iplayloudly
Active member
How can I tell what year an old bassman is? I thought mine was from the early 70s, but my amp tech tells me its a 68. Can you tell by the serial number?
vultures
Well-known member
Man, I sure did get the wrong idea from the title 
headlessdeadguy
Well-known member
vultures":2hpybrgx said:Man, I sure did get the wrong idea from the title
Me too
Szar
New member
Same here.headlessdeadguy":1fola0xm said:vultures":1fola0xm said:Man, I sure did get the wrong idea from the title
Me too
Mokaccino
New member
How old is he?
iplayloudly
Active member
nice. i knew this would happen. 
Rufus Leaking
Well-known member
It's not this guy is it?
Rufus Leaking
Well-known member
Or him, maybe;
Rufus Leaking
Well-known member
Whoops, cat's out of the bag now;
Rufus Leaking
Well-known member
Last one, I promise...
Rufus Leaking
Well-known member
Here's what the Fender field guide says;
Serial Number: There is no information readily available for dating Fender amps by serial number but there are people working on it. Greg Gagliano has up a Fender Amp Survey website to collect serial number information. If you own a Fender amp of any vintage, stop by and input your amp's information. When he has collected a large enough sample the results will be made available. For a some preliminary results, check out the articles Greg wrote for 20th Century Guitar magazine.
Circuit Code: In 1963 Fender stoped using model numbers to identify schematics and began using the model name and an assigned circuit number. These circuit numbers which are located on the tube chart can be usefull for getting a rough date on an amp. Fender often used the same circuit for many years so this is not a very accurate method for amp dating. The code is simple, the first two letters are the revision, where AA is the first revision, AB is the second, etc. The next one or two numbers are the month where January is 1 and December is 12. The last two numbers are the year.
Example: AB763 = second revision, July, 1963
AA1070 = First revision, October, 1970
Misc Dating Info:
Silver face amps with the aluminum trimmed grilles are from 67 or 69.
The fist Master volume controls were installed in 72.
The raised "Fender" grille logo lost its tail around 76. There are exceptions to this rule like the the Bronco.
Fender installed casters on some larger amps and cabs beginning in 72.
Serial Number: There is no information readily available for dating Fender amps by serial number but there are people working on it. Greg Gagliano has up a Fender Amp Survey website to collect serial number information. If you own a Fender amp of any vintage, stop by and input your amp's information. When he has collected a large enough sample the results will be made available. For a some preliminary results, check out the articles Greg wrote for 20th Century Guitar magazine.
Circuit Code: In 1963 Fender stoped using model numbers to identify schematics and began using the model name and an assigned circuit number. These circuit numbers which are located on the tube chart can be usefull for getting a rough date on an amp. Fender often used the same circuit for many years so this is not a very accurate method for amp dating. The code is simple, the first two letters are the revision, where AA is the first revision, AB is the second, etc. The next one or two numbers are the month where January is 1 and December is 12. The last two numbers are the year.
Example: AB763 = second revision, July, 1963
AA1070 = First revision, October, 1970
Misc Dating Info:
Silver face amps with the aluminum trimmed grilles are from 67 or 69.
The fist Master volume controls were installed in 72.
The raised "Fender" grille logo lost its tail around 76. There are exceptions to this rule like the the Bronco.
Fender installed casters on some larger amps and cabs beginning in 72.
rsm
Well-known member
Marshall Law
Well-known member
blackba
Well-known member
Best way to determine the date of your bassman is to get the numbers off the transformers. Does your SF bassman have aluminum trim, if so it is a '67-'69 just based on that.
Pictures are always helpful....
Pictures are always helpful....
iplayloudly
Active member
I guess I'll have to open her up and get the numbers. It does not have the aluminum trim, but it may have been pulled off at some point.