People here are calling a re-wrap a modification. I disagree. A re-wrap is a restoration, not a modification. Most drums that get re-wrapped are in sad shape to begin with and re-wrapping them gives them another chance of being used regularly. Can a re-wrap be considered a modification if the original color is changed? Mmmmm......technically I suppose so, but I still call it restoration. Chances are it was an "orphan" drum in the first place, so if it now matches a different kit, its getting used again and no longer an "orphan".......hence "restoration". Call it a resto-mod (like the car guys do) if you like.

Based on what I've seen, hardly any are unmodified is some way, even if it is because the wrong rods or washers are on the drums. So many folks peeled off the hoops on the front of bass drums and bottom of tom-toms in the 60's. Ask Bobby Chiasson how often he sees a Rogers drum come in that is completely correct and unmodified. I'd guess less than 30 percent.

No idea what the percentage of un-modified vintage drums might be but it will probably slowly increase in time as the total supply of vintage drums decreases. The unmodified ones will be the ones that collectors save and preserve while the ones that don't make the grade slowly disappear. If modified drums aren't as desirable then they end up being harder to sell, so the price has to be lowered, the lower the price the more likely they are to fall into the hands of someone with less interest in preserving the drums...more likely to modify, or maybe part out, these drums. After all they only cost $X so why bother trying to preserve them in their original state. The more they are modified the less they are worth and they begin to descend down a slippery slope of poor stewardship (or parts strippers) towards a final trip to the landfill.

This should increase the value of the nicer sets...at least until the generation that covets these vintage American sets ages out and a new generation of collectors is actively seeking unmolested Japanese brands...or maybe loses interest in acoustic drums altogether and only seek out well preserved electronic drums.