Would like to sell my Gibson Loar A-Jr circa 1927 - how?

[rosindabow1]

I own a Gibson Loar A-Jr circa 1927 that I would like to sell. How best to go about doing this? It is serial number #81757. The pegs were redone (not Waverlies) Mandolin is in excellent condition - play beautifully! Should I sell on eBay? Go to my local shop (McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA)? Any other ideas? Any idea as to a reasonable price? Thanks.

[mrmando]

Sell it here on the Classifieds.

P.S. Loar left Gibson at the end of 1924.

[rosindabow1]

I guestimated the date. Is there any way to determine for sure? Can I put the serial number in somewhere to find out? Thanks.

[liestman]

I would have someone (McCabes?) look it over to be sure there are no problems, then sell it here on the Classifieds. These are wonderful instruments and have a lot of fans (me included). Ebay would not be a good choice.

[Bill Kammerzell]

I own a Gibson Loar A-Jr circa 1927 that I would like to sell. How best to go about doing this? It is serial number #81757. The pegs were redone (not Waverlies) Mandolin is in excellent condition - play beautifully! Should I sell on eBay? Go to my local shop (McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA)? Any other ideas? Any idea as to a reasonable price? Thanks.

EBay is the last place I'd sell anything. Between them and PayPal you pay over 13% commission. Here or Reverb is the best. Can you see the Factory Order Number (FON)? On a round hole, like this, it would likely be ink or die stamped on one of the interior side walls, and visible through the sound hole. Makes it easier to date it.
Selling through a store on consignment often involves a 10% fee also.

[Bill Kammerzell]

FON or Factory order number. Ink or die stamped along one of the side walls. Visible through the sound hole. Could contain a letter.

[MikeEdgerton]

FON or Factory order number. Ink or die stamped along one of the side walls. Visible through the sound hole. Could contain a letter.

Unless it's on the headblock.

[Bill Kammerzell]

Unless it's on the headblock.

Ditto.

[Bill Kammerzell]

I own a Gibson Loar A-Jr circa 1927 that I would like to sell. How best to go about doing this? It is serial number #81757. The pegs were redone (not Waverlies) Mandolin is in excellent condition - play beautifully! Should I sell on eBay? Go to my local shop (McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA)? Any other ideas? Any idea as to a reasonable price? Thanks.

Pricing could vary. Once you find out the date, and estimate the condition, I would check listing and sale prices for a similar mandolin. You can do that simply by entering your mandolin in a search at EBay, Reverb, etc. You'd get an idea anyway.

[Jim Garber]

It is a snakehead and probably (by the SN) 1924-5. FON will give you more accurate date.

[rosindabow1]

Still - is there a list somewhere that I can plug in my serial number and know the build date? I found another A-Jr with a later serial number and that was fro 1926. As far as the condition - it is in excellent condition. I had a pro luthier go over it completely a number of years ago and it plays real sweet. I am a fiddle player - I thought that I would get into playing this more but I just haven't. I would like to get at least the same money that I put into it - that's why I'm trying to determine a date. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[rosindabow1]

I found a number stamped on what looks like the bottom of the neckblock. It is #8712. There is no letter anywhere that I can see. Could that be the FON?

[Jim Garber]

Plug in either number on the Mandolin Archive. Both come up around 1925.

They only made the snakeheads for a few years anyway.

[Bill Kammerzell]

Still - is there a list somewhere that I can plug in my serial number and know the build date? I found another A-Jr with a later serial number and that was fro 1926. As far as the condition - it is in excellent condition. I had a pro luthier go over it completely a number of years ago and it plays real sweet. I am a fiddle player - I thought that I would get into playing this more but I just haven't. I would like to get at least the same money that I put into it - that's why I'm trying to determine a date. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Like Jim just wrote, The Factory Order Number or FON can give you the most accurate date. There isn't really a web site to plug that serial number into that I know of. If someone gives me the FON I generally look it up in a Gibson Guide that I have. I know for sure others here have the same guide, "Spann's Guide to Gibson, 1902-1941". Best I can do. Number would be ink or die stamped along the side walls or on the Head-block. Visible through the sound-hole. Might need a flashlight. It could contain a letter.

[Jack Roberts]

Still - is there a list somewhere that I can plug in my serial number and know the build date? ....

The FON, which you can find easily, tells you the build date, the serial number doesn't really tell you that. The two numbers aren't necessarily related. I'm looking through Spann and I see that A-jrs from 1927 would be one of these FONs:
8559, 8624, 8712 8726, 8766

1926 would between 8296 and 8508

1925 would be between 8192 and 8296.

If it were from 1924 the FON would be something like "11231A"

So it's easier for the dating checkers to find the date from your FON than your serial number

[allenhopkins]

Still - is there a list somewhere that I can plug in my serial number and know the build date? I found another A-Jr with a later serial number and that was fro 1926....I would like to get at least the same money that I put into it - that's why I'm trying to determine a date...

The venerable Vintage Guitar Gibson ID-ing web page lists the serial number range for 1925 as 81200-82700 which would include your A-Jr. The Spann book has superseded this source in terms of accepted accuracy, but you need the factory order number to use his archive more precisely.

I would advise that trying to nail down a precise year -- and throwing around terms like "Loar A-Jr" -- don't add much to the information that the prospective buyer needs. You have a "snakehead" A-Jr., which is an instrument in fairly high demand; it benefits from the general high quality level of Gibson mandolins from the 1920's. However, Lloyd Loar had no discernible connection to it: he didn't sign the label, explicitly participate in its design or manufacture, or affect it in any attributable fashion.

Here's a nearly four-year-old thread on A-Jr. "snakehead" prices. There are current listings of these instruments ranging from $1.4K to $2K, as you probably have already researched. If the instrument's as good as you say it is, you could set its asking price toward the higher end of that range.

[Bill Kammerzell]

I found a number stamped on what looks like the bottom of the neckblock. It is #8712. There is no letter anywhere that I can see. Could that be the FON?

8712 is the FON for an A-jr made in 1927. From Spann's Guide.

[Bill Kammerzell]

The venerable Vintage Guitar Gibson ID-ing web page lists the serial number range for 1925 as 81200-82700 which would include your A-Jr. The Spann book has superseded this source in terms of accepted accuracy, but you need the factory order number to use his archive more precisely.

I would advise that trying to nail down a precise year -- and throwing around terms like "Loar A-Jr" -- don't add much to the information that the prospective buyer needs. You have a "snakehead" A-Jr., which is an instrument in fairly high demand; it benefits from the general high quality level of Gibson mandolins from the 1920's. However, Lloyd Loar had no discernible connection to it: he didn't sign the label, explicitly participate in its design or manufacture, or affect it in any attributable fashion.

Here's a nearly four-year-old thread on A-Jr. "snakehead" prices. There are current listings of these instruments ranging from $1.4K to $2K, as you probably have already researched. If the instrument's as good as you say it is, you could set its asking price toward the higher end of that range.

That's where I would start.

[rosindabow1]

Thank you one and all!!! Much appreciated. I had it appraised back in 2008 for $2,300. It is described as being in "excellent condition, no cracks or structural issues, original finish very nicely restored." I think that I am going to look for a private sale first and see what I can come up with. Once again, thank you all for helping me to clarify and nail this down.

[rosindabow1]

8712 is the FON for an A-jr made in 1927. From Spann's Guide.

Thanks for looking that up!

[Bill Kammerzell]

Thanks for looking that up!

Sure. Actually Jack Roberts had already listed it. I keep my copy by the computer though, so I just verified it for myself. Its really the only time I put that book to any real use.

[Bill Kammerzell]

Thanks for looking that up!

Also I believe Allen Hopkins gave you a pretty good idea of pricing. Hope you get what you are looking for. If you use PayPal, the Mandolin Cafe Classifieds is a perfect place to sell it.

[MikeEdgerton]

Does anyone else think the pickguard bracket isn't original? Had they stopped using the actual clamp by the time this was built? That one looks old just not right.

[Jim Garber]

Does anyone else think the pickguard bracket isn't original? Had they stopped using the actual clamp by the time this was built? That one looks old just not right.

I had a ‘24 A-JR. I believe it had the older clamp. I remember it would sometimes loosen and fall off. Knowing Gibson it would not surprise me that they would use older leftover parts esp for the lower end instruments.

[barney 59]

I have a '27 a0 paddlehead with the little chrome screw in side bracket
I believe they weren't "Jrs" anymore by '27.