And that, more than any serial number, is why we play SGs.
Before you hand over your cash or insure your new prize, there’s one tool you need more than a pick: the ability to read its serial number.
Now, let’s break it down by era. Each period of Gibson’s history has its own logic—and its own exceptions. Before the SG was the SG, it was the new Les Paul. From 1960 to early 1961, Gibson redesigned the Les Paul into the thin, double-cutaway body we now call the SG. Les Paul himself hated it. But the serial numbers from this era follow the late-’50s system: a 5-to-6-digit number stamped on the back of the headstock.
You’ve just acquired a used Gibson SG. Maybe it’s a worn, cherry-faded ’60s tribute that smells like old wood and cigarette smoke. Maybe it’s a sleek, black ’90s model with buckle rash that tells a thousand stories. Or perhaps you’re staring at a suspiciously cheap “vintage” SG online, your heart racing.