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I take it that Epiphone has made the MM50 in some form for a long time. Does the 'Gibson ' written vertically on the truss rod cover indicate anything in terms of dating and thus place of manufacture?
Attachment 99625
If so, might this make a difference in the quality? For instance, might a Korean made MM50 be a better deal for $300 than a Chinese made for the same price?
Perhaps I will give some background: I notice this mandolin has the Gibson truss rod cover, and that all the MM50s I see for sale right now do not. There is an internet rumor that Epiphone guitars made in Korea have the same Gibson covers, and the newer, Chinese made ones do not. The rumor usually involves claims about the quality of the Korean made models, which are far inferior to the Japanese made MM70s, but better than Chinese made MM50s.
The bigger problem that I see in trying to use that as an indicator of quality is that you could buy that truss rod cover in the not too distant past.
Yes, I have no way of knowing if it is original. But if it is, I wonder if it can be used, in lieu of a serial no., to date the instrument, even if not perfectly reliably. The quality question is about the place of manufacture, and even that is hotly debated elsewhere on this site.
All the Epiphone mandolins of this style I have seen had those "GIBSON" truss rod covers. It's just showing that it's an "Epiphone - by Gibson". Nothing unusual about it.
Well, at least a few do not (not that it means anything, but it was why I asked the question): https://www.google.ca/search?q=epiph...w=1366&bih=667Quote:
All the Epiphone mandolins of this style I have seen had those "GIBSON" truss rod covers. It's just showing that it's an "Epiphone - by Gibson". Nothing unusual about it.
I think in answer to your question is yes but I have no idea who can tell you which was made where during what time. I recall those being used in the late 80's and 90's. So it appears they no longer use them. But to me if you line up one from each place they were made the difference is minimum. You pretty much have a 50/50 chance of it being a decent one no matter where it was made. At least with the Gibson name on it you have some coolness factor that Gibson had a hand in making it.
Thanks f5loar. From what I can gather, both before and after the move from Korea to China it was a crapshoot. My interest is in marketing this thing, should I buy it, to trade up (or at least sideways). I figure if I can get it for 300 (which might be about what it is worth to me), but get more than that in trade, then I have done ok. Last I checked, there was still one being born every minute, so maybe I will happen upon someone who thinks that little plastic cover means something.
'It' being the Contract with the Pac Rim Company that actually made them ,Quote:
At least with the Gibson name on it you have some coolness factor that Gibson had a hand in making it.
then shipped them to a Distribution Warehouse... owned by ..
do they even do QC , opening the Boxes to see if the contract was fulfilled
with 1st quality product, or just the numbers to fill the container.
IDK , not in the loop
So, this one was made in Korea. It is a factory second, but the QC inspectors are in the USA. Seems like it got the stamp because of a blemish on the top's finish. Anyway, it plays better than any mandolin I have tried. Not much volume but more than decent tone.