Custom Shop Serial Numbers

[pagemalicious]

I've been trying to get some more info on my Kelly so I looked at the tag that came with the guitar and it has the Work Order number and Serial number. However Jacksonguitars.com doesn't have serial numbers after 2001, which I would guess is up to around when Fender bought the company.

Is there any where I can check my Serial number from 2008?

Also the Assembly and Wiring was done by a guy called L. Martinez and the set up has two initials 'SS'.

Who would of built it?

[Newc]

Steven Segal? Steve Stephens? Shorty Shortshit? Samuel Simmons? Simon Sillyputty? Stew Stirabout? Stacey Staysum? Sherbert Shooter? Steven Sondheim? Any one of those guys, I'd imagine.

And what do you mean "check my serial number from 2008"? The serial number won't tell you anything you don't already know, and certainly won't tell anyone else who did the wiring, the assembly, the setup, the paint, much less who built it.

[dg]

SS is Sean Silas. He's been doing setups there for quite a while. He posts on the JCF Facebook page sometimes. Not sure if he's active on this site.

[Johnnyryche]

If it's a U serial #, I can help on the dating. But if it's a true custom shop with a J serial #, I haven't been tracking those.

[Mudlark]

A Jxxxx serial for 2008 would be in the ballpark of 71xx-73xx going from a rag-tag list of Custom numbers I have.

[pagemalicious]

The number is U21336. I find that a bit confusing as it does say Custom Shop on the headstock but that serial number would make it a production guitar wouldnt it?

[neilli]

There's been a bunch of discussion about U serials with the Custom Shop logo on the head. It seems like they would just take a regular build off the line and then send it to Mike Learn (for example) for a graphic, which makes it look like a custom, but it's not actually a custom guitar underneath the pretty.

For what it's worth, IMO J serials are Custom Shops, U serials are not (regardless of what it says on the end).

[euronymous]

It seems that only when the build process changes, the guitar will be stamped as J. E.g. a EMG equipped guitar might have a J serial number

[Mudlark]

I recently found online a 2008 Custom Shop logo'd SL2HT with a graphic from a female artist named Dineen? with serial U20307...which is a neighbor to my USA Select SL2HT's serial U20306.
I was miffed until I heard here that it's not uncommon.
I've since found a few different examples of Customs with U prefixed numbers.

I expect U21336 to be late '08, but Johnnyryche will give you a more certain date.

[Dog Boy]

U serial with a Custom Shop logo. Its not unheard of but pics would be fun to look at if you got em.

[pagemalicious]

[neilli]

It's not a 'true' custom IMO - the specs are straight up KE2. It's just the paint that's different..

[walshula]

What is even stranger is that I have a soloist that has custom shop on the headstock and U prefix (U20175) but it has custom features such as pearl white finish w/matching headstock, blank ebony fretboard, black binding on neck and headstock, EMGs with battery cavity on the back. and chrome hardware ( i since swapped it to all black) and is not just a plain ole SL2H with a custom paint job. So who knows the method to their madness, The true debate is over the Custom Shop vs the Custom Select Series and the fact that they both sport the J prefix. So lets go figure it out, Custom shop equals 2 plus years wait and $4000 and up in price and Custom select equals 4 - 6 months wait and $2500 - $3000 and they both have the J prefix. That has been argued in length already and the debate will continue

You have one great guitar and as long as you didn't pay more than double what a standard KE2 is going for and the craftsmanship is on point ( the trem route is not crooked) I would not sweat the fact it was sold under the CS pretense and has a U prefix, it basically is a custom piece especially if that graphic is factory. Congrats on a great guitar

[neilli]

As I recall, those white guitars were a small batch which still get U serials. They have semi custom specs, like the JCS guitars but were made in a batch (like a normal select), hence the U serial.

I was talking to someone in the know, and apparently there was a notable push inside Jackson to give the JCS guitars a different serial prefix, but the senior mgt (i.e. Fender) didn't see the need for a distinction so the idea was nixed.

[Newc]

Mismanagement never sees the need for distinctions - that's why we have such a fucked-up serialization format for the Charvel Model models and the clusterfuck that import Jackson serials turned into in the middle of 1996.

As for the guitar in question, it's classified as Custom Shop because of the graphic. That's one of those "minor" changes that people ask for and pay an extra grand or more for.
However, that's just what anonymous internet people can see in one picture. Have you compared it hand-in-hand to a USA Select KE-2?