Fender Serial Dating. First, narrow it down by the country of origin. Serial dating is easiest for instruments made in the USA or Mexico, but is also possible for those made in Japan, Korea, China, and Indonesia. For US instruments, the serial number will start with a letter. That letter indicates the decade. S for 1970s; E for 1980s; N for. The serial numbering scheme for these instruments initially used the letters “IC” as a prefix indicating that they were made in Indonesia at the Cort factory. In mid-2009, the prefix was changed to “ICF” on some instruments, indicating that they were made in Indonesia at the Cort factory and were Fender-branded. Squier Serial Number Check. Some 2002 versions of the black and Frost Red Metallic Squier Bullet Special are known to have the Affinity brand on the headstock as well. All Squier Bullet Special guitars were made in Indonesia at the Cort factory. The serial numbers start with IC followed by two digits that designate the year the guitar was made.

The Fender Bullet was an electric guitar originally designed by John Page^[1] and manufactured and marketed by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. It was first introduced as a line of 'student' guitars to replace the outgoing Mustang and Musicmaster models.^[2]

USA Version 1 (1981)[edit]

Fender marketed two models, initially manufacture was set up offshore in Korea, but due to technical issues, such as unacceptable high actions, the guitars were recalled to the U.S.A for manufacture at the Fullerton plant.

Two models were available - The 'Bullet' ( known as The standard Bullet ) & the 'Bullet Deluxe', retailers & dealers in the USA often called the guitars 'The Bullet One' but this was never a marketing name used by Fender . These two models had a single cutaway body style similar to that of the Fender Telecaster but much closer in size to the Mustang and Duo-Sonic that the Bullet replaced, the guitar had a 21 fret rosewood neck and Telecaster-style headstock and Kluson Deluxe tuners. Similarly to preceding student models like the Mustang, Bronco and Musicmaster, cost savings were made by using less wood for the body, both guitar bodies were 1- 5/8 inches thick as opposed to the 1- 3/4 inch thickness of other Fender guitars, parts were quick to assemble and labor saving, both models had the same hardware & electrics as other Fender guitars from the same era. The standard model originally retailed at $199.00 or $249 including the vacuum formed case, cord, strap, polishing cloth & bridge adjustment wrenches. The Bullet Deluxe had a plastic pickguard with a separate, traditional hardtail bridge while the standard model featured a steel pickguard-bridge-tailpiece combo, powder coated white or black, with separate saddles for each string. Both models had 2 single coil pickups with a three-way selector switch. The pickups had the same closed pickup covers as used on the Mustang & were initially left over Mustang stock. Color options were red or ivory, with a white or black pick guards on both models. At release in 1981, the only neck option was maple with a rosewood fretboard; a maple neck with a walnut skunk stripe was introduced as an option in 1982.

USA Version 2 (1982 - 1983)[edit]

In 1982, Fender introduced a revised version of the Bullet, including two bass models. This series featured a double cutaway body similar to the Fender Stratocaster without body contouring and therefore almost the same shape as the Mustang and Duo-Sonic that the Bullet replaced. Maple was the only neck option and the headstock retained the version one telecaster profile. Due to Kluson going out of business in 1981, Fender introduced the 70's style F tuners on the 1982 Bullet range and also used the Fender logo sealed tuners on the series, both made by Schaller in W. Germany. Five models were marketed - the Bullet (standard), the Bullet One H-1, the Bullet One S-2, S-3, and H-2—in addition to the two new bass models (a regular scale 'B-34' and short scale 'B-30'). The Bullet (standard) had the patented alloy pickguard-bridge-tailpiece combo with two single coil pickups and a 3 way switch. The H-1 sported the same alloy pickguard-bridge-tailpiece combo with one humbucker pickup; it also had a coil tap button to split the humbucker to single coil. The S-2, S-3 & H-2 were marketed as Deluxe versions & had a white plastic 3-ply pickguard with a separate hardtail bridge, in 1983 a single ply pickguard was introduced with the model number S-2, S-3 or H-2 embossed on the lower horn. The S-2 had two single coil pickups & a 3-way switch, the S-3 had 3 single coil pickups & a 5-way switch, the H-2 had two humbucker pickups each with their own coil tapping button & a 3-way switch. The humbucker pickups were really two single coil pickups with alnico rod magnets side-by-side. The basses each had plastic guards and traditional bridges. They had the old Mustang bass style pickups. They differed only in scale. The popular second version Bullets were available in color options of red, ivory, brown sunburst, or walnut; black was also available but never marketed as a color option. The S-2 was notably featured in the music video for Twisted Sister's 'We're Not Gonna Take It,' used by the son of Mark Metcalf's character to blow him out of the window when the song begins. Fender ceased production of Bullet guitars at the end of 1983 and was never produced again in the USA. Production of the Bullet range moved to Japan, under the Squier name.

Squier Bullet[edit]

1983–2007[edit]

Late 1983 to 1984 the Bullet manufacture was moved to Japan (SQ serial number pre-fix), these guitars were also known as 'Bullet One' in the USA by dealers & retailers, but never marketed as such. The guitars had solid wood bodies, good quality pick-ups and hardware but no longer had string through bodies. A hard tail bridge and later a six screw vintage style trem bridge was offered. The guitars featured 3 Single coils or 2 Humbucking pickups like the original USA-made 'Bullet' guitars, but steel rods were used as pole pieces with a ceramic bar magnet; the humbucker version consisted of the same paired single coil configuration as the American-made models. In 1985, 86 and 87 production was again moved, this time to Korea to reduce costs (E serial number pre-fix stamped on the neck plate). These guitars were marketed as the Squier Bullet and used plywood bodies. The neck was a rosewood board on maple and had a Strat headstock with a Telecaster style heel, three single coil pickup pattern like the Stratocaster, as well as a low cost two point tremolo. These were available in Red or Black.

In 1984/85 there was a Squier Bullet guitar model manufactured in Japan that featured a full sized Strat-style body made of solid wood. This particular Squier Bullet model is also distinguished by the fact that it featured a two pickup configuration (neck and bridge) instead of the usual three pickup, a Stratocaster style headstock with Telecaster style heel shape, jack socket located on the pickguard, 2 knobs (one volume, one tone), and a top-load hard tail or two point trem. It was offered in two colors, ivory and black.

In 1986 Squier released the contemporary HST ( Hybrid Start/Tele ) Bullet, E prefix serial on the neck plate, the guitar had a more pointy shaped telecaster style body with 3 pickups HSS configuration (Humbucker, single coil, single coil), a rosewood board on maple neck with a strat shaped headstock, no pickguard & a two pivot tremolo, this was a budget guitar aimed at the Heavy Metal market & was available in ivory or Black. This guitar had no country of origin mark, it is not known whether the guitar was made in Japan or Korea, the overall build quality is reasonably good, as the serial is an E prefix it maybe Korean as most Japanese models had the SQ prefix.

In 1989 Squier introduced a revamped version of the contemporary HST Bullet, this guitar did feature 'Made in Korea' on the headstock with an E prefix serial & is exactly the same as the guitar above but it had a strat shaped body, also available in ivory or black.

2005–present[edit]

Squier introduced a new, Chinese-made Bullet Strat in 2005, sporting a built-in tremolo arm, rosewood fingerboard, and one of six body finishes (Pink, Arctic White, Daphne Blue, Fiesta Red, Brown Sunburst, or Black) with a single-ply white pickguard.

By 2015, Fender was using Squier Bullet as a line name for their lowest-priced guitars at the $150 price point. The guitars used inexpensive basswood for their bodies and reduced paint steps to the absolute minimum to keep costs under control. However, they used the same pickups and tuners as their slightly more expensive Affinity series cousins, and generally were acknowledged as good starter instruments. In 2018, Fender had done away with the vibrato bridge on the Bullet line and made its mainline Bullet guitars top-loading hardtail instruments (vibrato bridges could still be found on special production runs for stores such as Guitar Center). The Stratocaster headstocks say 'Bullet® Strat®,' while the Mustang headstocks simply have an all-black version of the Squier Mustang logo used on the more-expensive Vintage Modified instruments.

As of Summer NAMM 2018, Fender's Squier Bullet line consisted of:

• Squier Mini Strat (SSS, 22.75' short-scale)
• Squier Bullet Stratocaster (SSS, 25.5' scale)
• Squier Bullet Stratocaster (HSS, 25.5' scale)
• Squier Bullet Mustang (HH, 24' short-scale)

The Squier Bullet Special[edit]

From around 1999 to 2005, Fender produced a single pickup Squier Bullet Special guitar. It had a fixed, hardtail bridge, a dual-coil (humbucker) bridge pickup, one volume control, and a 21 fret rosewood fingerboard bolt on neck. The body was made out of plywood and it was made in six colors: Black, Ice Blue Metallic, Red Metallic, Cobalt Blue Metallic, Orange, and Satin Silver. The Red and Orange bodies were made with black hardware; all other colors had chrome hardware. All Bullet Specials had a 1 ply black pickguard. Most of the Squier Bullet Specials made in 2002 came with a special 20th Anniversary engraved neck plate. The logo on the headstock reads 'Squier Bullet' with no mention of 'Special'. Some 2002 versions of the black and Frost Red Metallic Squier Bullet Special are known to have the Affinity brand on the headstock as well.^[3]

All Squier Bullet Special guitars were made in Indonesia at the Cort factory. The serial numbers start with IC followed by two digits that designate the year the guitar was made. The remaining digits indicate month of production, color, and sequence. IC02xxxxxxx indicates a guitar made in 2002.^[4]

Bullet Strings[edit]

Fender also markets guitar strings under the Bullet brand. Introduced in the early 1970s, these strings differ by having cylindrical bullet-shaped ends instead of the 'ball ends' common to other manufacturers. Fender states the bullet ends create a tighter fit in the tremolo block on Stratocaster guitars, leading to greater tuning stability when the tremolo is used. ^[5] In the early 1990s Fender switched from using zinc-plated steel for the bullet ends to brass, improving sustain. Today nickel is also used. Stainless steel strings with bullet ends are also offered since the late '90s.

Further reading[edit]

• Fjestad, Zachary R. (Editor), The Blue Book of Electric Guitars; (9th Edition), 2005
• Peter Bertges: The Fender Reference; Bomots, Saarbrücken 2007, ISBN978-3-939316-38-1
• Bullet® Special, Squires Guitars

References[edit]

1. ^Chevne, Steven and Fjestad, Zachary R. (Editor), The Blue Book of Electric Guitars, (5th Edition), 1998
2. ^The Original USA Fender Bullet Appreciation Page
3. ^Bacon, Tony Squier Electrics: 30 Years of Fenders Budget Guitar Brand; Backbeat,1st Edition, January 1, 2012, ISBN978-1-61713-022-9
4. ^'How to date Japanese, Mexican, USA, Korean, Chinese, Indonesian and Indian Squiers'. Fender Discussion Page (forum). June 12, 2007.
5. ^'Fender Bullet Strings'. Fender engineers of the early 1970s were aware that the standard ball-end string design that had prevailed until then presented very specific tuning problems, especially on tremolo-equipped guitars.

Here I'll try and cast some light on the different Squier Mini Serial Numbers with a few examples. General serial number info at the bottom of the page. Enjoy.

Squier Mini Serial Number Examples

Squier Mini Strat IS90600556

This guitar was made by Samick in Indonesia and is a typical representative of the most common Mini in terms of appointments and color. Note the 'affinity' silkscreen on the nose.

Below is a view of the backside of the peghead. The inspection sticker is clearly shown. The exact same sticker appear on guitars with serial numbers starting with 'SI', so the two are probably under the same management. Note also the original tuning machines.

Squier Mini Strat IS00300077

The second Mini Strat in my collection was made in the same Samick plant. Not a lot of difference. 'Affinity' at the nose still present.

This guitar also has the original tuners. One ever so slight difference, is the font of the 'Crafted in Indonesia' has changed.

Squier Mini Strat SI02095734

This example is a neck I picked up from fleabay a while ago. Notice the absence of the verbiage 'affinity' at the nose.

When I bought the neck it had the original tuners. Not entirely unexpected, they were in pretty poor condition and had to go. This picture was taken after I installed the new tuners. The fonts are an exact match in size and type with the IS00300077 above and has the same quality control sticker. One difference is the inspector is filled in with a name and a date (9/02). These similarities lead me to believe they are made under the same management (S=Samick), but probably two separate locations.

Squier Mini Strat IC070814663

This guitar was made by Cort in Indonesia. They use nine digits for their serial numbers and the 's/n' in front. No 'affinity' silkscreen on this peghead.

Indonesian Squier Serial Number Lookup Serial

This guitar has the original tuning machines as well. No inspection sticker, but the words 'Designed and Backed by Fender' which neither of the others have.

Squier Mini Strat IC040538985

I had already started to strip this guitar before I got the idea to write this page. This guitar is a real oddball. The build quality and finish is as good as the others even after a close look. The first immediate difference is in the wood used for the neck. This ain't no Maple.

The serial number looks right at first. Font and size is right and the verbiage both front and back match that on the previous guitar. The print looks somewhat smudged, which combined with the exotic wood seems a little off. The space between the 'C' and the '0' is cramped, in lack of a better word.

Looking at the back of the peghead it looks right. Tuners look the same.

Upon close inspection of internal components I noticed several small but significant differences with the other guitars. I will examine this guitar closer on a separate page in the near future.

Squier Mini Serial Numbers - The Long Story

The Squier Mini is manufactured in at least two different plants, both in Indonesia. Fender and Squier serial numbers, for guitar made overseas, has in the last 20 years or longer consisted of two letters followed by eight (sometimes nine) numerals.

The two letters leading denotes what plant the instrument was made in. In the case of the Mini Strats, I have seen 'IC', 'IS' and 'SI'. 'IC' are made by Cort while IS are made by Samick, both in Indonesia.

The source of the Minis with serial numbers starting with 'SI' have been difficult to research. The word on the net is that they denote the fact they were sold in a kit or bundle with a cheap practice amp, cable, picks and some other material geared toward young beginners. I'm not convinced this is the case. Why would a company use a different serial number because it is sold in a bundle? There would be too many disadvantages and doesn't make any sense. There is no other difference.

Squier Serial Number Search

These 'SI' Minis have the same inspection sticker on the back on the peghead as those with 'SI' serial numbers. Both say 'Crafted in Indonesia' but with different fonts. My theory is that there is a second Samick location that produces these guitars, and to distinguish there is a different source, the letters were switched around. Yet to be confirmed though.

In a couple of instances I have noticed guitars with an orange sticker with a number, that does not conform to the standard number structure. As I recall they are 10 or 11 characters, all numerals. This is a relatively common practice when non-conforming guitars are sold in bulk to a dealer/middle-man who refurbish them and sell them to the open market.

I have been looking at many Mini Strat listings by now, and I can not remember ever seeing a black Mini that did not have an 'IC' serial number. Red I have seen all three, but 'SI' seems to be dominant.

In 2008 Fender started having 'Fender' branded instruments made in the Cort facility in Indonesia for the first time. The new series of guitars were given serial number starting with 'ICF' - with the letter 'F' for Fender. At the same time Squiers made in the same factory started getting serial numbers with 'ICS' - where 'S' stands for Squier to follow the same pattern.

For many years I believed the first two numbers in the string of eight/nine was the year the neck was made. It seemed to make sense, especially considering the guitar above (SI02095734) where the inspection date (9/02) was written by hand on the inspection sticker.

It all made sense until I learned Fender started manufacturing Squier guitars in Indonesia in 1999 (thanks Martin!) - one of my Minis has '90' in the serial number - there went that theory. That said, it seems reasonable to assume there is some correlation with these numbers and year of manufacture on some guitars, but doesn't seem to always apply.

There are comments on the net saying the next two numbers are the month. I believe that to be incorrect, as two out my guitars have '60' and '30' in those places.

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