I `m not familiar with the "DX" label- did they have another name as well? Like "wood-fiberglass" or that crazy "Zennithal Resonator" ect............ I myself am hunting for a Pearl "Giant Step Artist" Maple Fiberglass

Love the DX/DLX line. $175 is a great, great deal.

It might be tough to find the 18" hoops. Hell, it might be tough to find the 16" hoops. But, I'm sure there are equivalents - generic S hoops, or whatever.

You're right about the plies, but real Mahogany is on the inside while the (cheap mahogany) Luan is in the middle.

Birch can be stained. See my pic of a couple of DX drums below.

I don't know what to tell you about the holes. But, I would recommend staining them if the outer plies are nice.

[IMG]http://lh3.ggpht.com/_BW0fGOsjl70/SxQNmJTGH5I/AAAAAAAAFGs/7dH9UGanlLY/s640/IMG_4266.JPG[/IMG]

Are you saying that you took the wrap off that bass drum, stained it and thats what you see there in your photo? If so, then that is a lovely job and a very nice drum. Thanks for the heads up- I`ll find out more about DX and DLX. The Japanese catalogs I have for 80s Pearl use different English names than the American ones for the outfits- I don`t know why.

Leray1:

I second that. If you did those yourself you must (please) tell me exactly how you did it. Those drums look awesome and I would love my kit to look like that.

I know the DX and DLX were the same drums except the DX's were wrapped and the DLX's were laquered.

I only know them by DX and DLX. They are wooden drums from the early 80's.

1983?? I think is when they first came out. They went away in the late 80's came back in the late 90's but were different and it is said, not nearly as nice.

thanks guys. The tom is actually a DLX. It was finished in black lacquer. The bass drum was actually a WLX (same shell construction w/ cheaper hardware). It was finished in white lacquer. I used paint stripper, then sanded the hell out of them - 180, 220, 400, grits. I then applied the stain (minwax puritan pine). I then applied three coats of polyurethane using 0000 steel wool in between coats. The hoops on the bass drum are maple. I ordered them separately because I didn't want to have to sand the originals. The lugs on the bass are DLX lugs that I won on da' bay.

I'm currently working on a Pearl Maple kit (USA, Keller shells), 22/12/13, that was wrapped in a gray metallic wrap. I'm almost done with those. I'm on the hunt for a 16" FT to add.

Thanks again for the compliments.

That is a very nice conversion. Those are sweet looking. I guess it is all about our mood at the moment we make our decisions on the colors. I did my hoops in a medium pine, added to the lacquer as a timesaving measure. I think it will age out very nicely. My hoops will be replaced in a few months because the veneer I used had some very strong grain and I could not have foreseen the splitting it was to cause. They are good for the time being, and will get replaced later.