Vic first off Welcome to the forum, Did you buy this used? the reason I ask is without the original parts on the kit this greatly diminishes the value of your kit, if you have the parts I would most certainly reinstall them or find them or a price adjustment will have to take place especially since it is only three drums! very nice to see a Radio king kit for sale though!

Thanks for the welcome and the advice. Glad to know this community is here. I’m not a collector and I don’t profess Radio King omniscience, so all feedback is welcome.

I did buy the kit used about 15 years ago. I have been told the parts are original with the exception of the kick drum legs. Do you see other parts that are not original? Please let me know if so. The only other extra parts that came with the drums are extra rims for the two toms and the snare, which I will happily throw in with the package. There should be 4 drums in the pics, including the snare.

Vic, most certainly, glad to have you and to assist, And yeah I see the four drums now, the bass drum is missing both it's cymbal mounts and it's rail mount. Vic the color that this Rk kit has turned to is desirable now, is there and rust on the metal parts at all and are there any splits or Issues with the bass drum hoops or rims? the snare drum is a sweetie!! here's a link with a bass drum with one cymbal mounted on it and the rail mount. http://www.vintagedrumguide.com/images/slingerland_drum_sets/1967-slingerland-catalog1.jpg

I love the "mellow yellow" fade on that outfit..... very pretty !!!

There would be two cymbal mounts and a rail mount where the carriage bolts have been installed on the bass drum.

Here's one of my 50s RK bass drums.... still in need of some resto.

Yours looks to be a late '55 or '56 with the brass Chicago badge and the then new Sound King lugs which came out in '55.

Mine is somewhere between '56 and '59.

Hope this helps.

I love '50s Slingerland kits in White Marine Pearl, but I'll admit I'm biased.

Here are some pics of my own 1955-56 kit, as I received 'em and set up to play.

Thanks, all.

I’ll have to look to make sure (not at home right now) but the reinforcement rings in the snare have small splits in them. The hoops are a little scarred but its nothing a little TLC couldn’t fix. There is some pitting on lugs and floor tom legs but not much rust. I’ve attached a couple more pictures to give you an idea of that.

The kit looks very much like the pics you all have shared. The old ad comes close except my snare has the clamshell throw off. The old cymbal mounts and rail mount are gone. Didn’t come with the kit when I bought it. Changing heads on the snare is a bit of a tight fit and therefore more of a struggle than with newer drums. I don’t think it is out of round or anything like that though.

Any guesses as to what it’s worth?

Before 1957 or so, when plastic heads were introduced, drum sizes were literal. A 14" shell was exactly 14" inches across. Shells made since then are undersized by about an eighth of an inch. Plastic heads built to fit modern shell sizes tend to be tight on old drums like ours, if you can get 'em on at all.

Aquarian makes their American Vintage heads a little bit oversized, specifically to fit older drums like ours. They fit perfectly on the kit I mentioned above and I like the sound of 'em. I've got mediums on top and thins on the resonant side of the toms.

The American Vintage heads were my first experience with Aquarian and they definitely made a positive first impression.

The rims on the drums are not original, but perhaps the extras you have would be.

They should be chrome over brass Sticksavers, with the top flange curved inwards instead of outwards as the ones on the drums are.

Since you asked for feedback.... I feel the $1700 plus shipping price is very high considering the issues with the outfit.

If the extra rims are indeed the originals, it would help the value by about $200.

The extra holes in the bass drum for the leg mounts will always be there... repaired or not.

The missing rail and cymbal mounts and arms would be $150 or so to replace....... it's starting to add up now.

An outfit like this, complete with no issues, I would venture $1200 to $1300.

I would place the value at around $800 as it is shown in the pictures, with the known issues and the costs to address them.

I don't mean to offend here, and this is just one fella's opinion, I am sure there will be others.

Kev

As more of a player than a collector, I would love to have those drums in my stable. Too many drums already though.