He's not kidding at all. You might even get more for it!

A blue onyx sold this week for 1475.00. Fair auction on ebay.

Start it at a dollar and let it ride. It could finish at 500 ....... or as high as 1500. Theres no way to know. Depends on who wants a Rogers in grey steel ripple. If that was a zero fade Red ripple, I would give you a grand for it.

Thing is, your drum, has some issues. Gray trunk paint, cleveland tower/holiday tag, the "thumbtack" hole in the tag, hardware fasteners match the gray trunk paint period. But that is definitely not a cleveland drum. Dayton, yes, cleveland no. Those are issues that may affect the price some collectors would pay. I dont think you would see the 1475 price range. I could be wrong. But it is valuable. and it certainly looks genuine.

Ploughman - There are issues with the hardware on this drum that aren't apparent in the photos, and I'm sure this hurts the $ value (areas on the rim where the chrome has worn off, and mild pitting on all of the metal. etc).

The potential $$ value does give me a real thrill - but the potential sound & look give me an even bigger thrill. Plus the idea of working on a cool old kit like this is very appealing (I'll soon find out if this is an illusion :D). And then there's the way I acquired them. It would take crazy money for me to let them go so soon after finding them.

It is a 40 year old drum. It will have wear. Some pitting on chrome is fairly common. Although not every Rogers lug you see will have pitting, it is common. Minor pitting doesnt affect value so much. You have a 14x14. Its still valuable. Dont change it.

As for the bread and butter lugs...... keep your tuning relaxed. Dont overdo it. They will split.