Hello friends,
Its been awhile since I've posted due to health issues. Doing much better now and am back with this restoration just completed.
Came across this very rare 1929 6.5 X 14 Nickel over Brass Ludwig Standard Sensitive. This drum only appears in the Fall 1929 catalog and that's it. Maybe it was discontinued due to Black Friday and the great Depression that followed? In any case, it was only made for 1 season! I traded my soul to get it but... it has a 2-piece beaded-brass shell, Professional Strainer with Upper Snare and Strainer. Both strainers work as new because they were well cared for.
The drummer who owned it was a hard working guy who looked after the source of his livelihood. The strainer(s) were well caked with oil and most of the leading edges of the tube lugs and rim clips have the nickel plating worn off due to the drum constantly being moved "in and out" it's case. That's ok though because it tells the story of this fine instrument. My guess is he played the later Vaudeville Circuit of the early 30's before playing the Swing/Dance Band Halls that dotted The North Shore of Lake Erie, and Ohio's Erie shore at the time. Guy Lombardo and Duke Ellington enjoyed their hay-day in these dance halls! I came across the drum in this part of Ontario.
After about 10 hours of gentle cleaning/refurbishing, here's the result. Snare is all original except four brass washers on t-rods, new bottom Snappy Snare, and new heads. I sourced out the replacement snare from Ludwig to match the original James Snappy snare but still have the original. The original upper snare, only missing a couple of wires is intact and works well as do all the mechanics that were well cared for by the working drummer who owned it. Enjoy...
