07 April 2022

Decoding Quality Control Letters

Filofax have been hiding a Quality Control code on their organisers for some years. I think I spotted them several years ago. 

The Head of Design at Filofax UK confirmed that they were used to show the date and location of manufacture and then said 'You will not be able to work it out'.... right I thought.... "Challenge Accepted" !!

Where are these hidden codes? Generally you will find them on the inside of the clasp, close to the cover of the organiser. On zip closure organisers I have found them hidden inside one of the pockets. 


The example above is very easy to read, but on some it is difficult to read because the age of the organiser or the pattern of the grain of the leather. I have sometimes had to check mine with a magnifying glass, given my poor near sight!

Occasionally, you will come across an organiser that doesn't have the code stamped on it anywhere this could mean: 

  • The organiser is a pre-production sample
  • A review sample
  • A prototype
  • Or just simply the code got missed off, it doesn't mean it is a fake!
The code is made up of three capital letters signifying the year month and location of manufacture. The latter is very difficult to decode, but the year and month do still provide us with useful information to be able to estimate how old a particular organiser is. 

By examining lots of codes, a group of us on Facebook are fairly certain that the code started being used in 1991 and it looks something like this: 

A1991AJanuary
B1992BFebruary
C1993CMarch
D1994DApril
E1995EMay
F1996FJune
G1997GJuly
H1998HAugust
I1999ISeptember
J2000JOctober
K2001KNovember
L2002LDecember
M2003
N2004
O2005
P2006
Q2007
R2008
S2009
T2010
U2011
V2012
W2013
X2014
Y2015
Z2016

Looking through some of my own collection:

A4ClassicJIV
DeskfaxRichmondIAL
A5BelmontJLP
A5ChameleonVAW
A5HolbornVCX
A5MaldenSCW
A5MaldenSAW
PersonalBelmontJDP
PersonalEtonJIT
PersonalHolbornVIW
PersonalKensingtonMHL
PersonalMaldenSEW
PersonalMaldenSIV
CompactHolbornVCX
SlimlineThe Journey Travel CompanionKLX
PocketChameleonVBV
PocketEtonJDS
PocketHolbornVFW
PocketMaldenSFW
PocketSandhurstNEK
MiniMaldenSBW
M2BelgraviaIGM

Looking through these for confirmation. The Malden with the code SIV I bought in March 2011, with the Crimson Malden being introduced in 2010, a manufacture date of 2009, this seems about right. 


As you can see I bought it at a very good price! End of the run for that particular colour. 

One oddity in the lettering though is the Journey Travel Companion with the code KLX that came out in mid-2013 and my review was published in July 2013 None of the letters in that code are close to 2013 except X which is 2014, after the release date! 

The codes are used by the Filofax Quality Control department in Dalkeith, they check a random sample of incoming products against their specification and they note the code on their results sheet. 

What happened after 2016? I'm not sure I've not bought any Filofax organisers recently that have a code stamped in them. I have checked them all. It is possible they have adapted the code by reversing it or similar. 

Have you bought a new Filofax after 2016 that has the QC codes clearly shown on it. What are the codes and what is the model and the year you bought it. We might be able to crack the code again! 



16 comments:

  1. I bought my Filofax Pocket Identity in March this year; the QC letting reads DGA.

    Following reasonably logically forward from the year chart, this strongly suggests that the 'D' = 2020 for the year of manufacture, with the second letter 'G' = July. I have no idea what letter #3 is, which is an 'A' It's likely safe to say that my Pocket Identity was made in July 2020, and sat on a supply shelf until I ordered it close to two years later :)

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  2. My findings don't match Roger's. My Lockwood Personal bought 2020 is FJO and the Lockwood A5 also from 2020 is FDD. I have a Heritage A5 from 2018 but I can't find any code stamped on it - if anybody knows where that would be, I'd be interested to hear ...

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    1. Likewise I have both the A5 and the Personal Heritage no clasp, and smooth leather on the inside no code stamped anywhere so they must have done it some other way.

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    2. I think they only use codes for non UK manufacturing

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  3. Correction: both Lockwoods were bought in 2019 (the inserts were for 2020) ...

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  4. Intriguing. All my Maldens begin with L, which I’m presuming is the manufacturer location code? The middle letter doesn’t have anything above J, so very likely the month code, and the last codes run from Z to D. I bought them all second hand, so I don’t know when they were originally bought, but as the earliest one is a purple Malden Z, it can’t be older than 2012. I was working with Z being 2014, but 2016 works too.

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    Replies
    1. My Malden mini also starts with L! I got mine in 2021, it is LJF.

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  5. Thanks for the comprehensive write up Steve.
    I have an old calf leather slimline binder stamped “Made in England” and also marked with “BAE”, which I now understand to represent 1992, January, and presumably England.

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  6. The coding scheme as outlined does raise a few anomalies for me however:
    - A pocket Topaz with a code VBO that seems about 8 years too late
    - A Finchley with a code EBS that seems about 11 years too early

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  7. My Pocket Sandhurst do have the NEK code.

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  8. My Filofax Pop A5 organizer from 2022 has a code: IJE
    Holborn personal form 2019: FDC
    The Original personal from 2019 doesn't have a code

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  9. My Lavender Personal Norfolk from 2022 is RDH

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  10. Just bought a second user Malden personal in grape. It has LHA. It shows very light use.

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  11. My Hamilton Personal is embossed with EEK, so it should have been made in 1995, however, the Hamilton range wasn't introduced until 1999. Curious stuff.

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  12. Winchester BHD: Just bought an impeccable :-))) preloved 4CLF 5/4 made in England / gold imprint, embossed BHD on the clasp. As far as I know they were produced 1984-1994. (It came with inserts from 1985, 1992, 1993 and 2000, but of course that doesn´t mean much.)

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  13. Just bought a purple A5 Holborn which has LAE. My personal black Holborn is FGG.

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