esp guys

[wIsEbLooD]

How can you identify a custom shop? Do all cs guitars have a serial that starts with a letter?

 

[Reiep]

Those are the CS prefixes :

K = Kiso
T = Takada
S = Sado
N = ???
TH = Technical House
CH = Craft House
CS = Osaka Custom Shop

 

[Klesk]

if its an older one and it says custom guitars on the back, it is not necessarily made in their custom shop like with the prefixes above.

 

[wIsEbLooD]

I guess i am asking will all cs guitars carry the prefix letter in the serial. Like sig series could be a custom shop if it has the prefix.

 

[xzyryabx]

I guess i am asking will all cs guitars carry the prefix letter in the serial. Like sig series could be a custom shop if it has the prefix.

As stated above, newerish models (i think starting late 90's) started using a new serial # system which attaches prefixes (SS, K, S etc.) and allows you to identify the manufacture date/location.

The CS prefixes listed above will clearly indicate a custom shop model.

However, what are known as the "original series" are guitars made in the custom shop but destined for the Japanese market only. These guitars do not have the "ESP Custom Shop" circular logo nor any of the above mentioned CS prefixes.

Older ESP custom shop models (pre-new serial # system) can only be identified as custom if you can't find it in any catalog I guess! The circular "ESP Custom Guitars" logo was placed on all guitars and does not signify that it is a custom shop model.

even earlier models didn't have anything on the back of the headstock.....in short, it's kind of a clusterfuck the way their instrument tracking goes, and w'll see how much more interesting it's going to get with the new model/ideology changes at ESP

 

[wIsEbLooD]

Thanks for the info gentlemen.
Waiting to check out a serial number, guitar has sig series stamp so would need prefix letter to be cs i think.

 

[OUTLAW1969]

Thanks for the info gentlemen.
Waiting to check out a serial number, guitar has sig series stamp so would need prefix letter to be cs i think.

Correct.

I had a newer Sig. Series that was made at the Sado shop. Its serial began with an "S", but as stated above, that only applies to guitars made more recently and not early ones.