Is that an inner ply of mahogany in the bass drum?

That would be very surprising for a '79 vintage Slingerland drum, huh ?

VERY surprising!

Yepper.......:D

Yes its mahogany w/maple rerings, five ply on the bass I believe. All the toms are three ply with maple inner ply and maple rerings. The snare isn't visible in this pic but it's about '75 or '76 chrome steel 8 lugs (festival line I believe) that I just put back together.

Is there a date stamp in the bass drum? The reason I ask is that Slingerland did not use mahogany as an inner ply in '79, only as the occasional outer ply. See this link: http://www.vintagedrumguide.com/drcjw/article_3_shells11.html. If your bass drum is a '79, it may be a "mistake," which would make it pretty rare. I'm not saying it would be worth more, just a VERY interesting piece, as kevins and I stated before.

It's possible the bass was built earlier. I ordered each drum individually since I already owned the snare. My receipts are dated 79. Its been awhile since I've put heads on the bass so I don't remember if there's a stamp in it or not.

Hmmmm That IS interesting! According to the link I provided before, Slingerland stopped using mahogany as an interior ply in '63, and they were doing 3-ply shells then. Maybe someone that is a little more familiar with Slingerland's practices will chime in, but I think you have pretty rare mahogany-interior bass drum if you ordered it in '79.

I read the article too and thought it was a little inconclusive. Is a bass shell a bass shell? Meaning did they make a batch of 24" shells and use theme for both kits and marching? I agree, we need a slingy expert to set it straight. I will not see my drums for a few more days but I will go to practice a little early and try to get some good pics of the inside and check for sure if its 3 or 5 ply.