These sell for $200 Canadian here all say long...

So 50e is great..

Thanks for confirming that for me, Mike. Would I be right in thinking that if it's a late 50's Zildjian it should be hand hammered? And if so how do the hand hammered Zildjians compare to the later machine hammered ones? Are the differences very subtle or are the hand hammered ones darker sounding? I'm asking because I have never owned a Zildjian pre 70's and I'm still waiting for this one to arrive. The seller is in Canada and it is going to take 6 - 8 weeks to deliver to Europe. :( Violin

Opinions vary about the importance of the hand hammering on the late 50s A. Zildjians in terms of their overall sonic character. Some would say they are always a bit darker and more complex than post 60s A. Zildjians. Others would say that by the late 50s they are as much machine hammered into shape as hand hammered to finish shaping, thus they begin to reflect more of the sonic characteristics of machine hammering into shape. Others would say it doesn't matter whether a machine held the hammer or a person did, there is just lots of variability.

A light one like you've purchased would certainly be expected to be darker than one from the 80s which is hydraulically pressed into shape prior to hammering.

Thanks Zenstat. I'm guessing the 19" will sound nice. I'll use it on the left. I have a 20" A as my main ride on the right (hollow logo) It sounds great, very crash-able with a nice dark wash. I had been using the 20" on the left as a crash because as a ride it can get a little out of control when playing heavier stuff. Most of my cymbals at the moment are ride cymbals that can double-up as crashes except for a hollow logo 18" flat ride that doesn't really crash very well due to the lack of a bell the sound just doesn't really project like you would want it to. I decided I needed a traditional crash cymbal instead of having 3 ride cymbals set up so I'll use the 19" on my left and the 20" Avedis on my right and right of that I have a 20" Istanbul Efes series jazz ride that I use as a crash. I would like a Meinl Dragon 18 to use as my second crash, but they're very difficult to find. I'm going for 19", 18" and 20", but if I can add a 22" to my cymbal collection then I'll go for a 19", 20" and 22" combination. :) Then I'll never need to buy another cymbal again, right? Ha ha.