I'm looking at this MIM Strat on Ebay. Why do you suppose that the serial number MZ9510930, which is plainly visible in one of the photos, gives me a "Serial Number Unknown" return on the the Guitar Dating Project?

Every other place I've looked only gives MIM serials up to 2005-2006. The seller claims that this is a 2009 guitar, and I guess I'll have to take his word for it since I can't verify it. MZ9XXXXXX looks to be consistent with Fender's numbering method.

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Forget all about that macho s**t and learn how to play guitar!

Don't know if it's a real SN or not, but if I was going to fake one, it wouldn't be a standard MIM. He'd be lucky to get the cost of his parts out of it. If I were going to be making a fake, it would be some rare model or something I could get my money from.

I'm not saying for sure it's real but I can't see anyone going through the trouble to fake a MIM.

Just my opinion.

Jeff

+1

Stranger things have happened, I suppose......but it'd be like some master counterfeiter tooling a set of plates to print one-dollar bills.

JMO

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

it is a MIM real #. I've had the same trouble with the serial number in the past it's a '09 . I bought mine new from a legit music store with all the tags and everything. apparently mexican serials were a mess with especially with parts going back and forth between corona and ensenada depending on demand.

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Common sense and a sense of humor are the same thing, moving at different speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancin'

Yep it's legit. Every serial number dating source - including the one on this site - is way outdated (they typically end with 2005).

This is really frustrating for people because Fender is now using an entirely new system starting in 2010.

For the USA models they used just a "10" from January through April/May - and that "10" was virtually the same font as the other digits of the serial number. By May they had switched to a "US10" prefix and made that "US10" much bolder than the other digits. We should start seeing USA guitars with "US11" serial numbers pretty soon.

For the MIM models, since they change over mid-year they switched from the "MZ9" for mid-2009 through mid-2010 to an "MX10" starting in mid 2010.

There are tons of fake Epiphones out there, even fake tooth paste and deodorant, so if you see a fake MIM I wouldn't be surprised . The OPs serial however is legit

Thanks all.

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Forget all about that macho s**t and learn how to play guitar!