I acquired a 2008 AVRI '62 Strat off ebay. I took the neck off to do some adjustments and found there was no date stamped on the heel of the neck, but did find one on the neck pocket. Is this normal? I thought Fender always stamped the date (of the neck) on butt end of the heel of their necks. Or did their practices change recently? Here are some pics:

My 2007 62 AVRI has nothing on the heel of the neck, and I ordered it from the factory in California. I has a similar stamp on the back of the neck like yours. I have a friend that has a penciled date on his neck heel. Fender hasn't been very consistent with their numbering practices for guitars and amps.

Thanks for the replies and info. I appreciate it.