? The best woy to gauge value is, and has been, to go to ebay, look through the completed sales, for the exact, or very close, set, and look at SOLD items, not wishful thinkers. That is how you will get a good range. And if they are 100% mahog, they already have the dubious stigma of MIJ crap, although we know TAMA is good gear. It is just public perception, n ot mine. So, it makes no matter what we think, it is in the numbers on ebay. Do a search of closed items and look for SOLD.

Those are outstanding drums. Period. Unbelievably cool sounds for rock. My favorite color offered. GC has a smaller set (single bass) marked at about 1500. Is this a classic Tom sized setup or the power sized Tom setup? That would make a difference in value.

To clarify, and thanks McNic...he is correct. These are superb instruments, my comment is not one of disdain, from a personal position, just a "public perception" issue of most Japanese made drums from the 60s-80s, that they are inferior. TAMA has ALWAYS made decent gear, as well as Yamaha. Both are top notch, with Yamaha taking the slight edge in real time quality, but overwhelmingly higher resale potential. Pearl...eh...they are the Chrysler of Japanese drums, IMHO. They build good gear, but far too much and the resale reflects it. How many Forum and Import kits can you possibly stuff into the music stores' inventory??? And you better wait to buy your Pearls until the end of the lifecycle on that particular run of model numbers so you don't get hosed too badly.....But who am I kidding, buying a Pearl is like buying a Kia, you know you lost half the price as soon as the credit card machine spits out the reciept.

No sweat. These are 100% birch and sing like crazy. Top of the line pro. Nice 80s kit and one of the more "wanted" kits out there, thanks to the Peart connection.

Actually, "public perception" of Tama drums from the 80's is of top quality thanks to Peart, Copeland and Phillips. The Superstars from the 80's are sought after, 6 ply, 9mm birch shells. Heavy but still sound great and some of the best finishes of the time. Theres good demand for them. The selling value has dropped a little over the last year. Usually you will see these parted out for the most money and ease of shipping but in absolutely mint condition drums values are around:

bass drums 22-24" $150-200 ( hard to ship. 20 and 18 inch bass drums are much more in value)

common sized double headed toms (12-13-14) $100-150 (standard size drums are on the higher end of the scale) Concert toms are about half those prices. The 15 inch double headed tom is a little more as its a little more uncommon, maybe $150-175.

18 floor tom $175-200

20 inch floor tom is $300+ (hard to find)

The snare could be $250-350 depending on which model and features. There were several Super Mahogany snare set ups. Some with rollers some without.

If they have many scratches expect less money. Missing original snare or muffler will reduce the price.

The smaller double headed toms are desirable. The 10 inch can go for $200, the 8 inch $250+ in either 8 inch or 9 inch depths. The concert tom 6 could be around $175+, 8 maybe $130.

These are what they were selling for in the last year as I have been buying and selling a bunch to get all the sizes I wanted to finish my set. Prices can and will change according to what people will pay for, economic concerns, whos looking on any day, how often you sell on ebay, buyer confidence in the seller, your quality of pictures and descriptions, etc.........

If you live close and don't feel like shipping I might be interested in the set if its in good shape.

Thanks for all the info. The shells are in fair to excellent condition. some of the chrome is pitted the moisture - they still shine up nice though. The bass drums have a couple of blemishes. This was my road set and have seen a lot of miles, but were always cased and well cared for.

I also have stands and Zildjian cymbals (that look almost new)

Shure SM57 mics, 2 Sony condenser mics and 2 Senheiser MD 421s.

I'm on the Oregon Coast, so not much chance anyone being close enough to take a peek at them. (ROAD TRIP!)

-Ellis

Oregon? Thats about as far from Long Island as it gets in the USA. Try to post pics. Its always fun to see more drums.

So, no road trip? Car Driving2

Here are some pics. I'll probably put it on Craig's List. I,m also putting them in a small music shop in a nearby town - on consignment.

In the first pic you can see some custom Tama timbales I had made.

-Ellis

[COLOR="DarkRed"]Oh, Lordy...I spent (too) many years growing up on LonGislandHurting...

Those are really SWEET Tamas, dude.

I was about to correct McJ on the shells, as I have worked on many an old Mahogany Superstar as well...but indeed, from the interiors it's definite: they are Birch stained dark. Old Superstars, whether Mahog or Birch.....awesome drums ! Those are pretty sought-after.

Are you really sure you wanna sell 'em ???

ed427 is right on the value of single toms...old Superstar orphans ~ they fetch real good money on eFlay....Just a standard complete 5-pc kit (12/13/16/22/snare) could fetch $2000 easily. That snare alone could get over $325......That 18" FT easily $300+. Are the racks 10-12-13-14 ???? What's up with the smallest rack tom...it appears to have double-loaded lugs, yes ???

Honestly, C'list ain't gonna get you what those drums de$erve....when it comes to selling high-end instruments - it's the domain of idiots.

Put 'em on eFlay or maybe is there a Tama players forum ??(yeah, shippin' will be a b#tch, but they really need a wider audience).....[/COLOR]