Mark, well put. I know I do appreciate the quality and sound of the vintage drums I own. In the market there is a quite large, but finite supply of them and their prices are affordable, compared to modern drums. I suppose there will always be the occasional basement find, but more likely, the supply will dwindle. The prices will rise.

Maybe the modern day successor to the drums of the ‘60’s and ‘70’s will emerge before they are scarce. Or perhaps our grandchildren will still covet the same drums we covet today. Thank you everyone for your valued input.

Wait another 25 years. That may change.

I believe we are in the renaissance of historic yes I said historic drums , as they will all be museum pieces even the orphans and the oddball drums and accessories , look at the 2 19 64 cymbal stands very nice but 400$ worth Sold on ebay . Ha , I’m not sure , but definitely a sign of it already drying up , so 25 30 years I believe is here already my 2 cents gary

Here is my take...

Kits from 1980's are not sought after for the same reason that (most) people don't collect 1978 Mustang II's ...because they made fugly uninspiring cars during that period of time. Unless all the 60's Mustangs vanish, Mustang II's will never be more valuable, even if they are statistically more "rare", or some odd ball special edition.

I do think there are drums being made now that will eventually be collected, but those 80's drums may never be desired. I think it is a great time for drum craftsmanship, maybe better than ever before. Like others have said, I think it will be the high end boutique makers, specifically the early drums from those makers that eventually "make it big." Makers like Q, Truth, Craviotto, C&C etc. It will be a long time before they increase significantly, but they should hold value comparatively well in the mean time due to their superior overall build quality.

If that's true, then why are Ludwig drums from the 60's so coveted? We all know how their quality control went down in that era. The drums of the future will only improve on what companies like C&C are doing. Superior craftsmanship is not, in my opinion, the reason people collect drums.

One of the reasons is nostalgia, and I suspect sooner or later people will feel nostalgic about the drums they had in the 80s.

That’s the mystique at work! Plus, there are still plenty of vintage drum enthusiasts dictating what’s considered desirable by what they (we) are searching for, restoring, and keeping alive. There may be a small group of Noble & Cooley enthusiasts emerge 15 years from now who will dictate how desirable those drums are.

I'm not convinced any era of drums, past or in the future will be as collectable as drums from the 60's. That was a unique decade, especially for music.

Some of the small boutique manufacturers, mostly using Keller shells may be collectible in the future since most do not stay in business for very long. Or perhaps future vintage snares from small top specialty companies like Dunnett may be highly prized some years from now

I think part of the reason for how collectible 60's drums are is in part due to greater availability. The mahogany Ludwig Super Classics sets from the early '60s are very collectible and not terribly difficult to find. I have a set myself in WMP with pre-serial keystone badges. But I see far fewer WFL badged sets available from the early/mid and even late '50s even though they are essentially the same drums.