C2 radio I.D. 81FSB 0808

[Cliff Vaughn]

65,66 or 67?

Thanks for your reply.

Cliff

[Harry Sadlock]

Re: C2 radio I.D. 81FSB 0808

Cliff,

81FSA2623 came from VIN 1487 in 1965
81FSC2025 came from VIN 22714 in 1965

Not knowing what got pulled for the car: 81FSB0808 would be a 65 car around VIN sequence number 8181.

Harry

[Cliff Vaughn]

Re: C2 radio I.D. 81FSB 0808

Thanks Harry.

Cheers, Cliff

[Donald W.]

Re: C2 radio I.D clarification

Harry,

How do the #'s decipher to dates and year serial #'s. I have a 67, but have never removed the radio, also where are the #'s located. The radio still works but would like to restore it, front face especially needing redone.

Thanks,

Don

[Harry Sadlock]

Re: C2 radio I.D clarification

Don, the radio is identified by an "Identification Sticker" placed somewhere on the radio. Over the years many have fallen off or were removed. Also there is no way to predict what radio, by Id number, was pulled for a particular VIN, but you can get close.

This is from data I've collected from owners who know/believe they have the original radio.

All ID numbers started at 0001 and went to 9999, them the 3 letters changed, as an example FMA to FMB.

1963 - Id's started 86FMA0001. It is generally accepted that AM/FM radios were regularly installed at VIN 11768. Some were installed prior for exec's and shows. Saying that' lets say VIN 11768 had radio 86FMA0006.

1964 - Id's started 21FJA0001 and went to 21FJCxxxx
1965 - Id's started 81FSA0001 and went to 81FSCxxxx
1966 - Id's started 81FSCxxxx and went to 81FSExxxx
1967 - Id's started 81FSExxxx and went to 81FSIxxxx

Also, many radios went to dealerships as replacements and there were also radio delete cars.

Harry

[Donald W.]

Thanks for the info Harry *NM*

[Cliff Vaughn]

Re: C2 radio I.D clarification

Great info Harry, but how do you tell the difference between a late 65 and an early 66 if they both use 81FSC? (same with 66 and 67 81FSE)

Thanks, Cliff

[Harry Sadlock]

Re: C2 radio I.D clarification

Cliff, you can't tell the difference because it was the same radio and the luck of the draw as to what the installer pulled from the radio bin.

As an example 65 VIN 22714 has radio 81FSC2055, yet VIN 23564 has radio 81FSC0896, the lower VIN has the higher radio Id.

66 VIN 20101 has radio 81FSE2227 and 67 VIN 2232 has radio 81FSF2399.

All I can say is that there is a sequence, at broad level it is predictable but at a detail level it is still random.

Harry

[Cliff Vaughn]

Re: C2 radio I.D clarification

Thanks again. I now know a lot more about the radios than I did 24 hours ago!

Cliff

[Wayne M.]

DS-501 output transistor date code helps

pic below gives year (65) and week (34) of manufacture of the transistor. You should be able to see this at the back of the radio, in the lower center of the heat fins, by using a dental mirror after taking off the RH console radio panel. This particular one is on an early '66 radio (VIN unknown) 81FSC-5861, which means that the radio had to be assembled AFTER the end of August (34th week), and installed in a Corvette at least a few weeks after that.