I called Fender customer service and spoke to Steve there who said
he'd forward the following message to Tim Shaw:
Dear Steve,
I am writing you with a rather strange request.
This request deals with helping me identify pick-ups - the so-called
Shaw PAF reissues developed by Tim Shaw for the Gibson Company
- which were used in certain Gibson models from about 1980 through
about 1987.
I was told that Tim Shaw may now be employed with Gretsch in Nashville.
If this is the same Tim Shaw, then I hope you can forward the following request to him:
Can he or someone he knows forward me any/all the information they know
about these pick-ups?
Specifically, what do the black-inked codes stamped into the pick-up
plate mean?
I believe the last three- (or four-) digits are a date stamp MYY, but I
have no clue at all what the first three-digits mean. I have noticed the
following:
if the first three-digits represents an odd number, then it is a neck pickup;
if it represents an even number, then it is a bridge pickup.
But other than this, I'm confused.
It also appears that only certain first three-digits combinations were used;
for example, 137/138, 373/372, my 1984 Custom Shop ES-335 DOT has
the combination 379/372 (I believe).
Also, after some time (I think in 1984) the black-ink stamp no longer
appeared on Shaw PAFs adding further mystique to exactly what the codes are.
I would deeply appreciate any clarification that can be provided.
Here was Tim Shaw's reply:
"This is pretty easy, really. At that time, the part numbers for pickups all began with 13, so a Les Paul fingerboard pickup, in this particular series, was a 13137 and the bridge pickup was a 13138. Usually, but not always, they were consecutive numbers, and usually, but again not always, the fingerboard pickup was the lower of the two numbers, and again usually, but not always, the lower number was odd.
Your correspondent is right in deducing that the last three numbers are month and year.
Im sorry that you guys get stuck answering questions about something that Gibson did in 1982. The sad thing is that nobody in their Customer Service remembers this, and I only do because I was there. They still have a few engineers from that period, but apparently the left hand cant talk to the right hand!"
Tim
So the mystery is revealed?
he'd forward the following message to Tim Shaw:
Dear Steve,
I am writing you with a rather strange request.
This request deals with helping me identify pick-ups - the so-called
Shaw PAF reissues developed by Tim Shaw for the Gibson Company
- which were used in certain Gibson models from about 1980 through
about 1987.
I was told that Tim Shaw may now be employed with Gretsch in Nashville.
If this is the same Tim Shaw, then I hope you can forward the following request to him:
Can he or someone he knows forward me any/all the information they know
about these pick-ups?
Specifically, what do the black-inked codes stamped into the pick-up
plate mean?
I believe the last three- (or four-) digits are a date stamp MYY, but I
have no clue at all what the first three-digits mean. I have noticed the
following:
if the first three-digits represents an odd number, then it is a neck pickup;
if it represents an even number, then it is a bridge pickup.
But other than this, I'm confused.
It also appears that only certain first three-digits combinations were used;
for example, 137/138, 373/372, my 1984 Custom Shop ES-335 DOT has
the combination 379/372 (I believe).
Also, after some time (I think in 1984) the black-ink stamp no longer
appeared on Shaw PAFs adding further mystique to exactly what the codes are.
I would deeply appreciate any clarification that can be provided.
Here was Tim Shaw's reply:
"This is pretty easy, really. At that time, the part numbers for pickups all began with 13, so a Les Paul fingerboard pickup, in this particular series, was a 13137 and the bridge pickup was a 13138. Usually, but not always, they were consecutive numbers, and usually, but again not always, the fingerboard pickup was the lower of the two numbers, and again usually, but not always, the lower number was odd.
Your correspondent is right in deducing that the last three numbers are month and year.
Im sorry that you guys get stuck answering questions about something that Gibson did in 1982. The sad thing is that nobody in their Customer Service remembers this, and I only do because I was there. They still have a few engineers from that period, but apparently the left hand cant talk to the right hand!"
Tim
So the mystery is revealed?
