What if one had bought the kit in pristine condition, or owned it since it's birth and never took it out of ones house? When I say thank you in response to, what a beautiful kit, it's not because I had anything to do with it, I'm thanking them for acknowledging I have good taste.
Out of the 70+ kits I've owned I can think of maybe 5 or so that are in your description. The others I had to work on so??
Can we have some?
When someone says, my, you have a beautiful drum, we respond with, thank you. As if we personally made the drum or had something to do with it being a beautiful instrument, when in fact, we had nothing whatsoever to do with it's beauty. We should actually just say....yes it is.
Actually, I did personally make my drums, so I did have something to do with its beauty.........just sayin". :cool:
So many excellent responses here! For me, the majority of my vintage kits needed to be cleaned and/or detailed to look the way they do. When I get a compliment on the kit/drum, I take it as a reflection of the work I've done to bring these vintage beauties back to their former glory...and try to keep them that way for future owners!
-Mark
Just to add some drums and kits need a re wrap, paint or veneer of some kind. Holes filled, plys and re rings repaired and glued. Some also require the painful task of finding impossible to find parts. Or some make them from scratch. Many of these tasks show the skills and craftsmanship of our community. Sure it might not be like building the original drum. But pretty darn close in some cases. The clean and detail only kits do require a bit of work too. The levels some take to clean and restore them is nothing short of amazing.
When someone says, my, you have a beautiful drum, we respond with, thank you. As if we personally made the drum or had something to do with it being a beautiful instrument, when in fact, we had nothing whatsoever to do with it's beauty. We should actually just say....yes it is.
I take your point, but when someone offers a compliment, I think it's polite to thank them. I then offer some commentary that Slingerlands are no longer made and I appreciate that notice has been taken about the current appearance of 40-year-old drums, for which I am responsible, not only for having them refurbished by a pro but by maintaining them ... there are doubtless many old kits that aren't maintained to that level and show it.
I've started playing with some new people and two of those gentlemen have not only commented positively on the appearance but the sound. I am certainly not responsible for the build, but I selected the heads and tuned them, so I'm definitely appreciative when a guitar player takes notice.
Al
