Hello, request your help to ID this Ludwig snare I'm considering buying. I'm a relatively new drummer, looking to pick up an affordable good snare, have been shopping for acrolite and found this one.

The pics are poor (looking at the black one on top of the DW), I'm trying to go see it today.

Best I can tell based on scouring threads, forums, and the rest of the internet...looks like a 5x14, with keystone badge, 8 lug (Imperial), baseball bat muffler...and it's black... haven't seen the strainer yet. Again the pics aren't that great, but I don't think I've seen this combo of hardware on one of these drums, and would like to have a clue what it is before I buy.

Is it possible this is a 60's acrolite or even a 402 (5x14 black beauty?) Any suggestions on questions I could ask or other things I should look for in person? The lugs look pitted to me...hard to tell. And is that black color original, or does it look painted? Drum is listed for $135.

Thank you for your time, any advice sincerely appreciated.

If it's really an 8 lug than more than likely it's a 60's acrolite that was painted black and someone added imperial lugs to it. An acrolite should have bowtie lugs and a supra-phonic should have ten imperial lugs. It actually looks kind of cool IMO and sort of resembles the look of the new black beauties that Ludwig offers now.

Even though this drum seems heavily modified I don't think the price seems all that bad. I guess it would need to be seen in person to make sure the paint job is decent and the strainer is a Ludwig.

Good luck!

That looks like a 10-lug snare to me. It looks identical to my Supra except for the black shell.

That T-rod splay is not supposed to be there. It`s an indication of a close enough hoop change or even lug change if the drilling allows.

Take pics when you get it.

Looks like a 10 lug modified/painted supraphonic, but it may also be an original black beauty.. Counting the lugs from the front in the 2nd pic , you clearly see 5 lugs, then all one has to do is count the opposite side, and you have another 5, making it a 10 lugger.. Baseball bat muffler makes it a 60's drum.. I would take a whiff of the shell and see if it smells painted.
Any type of spray paint or oil based paint will still have the odor, even if it's been sprayed years ago..If it doesn't smell like paint, then it might very well be a BB snare drum. It may sound silly, but it's worth a shot.. Just my

Thank you all for the responses. I talked to the seller today, and...he just sold it before I got to him, so... all not lost though, this led to a lot of research on Acrolites and Supras, and lots of good learning for me--all your inputs were very helpful as I continue my search fora ~$100 good snare.

From your comments sounds like this was a bit of a Frankenstein anyway...worth checking out, so I was going to give it a good look (and sniff) and probably take a chance on it. But, not to be this time, the search continues. Thank you again!

A $100 MIJ snare might just be worth your while til you can get another later. Some real good things have been said about them. I had a CB-700 that was every bit as good as an Acro. It just wasn`t built of the same gauges of metals.

looked like a 60s Supra painted black as others have mentioned. Looks 10 lug too. Probably a heavily pitted shell that someone painted to improve the looks. Don't believe they did a 60s Black beauty with BB muffler so a pretty safe bet you didn't miss out on deal of the century

No Black Beauties in the 60's. The brass models in the early 60's were lacquered brass or chrome finish. Black Beauties came back around in '77 or so.

Awesome, thanks for the replies!!