HOW OLD IS MY PIANO?
FREE PIANO IDENTIFICATION & SERIAL NUMBER LOOKUP TOOL
What Year Was My Kimball Piano Made?
(Serial Number Lookup + Guide)
DIRECT ANSWER
Kimball pianos can usually be dated approximately from the serial number found inside the piano. On most uprights, look on the cast-iron plate near the tuning pins or on a serial-number badge; on grands, the number may appear on the plate, frame, or in a less obvious location near the treble side.
Kimball used more than one serial-number system over its long production history. Early Chicago-made instruments tend to be more straightforward, while later corporate-era and outsourced production may use prefixes or overlapping conventions. Enter the full number exactly as shown, including any letter prefix.
KIMBALL SERIAL NUMBER LOOKUP TOOL
Enter the serial number exactly as it appears on the piano, with or without a letter(s) prefix before the numbers.
WHERE IS THE SERIAL NUMBER ON A KIMBALL?
KIMBALL GRAND PIANOS
In Kimball instruments, placement can vary between:
- plate stamping
- frame stamping
- badge-based identification (especially later models)
KIMBALL UPRIGHT PIANOS
Open the top lid and/or front panel. The serial number is stamped into the cast iron plate inside the piano, usually near the tuning pin area, or it is located on a metal badge as shown on the photo.
In some models, visibility may be limited and require a flashlight due to internal framing and plate positioning.
DO NOT USE THESE NUMBERS
Model numbers, especially on consoles and spinets.
Cabinet, parts, or patent numbers.
A partial serial number when a longer stamped or badge number is present.
A number that omits a visible letter prefix.
A plate marking that is not clearly identified as the piano’s serial number.
WHAT A KIMBALL SERIAL NUMBER CAN TELL YOU
A Kimball serial number can usually identify an approximate manufacturing year or production range and help place the piano within a general production era. In some cases, it may also help identify a factory or production series.
It cannot reliably establish the exact production day or month, provide one uninterrupted year-by-year chronology across all Kimball eras, or identify every later production source without considering the instrument’s era and serial format.
KIMBALL PIANO HISTORY
Kimball was a major American piano manufacturer, with its strongest production years spanning the late nineteenth through the mid-twentieth century. Changes in ownership, manufacturing, and production strategy affected both the instruments and the serial-number systems used to identify them.
Early Kimball production was centered in Chicago.
The company expanded manufacturing during its peak production years.
Later corporate restructuring and outsourced production introduced additional serial conventions.
Those shifts created overlapping systems, making Kimball dating more era-specific than a single universal serial chart.
Reviewed by Joe Kemple, Master Piano Technician, Burd and Sons Piano Service · Updated September 2026
Our database covers Kimball piano serial numbers across all major production periods, including early Chicago instruments, mid-century production, and later corporate-era models.
Copyright © 2019 – present, Burd and Sons Piano Service