Hi all, I’m new here, but for just about 2 years I’ve had a red Hohner Rockwood LX90.
I’ve read up on here a little to find out the first two digits of the serial number denote the build year, my particular example being from 2001.
The serial number is 012879, what else can I learn about the guitar from this?
I assume you’re right about the year of manufacture. I’ve asked the Service Dept. if they can provide any further information & will post here.
Hi Lexology
The Service Dept says this model was built from 1994 onwards, yours dates either from 2001 as you assumed, or possibly 2000. They also sent the following specs, hope that’s a help:
Rockwood; 21 nickel silver frets; single mechanics; fixed maple neck; rosewood fingerboard; 3x single coil pickup; 5-way switch; vol/tone/tone; standard vibrato; chrome hardware; colours: red, black, sunburst
I’ve just bought a Rockwood LX90 and it would be great to know more about it via your links with the company. The serial number is 076652, black body, 21 frets, and it looks like a one/piece maple neck and fretboard. As it appears to be from 2007 I wonder if it has any improvements over earlier models?
Hi David,
I’ll ask the Service Dept. what info they have and will get back to you Monday.
Cheers, Steve
Hi David
Hohner service says according to the serial no. your guitar was built in 1997. No changes to earlier versions are on record. Here the available specs:
Rockwood; 21 nickel silver frets; single mechanics; fixed maple neck; rosewood fingerboard; 3x single coil pickup; 5-way switch; vol/tone/tone; standard vibrato; chrome hardware; colours: red, black, sunburst
Hi Steve
Thanks firstly to you and the service department for replying so quickly. I am a little surprised at the year of manufacture being identified as 1997 as the serial number is 076652 and my understanding, based on other posts, was that 07 related to 2007. Another issue I wonder about is that I’m pretty sure I have a maple fretboard which looks to be all one piece with the neck.
I’ve attached a photo. (I’m part way through
a clean and restring.)
That does seem a little strange, as you say the first 2 digits usually indicate the year of manufacture. I’ve asked them to check again and sent the photo. Will get back to you.
Hi David,
Hohner Service tell me that although most serial numbers start with the last 2 digits of the year of manufacture, there are numerous exceptions to this rule. Especially in the case of older series, or with transitional or special production runs, this system was not used consistently.
Further, the fact that your guitar has a one piece maple neck / fingerboard is not a reliable indicator that it was built in the 1990s. Depending on the individual factory, availability of particular woods and revisions of the specs for any particular model, plenty of instruments dating from the 2000s also display this construction.
They are dependent on the available archives for any information, and the numbering doesn’t always follow a consistent pattern, so it isn’t possible to give more exact statements.
I hope that helps clarify things,
cheers
Steve
I suppose the clarity is that the service department has confirmed the date of manufacture as 1997, which is the only thing I can’t tell by looking at the guitar. Therefore the guitar is 10 years older than I thought it may have been, which is interesting.
I guess there is no record of the construction of each individual guitar, as evidenced by the description: red/black/sunburst. Maybe rosewood fretboards were more often fitted than maple back in 1997 but, as you say, that wasn’t always the case.
Many thanks for your efforts, Steve.
On the equivalent Hohners, the neck material is usually specific to the body colour. Rockwoods seem to be a bit more random - red and sunburst tend to be rosewood, black tends to be maple, but it’s not hard to find contradictory examples. That’s the fun of a Stratocaster of course - it’s not a guitar, it’s a kit - which was Leo’s original intention.
Thanks for your reply Phil. My black guitar has a maple fretboard which ties in with your observation. I’ve been looking at Stratocaster articles since buying my guitar and it has been interesting to follow developments over time, and modifications made by individuals. As my guitar lacks a vibrato arm I’m thinking of inserting bits of wood into the mechanism to make it a hard tail. Someone recommended raising the pickups to increase output but I’m not sure how feasible this is on a Rockwood, or whether it’s worth doing at all!
The LX90 does have pickup height adjustment screws. It can make a big difference to the signal level and as a result makes the noise level proportionally less, which is quite important on single coils. You have to be careful not to raise them too high to make sure the string doesn’t hit the magnet though. It’s a simple thing to try, and there are plenty of Youtube videos explaining the process.
