Chances are all the drums are 6-ply, Potsy. Those 6-ply kits are a bit of a unknown quantity to many drummers. Those 6-ply shells from that era make great sounding drums. I sold a 6-ply kit recently that was one of the best sounding drum kits I'd come across in awhile. Good drums, great sound.John
Ditto on that Purdie, I set them up the day they arrived in May, and I haven't been able to get off them yet !!
Kev
If they have re-rings then they are three ply. No question.Depending on vintage they would have had a dark mahogany outer ply. I doubt they were originally natural finish. That would be super rare. Without seeing pictures I think you have a set that was wrapped, then stripped then painted. It could be walnut or mahogany cortex finish which was counter top laminate. If so, you could strip away to your hearts content as you can't kill that finish.
There's definitely no wrap under the paint. Here are some pictures, see what you think. Note the blonde wood underneath (maple, right?) and red mystery stuff. Some of these are the nicks that it came with, some are what showed after some light sanding. Also, the BD hoops have no inlay grooves, which matches other natural finished kits I've seen.
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0642.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0646.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0645.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0644.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0643.jpg[/IMG]
Man, if you can get them stripped and sanded down nicely enough you could do a thermogloss finished outfit that will knock your socks off.
I think that is red oxide automotive primer. Looks like there is no original finish to try to save. I would just strip it down to the bare maple and see what you have. A lot of times the maple will not be finish grade on the drums that were wrapped. They will have dark streaks and other imperfections. If they are not too bad you could go with a clear finish or stain them a darker color and that might disguise the imperfections and look really nice. Of course, you could also have nice maple under there that will finish up nicely as is.
It also looks like you have a Tama center mount on the bass drum.
I think that is red oxide automotive primer. Looks like there is no original finish to try to save. I would just strip it down to the bare maple and see what you have. A lot of times the maple will not be finish grade on the drums that were wrapped. They will have dark streaks and other imperfections. If they are not too bad you could go with a clear finish or stain them a darker color and that might disguise the imperfections and look really nice. Of course, you could also have nice maple under there that will finish up nicely as is.It also looks like you have a Tama center mount on the bass drum.
Primer, huh? That sucks. Well, I'll see what happens and go from there. Thanks for the info.
Yeah, I forgot about that mount. I wonder if they're the same diameter. I'm buying a Ludwig tom holder, but I may need the mount too.
Id vote neither also. If your going to go to that much trouble, you might as well spend a little more and wrap them in something very cool, like orange mod!
Yep, you guys were right. The red stuff was primer, and what looked to be light colored wood was more primer. Under all that is some fairly nice looking mahogany. It has a lot of vertical scratches (probably the painter's prep work), but they may sand out. I'll try stripping the paint off, sanding, then finishing with Minwax Wipe-on Poly. This tom will be practice, since I'm planning on wrapping it and selling it separately.
[IMG]http://i988.photobucket.com/albums/af5/potsy24/70s%20Mystery%20Ludwig/IMAG0647.jpg[/IMG]
I started a restoration thread for this kit: http://vintagedrumforum.com/showthread.php?p=135231&posted=1#post135231
I'm going to finish the mahogany on 1 tom and see how I like it. If I like the idea but not the wood, I'll do the bubinga veneer. If it looks good, I'll finish the rest of the kit the same way.
