Quote:
Originally Posted by RolexBenz190E  I got a hold of a Conn Connstellation when I was about 10 years old and I payed it up until I graduated high school. The weird thing is, I can't seem to find the years corresponding with the serial number (GK521719). |
For vintage Conns up to 1969 we usually go to Conn Loyalist at
The Conn Loyalist
For more recent years look at the paragraph at the bottom of the page at
Lars Kirmser's Music Trader - Conn Serial Number List
It says:
"In March of 1974 an alpha-numeric system was established where the first character (letter) of a serial number indicated the decade; "G" for the 1970's, "H" for the 1980's, etc. The second character, also a letter, indicates the month of the year; "A" for January, "B" for February, "C" for March, etc. The third character (a number) indicates the number of year within the decade (indicated earlier by the first letter). The fourth character (number) indicates the specific type of instrument: "1" = Cornet, "2" = Trumpet, "3" = Alto Horn, "4" = French Horn, "5" = Mellophone, "6" = Valve Trombone, "7" = Slide Trombone, "8" = Baritone Horn & Euphonium, "9" = Tuba, and "10" = Sousaphone. The remaining four numbers of the serial number indicate the production number of the instrument on a monthly basis."
For your "GK521719", the "G" means the 1970's, the "K" means November, the "5" means 5th year of the 1970's (1975), the "2" means "trumpet", and the rest "1719" is the unique serial number for your instrument.
So your Conn trumpet was made in November, 1975,probably sold in some store in 1976.
BTW, Conn moved its factory from Elkhart, Indiana, to Abilene, Texas, in 1971, so your trumpet was made in Abilene, Texas.
I don't know if your Connstellation is a 36B (with a 4-5/8" bell) or a 38B (with a 5-1/8" bell).
See:
The Conn Loyalist
and
The Conn Loyalist