

 

There are no pot codes. In the mid-'70s serial numbers began to be used.

 

At least for Aria guitars made by Matsumoku, the serial number contains the year of manufacture in the first one or two digits (Y##### or YY####). Thus, a guitar from 1979 might begin with 79####.

 

One from 1981 might begin with 1#####. The scheme becomes less sure after 1987. Some Korean- made guitars use a serial number with year and week indicated in the first four digits (YYWW####). Thus 9628#### would be from the 28th week of 1996. However, this is not the case on all guitars, and some have serial numbers which are not date-coded."

 

http://www.ariaguitars.com/int/00int_main/archives_main.html

 

http://www.ariaguitars.com/int/00int_main/archives_solbdeg01.html

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snowcow you literally copied and pasted that right off the website, and that doesnt work for 7 digit serial numbers, and kujo i dont have any pics on this compy ill take some tonight but the paul has been repainted and i have just started to get down to the original black paint on it

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snowcow you literally copied and pasted that right off the website, and that doesnt work for 7 digit serial numbers, and kujo i dont have any pics on this compy ill take some tonight but the paul has been repainted and i have just started to get down to the original black paint on it

 

Yes, of course I did. I actually put the links underneath as well.

 

Sorry for trying to help.

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  • 7 years later...
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Hi, I have an old Aria gold top les Paul, bought it in around 1988 and it was heavily aged then. Hot humbuckers. Full weight. Have removed the neck to check for serial numbers, but can only see 2 Japanese symbols, Yo Nu (closest I can make out from checking Japanese alphabet). Does anyone have any idea of its age etc? Still plays beautifully, if anything it’s getting better.

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  • 2 years later...
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Hey guys just checkin in on some remarks,totally agree on the quality and sound of these guitars ,I,ve owned a few over the years,various copys ,les paul,etc,all around a good instrument for the value ,but i just got a smashed Aria 12 string I,m rebuilding almost doneto perfection,but zi think someone rlaced the beck along it,s journey,because of two conflicting serial #,s on punched into the face bottom of the 3rd fret 3-8271  and the body serial number reads  6715?? Wierd or what or a serious factory miscalculation,.The neck was twisted practically right off and out of it,s seat from falling on the road driving truck ,while moving,quite a job rebuilding snd reinforcing thr block and busted cross ribs thst surround it,so I ultimately glued snd screwd the parts back together to make sure there was to be no more comprimize ,so basically the once all around adjustable neck ,can only be tweeked by the core rod in the neck ,food for thought,but I most definately wouldnt waste my time refurbishing an instrument of this catistophic measures, if I didnt think it was worth it,after filing the frets and sand and set the bridge,"voila" sounds and plays like the heavy hitters,rock on guys ,thanks for reading

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  • 1 year later...
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It was definitely not made in the 70's. 70's Arias had the year as the first two numbers of the serial number. For instance, if the serial number is 765440 then guitar was manufactured in 1976. The serial number you listed is most likely a late 80's or early 90's model.

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On 4/24/2021 at 11:26 AM, robn40 said:

It was definitely not made in the 70's. 70's Arias had the year as the first two numbers of the serial number. For instance, if the serial number is 765440 then guitar was manufactured in 1976. The serial number you listed is most likely a late 80's or early 90's model.

Well, I'll start by saying, the thread is 11 years old, most likely he won't be back.

Secondly, your info on Aria serial numbers is wrong. Aria introduced serial numbers on the neck plate, starting in 73. I know,  I have one, and have had MANY others. Numbers started with a 01. Why? great question, you would have to look in the Japanese landfills for any accurate reasoning on Matsumoku serial numbers. From the onset of 73, to about early 77 or so, they were random. After they became Arai Pro II in 77, they were still on the random side. I have 3 guitars from 77, a PE 125, PE 130, and an ES-700, and only one has a serial number, and it starts with 0. Go figure....

(You may be thinking about Ibanez and their serial number system from early 78 or so. Letter for the month, then 2 numbers for year. This system works on guitars built by Fuji Gen Gakki, and Terada. For the ones they built for Roland, at Fuji Gen Gakki, they used the last digit of the year. ie: 4=84.)

In about 79, you started seeing serials with a 9 as starting number, that became the standard for Matsumoku. Started with a 1? Since they didn't make it in 71, it's an 81 model. 7? 87. Then things got weird again. Matsumoku left Japan, the sewing factory that was their home burnt to the ground, production moved to Korea, and was done by Samick. Aria, Westone, Electra, were made by Samick starting in 88, with the serial normally being S88XXXX. Sometimes the S was omitted. Samick has kept the same serial number system since forever. Then production moved to China. Same numbering system, iffy quality. There you go.

Edited by badpenguin
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