need help - Tonepot on an 1979...

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trebletool

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sorry, don?t know where to post that, but i have an old 1979 Ibanez GB-10 with an damaged Tonpot and like to ask if anyone def. know what kind of pot i need as an good replacement. I pulled it out (VERY tricky) and there are some codes i can?t identify....
 
When you say damaged, did you try spraying it with contact cleaner?
 
thx for your help...

what i can read is: 504042 and ?8II I
20019534va.jpg
 
Looks like 1978?

Next date code up:

The "vertical lines" code is found in Greco Fender copies from about 1977 to 1980, and no doubt in other guitars from that period as well. Not in Tokais, however, as far as I know. Please note that I'm not really up to speed when it comes to Tokai Gibson copies, though.

This code format has the month and year reversed compare to the YM X format: the month first, then the year. The months are also given differently than in YM X, using 1 - 9 for Jan - Sept, then J, K and L for Oct - Dec ( i e the 10th through 12th letter of the alphabet).
The month and year is followed by one, two or three vertical lines, and finally a 1 or sometimes another vertical line. The final digit is always in the same position, so if the vertical lines are fewer than three, there will be one or two spaces ahead of it.

I'm not sure if there is any practical need to find an interpretation for the vertical lines, but there is one that seems to fit rather well. It has to do with a Japanese tradition of dividing months into thirds, called jun. Two ten-day jun are followed by a third that's 8, 10 or 11 eleven days long depending on the month: upper, middle and lower jun.
Like I said, it sort of fits. Would you need to subdivide date codes into periods that short for QA purposes? Well, other manufacturers don't seem to have thought so... but then again, US manufacturers often dated their pots by the week (and still do, I think?).
Who knows? It's an hypothesis at least.

View attachment 1098
1977 Greco SE: 97 for Sept 1977, single vertical line, two spaces and a 1. Note the "parts number" above it. 7 or 4 in the penultimate position could differentiate linear and log pots, 4 is found on tone pots.

View attachment 1099
1978 Greco SE, K8 for Nov 1978. Two vertical lines, one space and a 1. These have the plaintext kOhm and log-lin info.


View attachment 1100
Mid-1979 Greco SE-800, one pot is February with two lines, the other March with one line. The final digit has no clear "hook" to indicate that it's a 1.


View attachment 1101
Nov 1979 Greco SE600J. Semi-obscured, but we see the J in use for October and at least one vertical line.
 

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