One of the many Japanese offerings from the 60-70,s.Is the shell a light or dark color?..Looks like a great set,dont be surprised by the great sound you get from them.

thanx wayne!

I don´t know about the shellcolour since I don´t have them yet. whats the difference between light and dark? you know what company made them?

regards j

Reddish brown will likely be mahogany,light shades could be maple or birch but in your case im thinking mahogany..Either Pearl or Tama made them but its very hard to track.Someone who knows will show up here sooner or later....what did you pay for the kit?

great. do I prefer mahogany? I payed 700 dollars för everything you see in the pictures.

and I just found another kit Im gonna buy... these (wesper) are 350 dollars?! what do you say?

I live in sweden so maybe the price is a bit lower? higher?

j.

Hej J,

Aria (I've also seen them as Arai) are one of many types of so-called stencil kits done by the Japanese, usually in luen, which is not a really high quality wood, in the late 60s and early 70s. I had a kit with precisely the same finish marketed under the name Riviera (and there are dozens more names on precisely the same drums). Starter kit and not much more. I'd put money on them being done by Tama rather than Pearl.

If they went for close to 5000 SEK (that's what I've figured anyway), then I think they're a bit expensive for what they are (imagine a Japanese copy guitar from the late 60s or early 70s and it's a similar quality) and the difference between the first kit and the second kit (apart from the first one having an extra floor tom and a cooler finish) are about the same. The second kit is probably the same sort of sonic universe but for much less money.

Japanese kits of exactly that period don't shape up as well in terms of basics like tuning and re-sale value compared to Japanese kits of even a few years later or the non-Japanese kits of the time. They do however have some seriously cool wraps.....

If you could (or could have, if you've already bought) find an old Sonor (given you're in Sweden) or similar or a later period Japanese kit, I think you'd have a more dependable kit with a better potential re-sale value as well.

There was a quantum leap in the quality of Japanese drums from around 1973 and within a few short years they dominated everything.

But drum prices in Sweden are high......I know, I used to live there.

mvh

David

thanx so much!

actually my friend told me the other day I could borrow his -60 sonor kit.

check!

Those kits are becoming very popular now in North America,and im certain that kits in great condition will get good money.

Dont consider early Japanese Yamaha kits along the same line.They were birch shells and professionally made,although hard to find these days.

what did you pay for the kit?

Interesting detail is that the bass drum appears to have real Gretsch rods and claws. Also interesting to find a kit with a twin 14x14 tom arrangement. Very cool cooler too.