Get a complete kit.

Parts add up FAST. $400 bargains usually wind up being $900 headaches, when you could have had the same result for $700 and a whole lot less time.

Just price out replacing rims on a kit (usually the bottoms are missing on "bargain" kits, and the tops are beat) and you will get an idea how fast the "little" things add up.

Rogers parts are expensive. Swiv-o-matic mounts (knobbies), collets, collet noses, spurs, floor tom legs, double tom mounts, and arms are very expensive when buying piecemeal. Buying something that is complete in this regard will go a long way.

Plus remember the old rule- when you need a specific part- they are suddenly completely absent from EBAY and other sources. Then when you over pay for the first one that pops up- 12 appear on EBAY.

Sit down and decide what "imperfections" you can live with and go from there. Personally if you are going to gig with the set- I would avoid pristine. You are going to pay a premium for pristine, and that is better left to the true collectors- they will appreciate it more than your guitar player.

You damage a Ludwig Classic Maple tom- you can order a new one- try that with a vintage Rogers kit- it ain't gonna happen!

I remade a kit once. Took XP8 shells, cheap orphans, a 12, and an 18 ft to convert to bd, along with a keller 14x14, the wrap was 150.00, the shells and hoops cost me another 200 by the time I was done. And I wanted a vintage look, so I plugged all the memrilock holes, and installed Cleveland era mounts, and for that .........i paid another 450.00, Tom mount, bd mount, tom arm, cymbal arm and mount, spurs and mounts, ft mounts and legs. So you can see how much money is in a kit i can never sell. When the time comes.....Ill strip the hardware and discard the shells. Its worth more than the set.

Piecemealing a drumset together is Expensive.

Restore from a reasonable state.

The search for "the kit" is part of it. You will see, along the way, many beautiful kits other have restored or had hidden away in closets. Some however will be barking and be scratching fleas.

Some will be spray painted. Some have holes. Some will be missing hardware. Some have been down-right destroyed.

This search will teach you what to look for. Then, when you find "the kit", you will know exactly what it needs at a glance. When you finish, it will truly belong to you. You will have saved a vintage set.

Streetdrummer

just my two cents. i own a lot of kits, only one or two of which are in minty shape, most are just player grade kits. but i do often rent them out to other recording studios in the area here because they know i at least maintain them and they will sound good. several of them i have put together drum by drum and it was cheaper than buying a whole kit. for example ludwig champagne sparkle 13, 16, 22. they are all 67/68 by the serial numbers, all white resocoat. if my memory serves i paid $150 for the rack, $172 for the kick, and the floor tom was a bit spendy at $250 but it is pristine. add another say $100 for shipping (probably less) and that's about $675 all in. i think i'd be hard pressed to find that kit that cheap anywhere unless it was a garage sale or something where someone didn't know what it was. i agree that drums should be whole, because trying to piece together lugs, spurs etc, gets spendy super fast and i've gotten burned that way, but if you don't mind not having super close serials and can be patient enough to do it over 6 mos or a year, buying a kit drum by drum can be a decent way to go. you just have to be unemotional about it, stay patient, and not overpay for any of them. i have a yamaha absolute maple custom kit in black sparkle fade that i started with a $100 kick (display model on clearance at the "dude center" ) and i now have 8, 10, 12, 14ft, 16ft, and 22 with a maple 14x5 snare, a birch 14x6.5 snare, and a 14x5 copper. it took me about 6 years to put it all together, but i bought them all super cheap and it's a solid kit for backline rentals. plus i enjoy the whole ebay hunting game. to each his own i guess..... but i do agree, missing parts get expensive real quick.

Yeah, definitely won't do it part by part. I've made up my mind. I'm just going to look for it whole, or build up using nice orphaned drums.

Yeah, definitely DOING it part by part! :)

But caution: the hunting for fitting parts is endlessly time-killing,

makes fun without doubt and caution: it can make you being addicted

to it ... :)

Ralf

I am going to chime in again- since I recently went through the same stage you appear to be going through.

As stated in my previous posts- I recently "got back" into vintage drums (actually-drums and drumming in general).

What started it was missing out on a vintage Rogers kit that sold for STUPID low money on EBAY due to the economy- it actually sold for a price that I thought was low by late 1990's standards.

So what basically happened after this incident, was I started looking at stuff on EBAY. I like all makes of Amercian and European vintage drums so I browsed everything, and next thing I know I started buying.

I spent way to much money on stuff that was incomplete, and now have a few sets that are 3/4 complete- ie- bass/floor tom combos.

What I really learned from the whole experience, is the smart thing to do (and this applies to any hobby not just drums) is to resist the urge to acquire- and spend your money on something that is not only complete but what you really want.

It is hard to do this (believe me I know!), because psychologically you think you are saving money- but in the long run you are spending a lot more money. Spending $1200 on a set of Rogers drums that are what you want and can use "out of the box", is better then spending $600 on a set of Rogers drums that are not what you want, which then cost you another $800 (in incremental amounts) to get right over the course of a year, and sit in the corner of your garage until they are "right" or get sold because you are frustrated with dealing with getting them "right".

A decision you have to make is are you going more for a player set or a collector set? There are a lot of "Originality Police" on these boards- and I see nothing wrong with that, but personally I feel if your goal is to have a vintage sounding kit that you are going to actually use and gig with- there is nothing wrong with a re-wrap.

I like an original finish as much as the next guy, but I also like a brand new sparkle or white marine pearl wrap as well- you have to look at from a non drum collector view- a bright vibrant WHITE marine pearl gets the "normal" folk gushing over your set when you play out. Plus if you happen to ding that brand new wrap- you can replace it- you can't replace original 1960's wrap.

Don't get me wrong- I am not advising anyone to tear off excellent condition original wrap in order to have new wrap installed- but there are plenty of beat finish sets for sale that are perfect choices for re-wrapping.

Also having to deal with trying to piece original finish drums together from orphans is EXTREMELY frustrating- you will find matches but usually after buying three 8x12 toms. Sure you can get your money back by selling the two that didn't match- but now you have to deal with selling them- which is a pain in the ass, and you are still out the money until you actually get around to selling them.

There are deals to be had on re-wraps, or buying an early 70's rogers kit in something like Koa/Butcher Block, and then having wrapped in a new finish of your choice- sure the "Originality Police" will be all over you- but 90% of the time they are also the same people telling you your Koa kit is not worth much since it is well- Koa.