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Hi. I have a used blonde Eastman AR905CE. The serial number, 8147, predates Eastman's current posted information. I've contacted them and they say it's likely between 2004 and 2014, but they cannot be more specific. I believe 2014 is the earliest of the NEW posted serial number plans. My number, 8147, does not conform to the posted rules. I'm not sure why they suggest 2004 as a starting point, unless they know that to be the first year of production for AR905CE.
A user on Reverb, selling an AR905CE and not giving a serial number, says his instrument is 2009 and he also says something like "the last year this was made before it was discontinued." Eastman makes and sells this guitar now, but it's possible that it was discontinued temporarily in the first half of the 2010 decade. There are plenty of used AR905CE's for sale dated from the mid 2010's with newer conforming serial numbers.
If I accept all of this as fact, that narrows the timeframe to 2004-2009. I've seen a number of postings (Reverb, eBay) that include a picture of the interior label. All of these are identical OVAL shaped labels, with a blank for the model (handwritten AR905CE), a blank for the serial number (all handwritten and I believe they are all 4 or 5 digits, though not necessarily ascending through the years), and a blank labeled (printed) "Anno 20___", where the builder/tech entered a handwritten two digit year, e.g. "07". I believe I have seen such labels from 2004 to 2007.
BUT... while all those labels are ovals, mine is a RECTANGLE. The printed text and blanks are the same as on the oval labels except that mine has no "Anno 20___" field, so no clearly disclosed year.
Perhaps my guitar is one of the earliest or latest of a 2004-2009 run?
Perhaps my guitar was completed on a day when they were waiting for a new shipment of oval labels and just made-do with a label from a ukulele?
Perhaps it will remain a mystery.
Any insights? Thanks... V7L
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09-30-2024 06:48 PM
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Welcome here,
My AR905CE is dated 2005 with an oval lable and a serial no with two letters followed by three digits. I've seen another 905 with the same lable and dated 2004.
Perhaps this might help you.
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This post on the Eastman forum might help. Serial Numbers
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If that Eastman was an early model the Eastman LOGO on the headstock will not be underlined.
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I posted the link above about Eastman serials.The number 8147 is from 2010.
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Originally Posted by nyc chaz
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Saw the title and thought WHAAT
and then I thought it could be fun and dangerously GASsy to have a Tinder-like site for finding a guitar match
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