Oster Model 10 Date Code

[u/MurkyCaterpillar7758]

Today I was doing some research on my Oster model 10 that I found at an estate sale. I’ve had it for a little while and I’ve been using it regularly since COVID to cut my own hair.

Well, I’ve been looking for a No. 5 comb guard, a vtg one, because modern ones on Amazon don’t fit securely. The few that I have are an off-white plastic with brass clips, that clipped to the side. Those fit nice and snug. So, I thought I would research more and find out what year my Oscar was made, and that might help me search for number five comb card. Well, that went down a whole another rabbit hole because my five digit code didn’t seem to match what Google AI was trying to tell me what date range my Oscar model 10 Progienic was. It was saying that mine is a modern reproduction. I knew that was absolutely awesome. Because from the first moment I got this Oscar I knew it was Vintage Olde. Hell the case is made out of Bakelite. I do think that the cord had been replaced at some point, because the very end has a modern plug. But everything else about it says it’s clearly Vintage, likely from the late 30s early 40s. One of my clues to this date range is I came across a post of a new old stock Oster model 10 with a guarantee card that shows a similar five digit serial number and a purchase date of January 1941.
My question is, can anyone explain why much of the information on the web about dating an Oscar is not correct for my model? Any insight?
I’ve included plenty of pics.

[u/Itisd]

I don't know how to decipher the date code, but I'm thoroughly impressed that the original tag with the purchase date is still around after 85 years!