[Trombone-l] Yamaha YBL 613H Serial number

[Walter Barrett]

On Feb 18, 2008, at 7:37 PM, Len wicks wrote:

> I have a Yamaha YBL 613H Bass Trombone with serial #
> 001580. I cannot find a SN list for Yamaha. Anyone
> know how old it might be?
> The slide is EL-H
> Len Wicks
>

Len-

There are no S/N lists for figuring out how old your Yamaha is. They  
actually start from scratch with every new model #. I once saw a  
euphonium and a tuba with the same S/N. It's also possible to have a  
lacquered horn and a silver one with identical #s. A company like  
Bach, or Conn puts the S/N on the horn near the end of its  
manufacture, whereas Yamaha has the number stamped when that  
particular part is made, like the slide receiver, or a trumpet valve  
cluster. They don't seem to get the desire to know when a horn was  
made, but they see the numbers solely as a way to track production,  
plus various customs rules require a number on each instrument. Many  
German instruments used to come into the US without any S/N, and the  
importer would have to engrave a number on each one before it could  
clear customs.

The Product History pages on the Yamaha website will tell you the  
dates of production for each model, and the 613H was made between  
1994-2006. From the lowness of the #, my WAG would be that your horn  
was made sometime between 1994-1996.

Hope this helps!


Walter Barrett

“You blow in this one end- and a sound comes out the other end that  
disrupts the universe.”
	-Roswell Rudd, on the trombone

Alto, tenor, bass trombones
Bass trumpet, euphonium, tuba
Yamaha Artist/Clinician
http://www.walterbarrett.com