How to find the age of your Craftsman walk-behind lawn mower

Where to find the model and serial number on your mower

Start by locating the model and serial number label on your Craftsman walk-behind lawn mower. On most models, both numbers appear together on the same tag.

Common locations include:

• On the mower deck

• On the rear of the deck housing

• On the frame near the engine mounting area

The model number usually starts with three digits, followed by a decimal point and then five to eight more digits. Those first three digits matter most; they determine which serial number format you’ll use to find the production date.

If your model number starts with 917

Craftsman lawn and garden products with model numbers starting with 917 don’t all use the same serial number format. The production date is encoded in different ways depending on when the unit was built, so the first thing to do is look at how the serial number begins.

Match your serial number to one of the formats below.

How the serial number shows the build date

Serial format: year and week

If the serial number starts with four digits, it may follow this pattern:

YYWWxxxxx

• First two digits = year

• Next two digits = week of manufacture

Example:

0423xxxxx = week 23 of 2004

Serial format: calendar date

Some products use a serial number that starts with **six digits that look like a date**:

MMDDYYxxxxx

• First two digits = month

• Next two digits = day

• Next two digits = year

Example:

061508xxxxx = June 15, 2008

Serial format: extended date format

Other products use a longer serial number format:

YYYYWWDxxxx

• First four digits = year

• Next two digits = week

• Next digit = day of the week

If the serial number doesn’t match these formats

If the serial number doesn’t clearly fit one of these patterns, the engine manufacture date is often the most reliable way to estimate the production timeframe. In most cases, the engine is built shortly before the rest of the machine is assembled.

For model numbers beginning with 247

Craftsman lawn and garden products with model numbers starting with 247 typically use an 11-character serial number that can include both letters and numbers. The production date is encoded near the beginning of the serial number.

Start by looking at the first five characters of the serial number.

Serial number format used on these models

Many serial numbers follow this pattern:

PMDDYxxxxx

• First character = product type

• Second character = month (letter)

• Third and fourth characters = day of the month

• Fifth character = year

The month is shown as a letter:

Example

Serial number:

1F030B20530

F = June

03 = 3rd day of the month

0 = year ending in 0

This serial number indicates June 3, in a year ending in 0. Depending on the product, that could be 2000 or 2010. Use the machine’s design, features, and labeling to determine which year fits.

Newer serial numbers (2021 and later)

Beginning in 2021, some products switched from a numeric year character to a **letter-based year code**.

In these cases:

• M = 2021

• N = 2022

• P = 2023

• Q = 2024

• R = 2025

If the year character is a letter instead of a number, the serial number was produced 2021 or later, and the year is no longer ambiguous.

If the date still isn’t clear

If the serial number doesn’t match this pattern, or the year could fall in more than one decade, use the engine manufacture date as a cross-check. The engine date should come shortly before the equipment was assembled.

If the model number begins with 536

Craftsman lawn and garden products with model numbers starting with 536 often use a serial number format that encodes the production date in the first four digits of the serial number. While this format isn’t documented consistently across all products and years, it appears on many machines.

What the serial number tells you

If the serial number begins with four digits, it may follow this pattern:

YDDDxxxx

• First digit = year (last digit of the year)

• Next three digits = day of the year

Example:

5123xxxx = 123rd day of a year ending in “5”

In this example, the year could be 1985, 1995, or 2005. Use the product’s styling, features, and labeling to determine which year makes sense.

Why the engine date matters here

Because this format only shows the last digit of the year, choosing the correct decade requires judgment. If the decoded date doesn’t align with the machine’s design or features, double-check using the engine manufacture date.

Most engines include a code that shows the exact manufacture date in a year–month–day format. Since the engine is installed before final assembly, the mower itself is usually built shortly after that date.

Make sure the age makes sense

After decoding the production date, it’s smart to confirm it lines up with what you see on the mower.

Helpful cross-checks include:

• Whether the date fits the mower’s design and features

• Whether the engine manufacture date comes before the estimated equipment date (less reliable if the engine was replaced

• Whether labels, controls, and safety markings match that era

If something doesn’t add up, revisit the serial number format before settling on a final answer.