WelcomeBurger Kin

1. Remo heads go on tight on the 10x14 and 16x16. What other heads should I try that sound as good as Remo Emperors?

Ludwig drums of that era were made to dimension and then wrapped -causing the outer diameter of the shell to increase. That's why heads fit tight on those. Older Ludwig heads fit well on these shells, but Ludwig changed the old way of making them. I'm not sure if their new heads would fit well or not. I've never tried them. There are a few drumheads being made today that are made slightly larger than standard in order to compensate for this specific tendency of drums of that era. "American Vintage" by Aquarian is one name I can think of off hand.

2. The 10x14 has a beyond repair drum hoop. I am having trouble finding a vintage 14" 6 lug hoop on E-Bay. Any ideas?

Get a cheap, 1.6mm (sometimes listed as "1.9mm") rim from Interstate Percussion or one of those places. "Cannon" or "Canon" is one brand, I think. That's most similar to vintage Ludwig rims. It will work in a pinch until you find a proper vintage one....which may take awhile.

3. I am also trying to find vintage bass drum hoops with Black Diamond Pearl inlay.

Real ones may take time to find. Depending on the color (not sure about BDP), you can buy inlay strips and get some modern hoops with the inlay channel routed for the inlay strip...paint the hoops semi-gloss black enamel, first, of course.

4.Does re-wraping vintage drums (with same pattern) affect the value.

Absolutely yes. It devalues them in most cases. Tears and lifted seams are also kind of indicative of drums of that era because they were forced to use a different glue due to environmental restrictions on using the older stuff. The new glue ended up shrinking over time and taking the wrap with it -resulting in cracking and seam-lifting. Many times, these cracks and seams can be repaired. This would likely be a superior (and less-expensive) option to re-wrapping.

5. Based on the serial numbers could these drums be an original 5 piece set?

Absolutely yes.

5. I paid $1500.00 for the set. Is that to much?

I think you did okay -speaking strictly from your description and based on those sizes. Matched kits with the bigger bass drum and floor tom are fairly desirable nowadays. Unfortunately, the market is kind of fickle at the moment.

Did it come with a snare drum?

Thank you so much for the info.

No it did not come with a snare but I am using a 6 1/2" x 14" Supraphonic.

Is a ludwig 6 lug vintage ( 60's tripple flanged COS) snare drum hoop the same as the one I would need for my 10x14?

That size Supra is the PERFECT snare drum for that set!

Yes. Any 14" diameter, 6-hole rim will work....but you obviously don't want to use a snare side rim for a batter rim because the snare side rim has the slots. I suspect that you already knew that...but, just in case!

Sounds like an awesome set! I recently acquired a black diamond floor tom that I' thinking of building a set around; I love that finish.

Another note about the recovering: it you were to recover one, there's a chance that it won't match the best if these older drums are faded any.

O-lugs,

The snare rims that are on E-bay are the batter and reso side. So I would use the batter side for my tom.

I found a 1.6mm hoop at an online drum store for about $12.00.

Would it be better to go with the 2.3mm or do they kill the resonance of the drum? I have heard that the thicker hoops help keep the drum in tune.

Tillerva,

I do beleive that I saw a couple of vintage Ludwig Black Diamond Pearl toms on E-bay today. Is your tom vintage or is it modern with a classic wrap.

Most vintage guys will recommend the 1.6mm rims because they are most like the weight of the ones Ludwig used on their older drums. The 2.3mm are stiffer and will "even-out" some of the tuning. However, vintage bearing edges are not always perfect and the more flexible 1.6mm rims will help to conform to less-than-perfect edges. Also, the 2.3mm rims add more mass to the shell which will wick off some of the overtones and the resonance. But 2.3mm rims are the modern-day standard. Some people they bridge the gap between the lighter triple flange rims and the heavy die cast rims.

If you're getting the Ludwig rim set for a snare, then the batter rim will work just fine for your tom, too.