The goal of this study is to provide accurate information to assist vintage drum collectors to better evaluate the authenticity of Ludwig Standard snare drums by delving deeply into the specifics of when different logos appear on the P-83 model throw-offs and P-32 model butt ends.
Read more40s-50s Slingerland 4x13 BeBop RKs
Two more blasts from the past that I never did articles on. The 4 x 13 Sparkling Gold RK “Be Bop” model was one of my earliest purchases (1995) from Ned Ingberman, The Vintage Drum Center and the WMP 4 x 13 RK Bop model was purchased from a fellow musician in SF about 20 years ago. A special thanks goes to my good friend and fellow collector Mark Cooper for helping me to date these two drums.
Read more1940s Slingerland Gene Krupa Deluxe Radio King Ensemble 1-N
This set I'm featuring this month is the 1940s Slingerland Radio King set I bought from Brian Scoggins. It has a lovely white marine pearl finish. I think marine pearl looks so good on these vintage drum sets. Even if the finish "yellows" I still love the way it looks. To me, these drums are yellowed to perfection. One must consider these drums are over 70 years old. The Beavertail lugs, and all the hardware is nickel plated. The badges are beautiful brass clouds. The drum sizes are 24X14 bass drum, 16X16, and 13X9 toms, and a matching 14X5 snare. There are two cymbal mounts on the bass drum shell. The high tom mounts on the bass drum hoop with a clip-on holder. The bass drum spurs fit into a mount on the bass drum shell. The shells are 3 ply mahogany poplar mahogany with large maple re-rings. I opened the 13 tom to peek inside. The smell inside was just heavenly. The workmanship is second to none.
Read more1936-39 LUDWIG 6.5 x 14 “BUTTERSCOTCH PEARL” (uncatalogued) SUPER-LUDWIG MODEL
This seems to be an uncatalogued finish as it is nowhere to be found -- that I know of -- in any Ludwig literature. I have seen 1 or 2 other Ludwig Butterscotch Pearl snares and I also own a Duplex Spirit of St. Louis in this finish so I personally know that this finish exists. So my best guess is that this is an uncatalogued or special order finish. As always I welcome any other information that may be out there regarding this finish.
Read moreNew book about the History of the Kent Drum Company by Dennis "Mouse" Brown
Kent occupies a small but interesting corner of the vintage drum world. The drums were manufactured from 1946 to 1977 in Buffalo, NY. Bill Kent said, “The inspiration and the purpose of Kent Drums was to give the youth the opportunity to be able to have an affordable drum outfit which was known as a starter set.”
Read moreShould We Bring Back The Internal Tone Control?
“After the rock heyday of the ‘60s, internal tone controls began to fade away and are now rather hard to find. (A lot of the vintage drums I’ve seen have had them removed -- and too often lost. Contending with ring is always an issue for many drummers, so let's examine the field of available 'damping'* options.”
Read moreRichard Katz's Vintage Ludwigs on exhibit at the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix
This past Spring Rich Katz hired me to do an appraisal of his drum set and collection that he donated to the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix. It is currently on display there. I do appraisals of drums/cymbals/percussion instruments for tax and insurance purposes, as well as for determining resale value. I charge between $100 and $500 for appraisals depending on the number of instruments and the amount of documentation and notarizing desired. For insurance and tax appraisals I base values not on current market value or collector value, but on replacement value which tends to run higher. For resale appraisals, I base the value on current market prices. I thank Rich for bearing with me in getting his appraisal finished and for letting me show his instruments in this article. Nice pictures, Rich!
Read moreGretsch is looking for a home for an inventory of vintage 70s' Slingerland Timpani parts and pieces
The Gretsch company, which is headquartered in Pooler, GA, published a Request for Proposal to find a home for an inventory of vintage 70s' Slingerland Timpani parts and pieces
Read moreHomage to Charlie
I never met Charlie or any other of the Rolling Stones but I feel fortunate as I was able to indirectly help put a rare WFL drum Charlie owned back to original shape. Charlie acquired a late 30’s WFL twin snare drum that had off-set lugs and the type of strainers that often broke at the tip. Charlie’s drum had one broken strainer and his tech, Don McAulay was looking to find a replacement strainer
Read moreWood and Weather Drum Shop
Joe's new address is a large two story building housing an enormous array of vintage snares, sets, and cymbals literally stacked up from floor to ceiling... It reminded me of the first time I walked into Charley Donnelly’s Newington, CT Drum Center in the mid - 1970’s -- Only on a much larger scale.
Read moreReproduction of the "Elvis Set' on display at Memphis Drum Shop
Just in time for Elvis Week in the middle of August. From the Jim Pettit collection. Refurbishing by Aaron Mlasko.
Read moreStipelgold drums from different mothers
I got these three snare drums a while back. The 1926 Ludwig & Ludwig drum catalog introduces “Genuine Stipelgold” to the drum market. As collectors we have seen the only “Stipelgold” finish on Ludwig drums but here are three mystery “Stipelgold” snare drums from different mothers (companies).
Read more1970s Ludwig Deluxe Classic Drum Set
My favorite finish on Ludwig drums is Oyster Black Pearl. I think every Ludwig collector loves this finish. When Ringo chose Oyster Black for his Ludwig drums, he made a great choice. They were perfect for the Beatles as they looked so good even on black and white TV. The 1970s version of this finish made a radical change. The pattern became bigger and the color became blacker. I love the seventies version of this finish, but I must admit I like the 60s version more. The Oyster Black finish survives to this day and the newer versions look great.
Read moreVintage Chrome Roto Tom Set: A Dream Realized
Trying to acquire all chrome Roto Tom’s especially the largest of 18 inches proved to be quite challenging. After a couple years of searching, bidding and buying all necessary parts and drums including entire collections to sometimes get just one piece I was finally ready to build the set.
Slingerland Banjo & Drum Co. “Fancher” Model Drum Sticks in Original Box and Sleeve
This pair is unused and quite extraordinary. What you are looking at is a pair of 1920s Slingerland Banjo & Drum Co. Gold Sticks Purple End with original water decal in their original box with inner sleeve. These are the Slingerland “Fancher Model”. They are stamped Slingerland 1-H on one stick only.
Read moreUnderstanding Ludwig’s Use of “Anti-Galvanic” Stamps and Stickers on Chrome Drums 1968 - 1984
Ludwig utilized two different types of stamps and three different stickers to indicate that the anti-galvanic finishing process was used on its chrome-plated shells. By gathering information from chrome-plated drums and exchanging emails with the president of the company which provided plating for Ludwig, a timeline of the different stamps/stickers is developed. These interior stamps/stickers are another useful tool to authenticate and date vintage Ludwig drums.
Read more1960s Ludwig Hollywood Set
This set is a 1960s Ludwig Hollywood set. It has a 22X14 bass drum, a 12x8 and a 9x13 mounted tom. The older Hollywood sets had two 12s and sometimes two 13s. The kit also features a 16x16 floor tom. The drums have Keystone badges with serial numbers that places their born-on date around 1967. I have placed an 8-lug matching Super Classic snare with the set, but I received a very nice chrome 14x5 snare with the kit. I'm sure it was the snare that was bought with the kit. That was the standard snare that went out with so many Ludwig sets.
Read moreWhat in the heck is this?
I read with interest your article on the Buescher True-Tone Snare Drum.I am attaching a couple of photographs of an old snare drum that I thought might interest you. The skins are almost certainly animal skins, and the snare wires are wire wound around silk. The clamps appear to be nickel plated and are free floating, not connected in any way to the main shell.
Read moreClown Vomit/Frog-in-a Blender finishes, past and present
I saw this one at a NAMM Show in the late 1990s, maybe early 2000s. At that time Leedy was trying for some type of comeback. I got the drum from Sam Bacco who at the time was associated with Leedy. He told me that he located one long-lost piece of this material from Slingerland and there was enough material left over to make a Leedy Broadway Standard snare drum. Sam told me that the finish was made with melted guitar picks (you can see some un-melted guitar picks in the finish).
Read moreWhere would this old drum rank on a scale of dumpster to museum?
I purchased an old drum in Nashville in the mid-90s and have never been able to identify its manufacturer or its value.
Read more