They were available back then and it may take some time to hunt one down in silver sparkle . . . Then again to me that's the fun of collecting vintage drums.

There is one available on Reverb in WMP

https://reverb.com/item/6940761-leedy-ludwig-16-floor-tom-wmp-used

The mufflers were options on the New Era drums. I have 1 snare with a factory installed muffler and another without.

Good luck with the quest

Michael

Te best chance for finding a Leedy & Ludwig 14" floor tom would be to look at one of these two sites: Hen's-teeth-R Us.com or Ya-gotta-be-jokin'.com. I suggest that you concentrate on finding the closest in age Slingerland or Leedy floor tom or marching drum (that will be hard enough). If you're as fortunate as I was, Leedy lugs dropped perfectly into holes for the Slingy lugs on this 14x16 marching tenor drum. Leedy lugs seem to always be available online. Re-wrapping will be an easy job.

You should buy it.

I have an immaculate one from 55-56 with the brass Leedy badges.

I found a 16x16 Slingerleedy FT from 1965 that matched perfectly.

So 8x12 14x20 the awesome 4x14 snare & 16x16 FT.

They are really great sounding drums. Good for all kinds of gigs.

Silver sparkle is the easier of sparkles to find. Good luck!

Thanks for all the feedback! I took the suggestion and bought it. It’s being shipped. It will need a deep cleaning. I now noticed the absence of a 14x14 in the ‘53 catalog. I actually gig w/o a FT from time to time and like a 16” with the 20/12 outfit so I will keep an eye out for one. For now I have a some Slingerland and Ludwig silver FTs that hope will match. I’m grateful to hear the Leedy and Slingerland lug holes match in the event I desire to use matching hardware. Thanks again!

Update? How is the cleaning process going? Pics?

Cheers

Thanks for inquiring. I’m in the later stages and mostly waiting on back ordered heads from Musicians Friend. The set came with all the original stands, pedals, etc. and I need to make additional time to detail those items. The set is all original and the snare is the only drum that was likely used. The rest of the set has quite clean Leedy Ludwig calfskin heads which I’ve set aside. All shells look new inside and are dated February 1955. The bass drum cymbal mounts are a preview of the George Way turret. I’ve exchanged dialogue with Rob Cook and learned about the rarity of these drums. Here is a pic of the BD. I simply provided a light polish to the hardware without removing it. I don’t have the time to polish the shell nor think it needs it. The silver glass is quite beautiful and less dark in natural light.