I love this stuff! I'll look thru my drums.

Two kits with B/O pointy badges. Here's what I have:

(no paper tags)

20x14 Date stamp: Feb 10 1971 Serial no: 826909

16x16 Date stamp: Feb 11 1971 Serial no: 867413

9x13 Date stamp: Feb 16 1971 Serial no: 796986

18x12 No date stamp or paper tag Serial no: 910912

14x14 No date stamp or paper tag Serial no: 910907

8x12 No date stamp - paper tag date: 21720, Model 942 Serial no: 910907

I know nobody asked but on the interior shell in pencil, the 18x12 says, "A", the 14x14 "D" and the 8x12 "A".

Gary

Thanks for sharing your information. Is the tom with the label SN 911200? You posted about it in a prior thread, but I did not know it had a label.

I don't know much about the pencil markings. That is an avenue I have not yet explored. Do you know what they represent?

Rick

I'll have to check the serial number again and these drums are offsite. I've obviously transposed one of them...sorry. But regardless, it is the same drum and it does have a paper tag with a date and model, no ink stamp date and a serial number on the badge. As for the pencil markings, I'm not sure. The drums are all mahogany thermogloss, so I don't think it's indicating how (or not) to cover them since there are two A's and a D. And I don't recall ever hearing about Ludwig indicating a note to tune to (a la DW). Any other theories would be appreciated. I'll get back to you with the correct serial number.

This topic has been asked a few times... even by myself! The consensus seems to be that the numbers on the paper tag, other than the year, seem to have no practical interpretation. I've got a Super Classic that has stamped shells for the bass and rack tom, but only a paper label in the floor tom, which has the very popular 60717. Based on serial numbers and date stamps of my other drums (late 1970), it's obvious that my floor tom is an early 1971, most likely January, and appears to be when they began using these paper tags.

I disagree. There are a relatively small number of different Date Codes that are repeated. Although it is tempting to pull a year out of the codes, the digits 71 and 72 (or 17 and 27 if things are read backwards) are not always in the same place in the code. I think to say that there is a year in the Date Code while ignoring the other digits is inconsistent. Why do some digits have meaning while the others do not?

I am still working on decifering this little puzzle. I have some thoughts, but really want to gather some more information to shore them up. I will update this thread or post a new one when I have something. If someone can see a pattern in the data I provided, please post.

Rick

Here is a no serial number badge, no date stamp, with label.

Hey KC,

I went back and looked at the serial number again on my Jazzette tom and here's the correct info:

8x12 No date stamp - paper tag date: 21720, Model 942 Serial no: 911200

Sorry for the earlier mix-up. Hope that helps.

Gary

Gary,

Thanks for double checking. That is consistent with your earlier post and what I had recorded in my database.

This is a (soft of) annual bump to see if anyone has any ideas about the meaning of what I have termed the "Date Code" that Ludwig used on some of its paper labels in the 1971-1972 time frame. It was a four or five digit number which appeared in the section of the paper label for date.

I have been gathering information for a few years now, but no answer has jumped out of the data. I have 166 examples of Date Codes on main line Ludwig drums. I have another 37 on Ludwig Standards. See the complete list at the link to my website (starts about half way down the Ludwig page).

http://gretschdrumdatingguide.com/ludwig-guide.html

Thanks. Rick