Welcome to the forums!

Please explain the 'evolution' of the kit. Gorgeous set of drums. For my money, WMP and BDP are the classiest wraps out there. Great set-up.

John

John, since you asked......

45 Year Evolution

Here's my "evolutionary" BDP kit. I got the snare in '65 and the rest of the original 3-pc "Downbeat" kit (minus 14" F/T) in '66. Cut lawns for an entire summer and got the 14" F/T in '67. Started with crummy cymbals except for a pair of 14" zildian newbeat hats (which were stolen during a house move years later). The kit was modified (I didn't know better at the time about maintaining the "vintage" status) in '83 with the addition of the 9x12 rack tom (6-ply, new at the time, slightly brighter BDP wrap but has blended well since then) and the double tom mount. Lord knows where the original single tom mount ended up. Kit was in storage from '90 to '09 (yes, 19 years!) when I got the restoration bug. I weighed buying an all new kit, but I liked the look/sound of my drums so much that in '09 I took everything apart, tightened, checked and cleaned everything up. All wraps are still original and in very nice shape. Chrome is very nice. I aquired the 16" F/T ('67 BDP still with original wrap) in '09 from a seller in NJ. Very nice condition. In '10 I replaced all the original '66 hardware/pedals with DW gear and replaced the cymbals with Zil A's (21" rock ride/17"&15" fast crashes/13" new beat hats/8" splash) plus a Hi-A crotale, an 18" Paiste twenty china, plus misc effects. Also added a rack of roto-toms in '10, and a small Pearl M-80 side snare in '11. Everything was hand-picked "for my ear".

This is my "dream kit" as it has been something that has been evolving for over 45 years. To me, it represents the best of yesterday combined with the best of today (at least to my personal taste and IMHO). The completion of the restoration/upgrading has been a labor of love and is the source of much personal pride (and yes I do intend to use these drums...not just showcase them). For practice I also have a Roland TD-20 V-drum kit (got that in '08 to get my "chops" back....indespensible).

Hope you enjoy the pictures, and I hope this inspires others with their restoration projects.