Hey, fellow Kent lover!!

I'm not sure, as I've never had a Kent cymbal, but I would think that some would be sweet, and some would be awful.

Checked your web pages, Love the modded Kent "piccolo!!"

I'm a Kent fan and I've modded a few Kent's in my day also. Here's a Kent 13x5 that I made into the one of a kind Kent "Beatdown".

[IMG]http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=4098&d=1227489686[/IMG]

And the chrome 'o steel is now a "Super 18"!! Finally, it's TUNEABLE without bending the rims!!!

[IMG]http://www.drumforum.org/download/file.php?id=33076&mode=view[/IMG]

Notice I even scalloped the rim so the claws are even with it for ease of playing!

I know, I know, I should CLEAN and POLISH them, but I just wanted to see of the projects would WORK, and they were so successful that I just kept PLAYING them AS IS!!

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Most respect the badge, but all fear the drum.

Hey there!! Another Kent fan in the house. Cool snares, especially the "Beatdown" - Love the name.

My piccolo was an experiment to start with. Figured the shell was firewood unless I could get rid of the cracked area. A couple minutes with a tablesaw and a router and I had a 4.25" shell with 45 degree bearing edges. I could have done the rounded edge but I wanted to see the difference in sound. I ended up swapping out the throw later as the one on there was just too big.

Anyhow... The drum sounds very similar to my champagne sparkle Kent, even with the 45 degree edges and stubby shell.

Long live Kent Drums - Can't wait to finish the current set. Will post pics ASAP.

Hey, Big Daddy...

Those old Kent (Kenmore, NY) cymbals were made by Meinl in West Germany back in the '60s.

They're like those cheap old brass Cambers from back in the day. Might have some sentimental value to a Kent collector, but I'd imagine that's about all they're worth.

Sounds like you have some experience with these. Cool. I'm familiar with the old Camber cymbals - They make great wall clocks - LOL!!!

Meinl, eh? Okay. I guess that answers my question. I was hoping to hear something more like "Yeah, they are great. Similar to the old Paiste cymbals that Ludwig used to sell."

Oh well... The search continues.

p.s. I finished the red sparkle kit last week. I just need to get some decent pics of it and then I'll post. Sounding great!!!

Yeah, Kent sets were all around back in the '60s here. I live only a few hours from the Buffalo area.

My buddy had a gold sparkle Kent set, 12, 14, 20 - but he had some fairly decent used A. Zildjian hats and crash. The ride was thin 22" cheap no-name that I remember as seeming like it was stamped out of sheet metal, tonal grooves and all - but it really had a pretty nice tone and wash to it...

I've seen lots of those old Kent cymbals, though. All garbage, just like those Meinl Cambers and the Japanese stencil brands.

Used to find lots of old UFIPs around. There were some really nice ones, but a lot of dogs, too.

I'm new here, Big Daddy, so you'll have to fill me in a little on your red sparkle set.

Dig it !

Well since we're having a Kent Love-Fest, why not.

I'll try and keep it short :) About 6 - 8 months back I won a 3 piece red sparkle Kent kit on eBay (kick, rack tom and snare). They were in good condition, needing mostly a good cleaning and some bearing edge work, but nothing major. All the parts were there with a few bonus parts to boot.

The seller had them listed as a 22", 13" and 14" kit, but I was pleasantly surprised when I unpacked them as saw a 20" 12" and 14" instead. Been looking for a kit with smaller kick and rack tom for a while. Fast forward to a month ago when I won a 13" X 14" floor tom in red sparkle in decent shape. That kick-started the resto project and I finished it up after about 2 weeks (evenings mostly).

The colors match well even though the snare, and rack tom are white/gold badge, while the kick and floor are blue/gold badge. The snare has some sun fading on one side, but it's not terrible.

I'm very happy with the look and sound of the kit and I'm SO digging the 20" kick. I find they have more punch than a 22", which cuts better in a live situation. Pics will be posted soon!!

Nice hunting and piecing, Big daddy !

Ya got lucky with that floor tom - and with the 20" bass. I've been using 20" bass drums the past twelve years or so, myself.

With amplified bands, I find the 20" not quite as punchy and deep as a 22", but it's a more centered kick. Besides, all mic'd up, it wouldn't matter if I had a 16" kick or a 26"

I remember the dismay when it was discovered that the later Kent sets were made in Japan. That's when some of my buddies learned to treasure their earlier Kents.

I never had one, myself. But there were lots of 'em around - seems every kid on the block had a garage band back in the '60s. Most of the sets were Kent, early Pearl, or Zim Gar (another Japanese brand). Some of the lesser kids had those Montgomery-Ward or Sears catalog sets that were just terrible ! Couldn't tune 'em to save your life, but those kids didn't care, as long as they could bang away to their hearts' content...

My first set was a red sparkle Ludwig Classic in 20" 12" 14" with a COB Supraphonic 400 5x14 snare. Worked my ass off mowing lawns, raking leaves, shovelling driveways, and delivering daily newspapers, saving every penny I could. I was fortunate to have a friend whose brother worked at a local music store. He got me a pretty nice discount on my set.

The heartbreak happened when I realized that it not only did not come with any cymbals, but that good cymbals would cost me as much as I paid for the drum set !

Another year of mowing, raking, shovelling, and delivering papers, and I still hadn't scraped up enough for hi-hats, a ride, and a crash. But then I was told about "used" cymbals... My grandfather told me I could buy some of them if I was so impatient, but that I would be "compromising."

That was a pretty big word to a ten-year-old. All I knew was that I wanted some damned cymbals. I was borrowing a few English Zyns from a friend, and I didn't like them. But I took my grandfather's advice and kept saving.

When the time came, I went home with brand new Avedis Zildjian 14" hi-hats, 22" medium ride, and an 18" thin crash. The next season, I added a matching 16" floor tom and a Zildjian 16" crash, and I was one proud, happy kid in the neighborhood.

All my buddies who had Kent sets were pretty jealous, especially after they sat behind my Luddys... But, oddly enough, I was about the only one of us who stayed with drums. Those guys all got married and gave up playing completely. And a few of them were damned good players back in the day !

There was one kid who had some kind of set that was made of plastic. Metal hoops and fittings, except the rootbeer sparkle shells were plastic. I have no idea what brand it was, but I think we all called it "Marty's Hasbro set." And he had all Camber cymbals. (Pretty good player, though.)

Man, I'd love to know what brand they were, though.

I'll be looking forward to seeing some shots of your Kent set, Big Daddy. I hope you're gonna use coated white ambassadors on 'er... And vintage stands - just like they were back in the day...

Dig it !

That's great stuff - I only knew one or two drummers back when I was getting into it. One in particular had an incredible Gretsch set with the 18" kick. I lusted after that one, even if it had a few years on it and wasn't in "perfect". condition. It sounded awesome.

As for the heads and stands... way ahead of you there. Coated White Ambassadors top and bottom, and vintage stands as well except for the hihat. Don't own a true vintage hihat stand, but I DO have an older (80's ?) CB-700 stand that I love, and it's pretty thin/spidery looking. Been using my VERY modern Iron Cobra kick pedal, but I have a decent old Slingy I could use.