50g - Differences in production batches

[3298]

The serial number format is slightly different, too: still starting with three letters (presumably factory code; I've only seen CNA, but allegedly CHN also exists), one digit (last digit of the year), two digits (week number), but after that the formats diverge. The old one ends with a 5-digit plain number indicating which unit in that week it is; the new one uses 4 symbols (letters and digits) encoding that information in an unknown format (this procedure obfuscates production volume).

With those serial numbers I can deduct that your old one was made in week 15, 2007, the new "spare" one is from week 28, 2016. Having just the last digit of the year makes for some ambiguity between very early and very late serial numbers because the 50g was produced for slightly more than 10 years, but this serial number format change eliminates that.

By the way, my unit (CNA038... = week 38, 2010) still has the full "old" look: leather pouch, thin letters, 5-digit batch ID in the serial number, certifications, etc. I'm speculating that these changes all happened at approximately the same time, but nobody knows for sure (except perhaps people who were involved in making the changes).