"highly collectible drums" - Nope. They are very cool drums, no doubt. But, that will only get you so far. They do have some cool wraps and some pretty decent shells. They are still MIJ drums. If and when the MIJ market goes into the realm of "highly collectible drums", you can bet that Yamaha (and all it's derivatives) will be at the top of the list. I don't honestly see MIJ's becoming "highly collectible drums" anytime soon. There is a niche out there and that's very cool. I would love to have a neato set of MIJ's with a sweet unique wrap. But, I don't want to venture into those waters as of yet. My room is filling up with American vintage drums. I would also LOVE to have a sweet Trixon kit, but NOT YET. There's lots of very high quality non-American vintage drums out there. Those are cool and people do collect them. But, "highly collectible"? I just don't see it.

If you look at the values of some of the older non-American drums, they in fact are out-pacing USA-made drums from the eras that they have the edge in quality, particularly late 70s and early 80s, with few exceptions such as stainless and vistalite Ludwigs. Look at Recording Customs. They're always worth more than US-made Ludwigs from the 80s. I believe that the quality is the primary consideration, along with rarity and desirability.

I probably should have re-phrased it to say "the next collectible Japanese drums." Any time you have a high profile artist that plays an instrument, value increases on that instrument, especially if it is of a grade of quality.

It's an odd thing to do - ask a question while seeking input and then dispute said input. If you believe Yamaha's will be the next big thing, then so be it. That's ok. They are cool drums. If that's the case, jump on the bandwagon and buy low so that when it does hit, you can sell high and reap the profits. Go Dog Go.

Go to Guitar Center and check out the used Yamaha Recording Custom kits. They are less expensive than Ludwigs pretty much across the board. Hit some of the Vintage drum dealers and you will see that it holds true there, also. I'm not sure where you are getting your data. Ebay is only one source. Do a random sampling from many sources to get a feel for the current market. Do this over an extended period of time to identify trends.

Not arguing with you. Just trying to educate ... if it's needed. Not sure if you've already done this. If you have, take it with a grain of salt. If not, then here ya go.

That's a good idea. I'll check various sources then get back with ya with some hard factual info. Anyone else?

I also just wanted a discussion on how, if any, an artist playing a vintage set affects value.

I mean I think if a drummer for a really popular band like the Roots, Questlove, is playing these every evening on TV, that should raise the profile of the drums.

WMP Slingys are sought after because Buddy played them. He also played sky blue pearl slingerlands. People are always looking for another 16" floor tom to get the Buddy set.

Istanbul K cymbals are always going up because Tony Williams and other great jazzers played them.

Ringo.. Almost every high-profile drummer has caused an increase in value of the drums they played. I just thought it might be nice to explore the possibilities of value fluctuations in regards to non-usa Vintage drums, and try to guess which ones will increase in value over time. Recording Customs definitely have held and increased in value, not quite to their original retail pricing but close. Steve Gadd and several other drummers played them.

There's a distinct relationship between types of drums and the famous artists who played them. Amber Vistalite is a common vistalite color just behind Clear and blue. Yet they're worth much more because Bonham played them. Same with Black oyster Ludwigs. Ringo played, everyone wants them, but Ludwig produced tons of 'em, still prices keep going up.

I'm sure some artists played Sonors. I know Jack DeJohnette, Steve Smith, and Danny Carey among others play them, not sure how that effects value.

Gretsch RB drums were played by Max Roach, Tony Williams, Art Blakey, etc.

There's a distinct tie-in. I'm not trying to create a tie in where there is none, I'm just looking at the info that has come about. Questlove's playing a Yamaha set, 12/14/20 sizes, and he has a sizable fan base. And they aren't that common, but if more people are hunting them down, they will increase in value.

They weren't even on the map for me a month ago. I think yamaha may have been the first Japanese drum company to come out with pro-grade shells, and soon were followed by Tama and Pearl. it wasn't long before they were literally crushing Ludwig Rogers Slingerland and Gretsch, all of which suffered in the 80s from the importation of fine quality Japanese drums.

Never heard of Roots or Questlove................

And I think being able to pay someone about fifty cents to make a drum kit vs. acceptable US wages had a bit to do with the Japanese Invasion in the 80's........

I was informed by another member that Questlove has been playing a different line of Yamahas for a few months now, and that the vintage yamahas have been "retired." He's the drummer for the Roots, and he's been playing on the late night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon.

True about the Japanese drums, although if you look at Japan they have been getting increasing wages and their economy is suffering as a result of it. Now China's the country with cheap labor and they're flooding the markets making the trade deficit with Japan in the 80s look like a mild spring rain.