Here is a perfect example of nice vintage set that can easily be fixed up to look and sound really great. These of course are club dates - single lug design... not liked by everyone, but still classy and what appears to be a gold sparkle jazz fest...

So you have a $200 - $300 snare drum with a set that sold for $455 on Ebay... (As always you have to be careful and ask questions)

David

I would suggest:

Rogers "Big R" drums from the mid-70's -The Memriloc hardware is some of the best road hardware I have ever used.

Ludwig Standards - The tom mount isn't the best, but with a little ingenuity (and a hose clamp) it will do the job....plus, you will basically have the real Ludwig 3-ply sound for considerably less than what a Ludwig Classic kit would cost you -and they will continue to increase in value -especially if you get a Strata finish!

I think sixties and early seventies Slingerlands seem to be relatively plentiful, under-priced compared to other "classic" US brands of the period and, because their tom mounting system was pretty good, often not drilled or otherwise vandalised.

If you want to get more exotic I think the sixties Sonor stuff is ludicrously under-priced for what it is.

And a good old basic Ludwig is hard to go wrong with though. Consistent sound and re-sale value should you decide to try something else later.

Gretsch, Camco and Rogers all seem to have gone crazy, particularly on smaller sizes.

Cheers,

David

Thanks to all. I'll definately keep my eyes open for the sets you all mentioned. Anyone else who has suggestions, fire away. Like I said, I'm pretty new to the vintage world and any and all info is greatly appreciated. :)

Or if you want something a little different, try a mid 60's Kent kit. They are not plentiful, the tom arms are a little flimsy (use a snare stand if you're a heavy hitter), it's hard to find a set with a floor tom, etc...

But I pieced together a nice looking champagne sparkle 4 piece kit (floor tom by Leedy/Slingerland) for under $400.00.

Hand made, American maple shells, solid lugs, etc...

Other Kent kits were sold under the names Paramount and Revere.

The Kents seem to be gaining in popularity as well as price, judging from eBay.

This is proving to be harder then I thought. I'm seeing more sets broken up than together on Ebay. Any suggestions where else to look? I'm gonna start here in the for sale section, but I have a feeling there will be lots of expensive and very nice sets there but I'll give it a shot. :)

Be patient - the breaking up thing happens but it's not endemic (yet). Do an automatic (and broad) daily search - that'll keep you supplied with many possibilities.

Craigslist is also a great source for those living in the US and there's always your local junk shop and, by all accounts, Guitar Centres generally have a habit of offloading vintage kits they've received in trade-in for much less than you'd expect (or did - they may have woken up).

Cheers,

David

My suggestion would be to collect anything you can even if it's crappy, often the hardware is always worth keeping. I stay away from pawn shops and music stores and find most all my stuff at auctions, estate sales and garage sales. If you have a community web site post an add there. Offer to mow grass or do some labor in trade. There is a lot of vintage stuff out there that hasn't even been found yet. A great example was I picked up a Ludwig Clear Vistalite 22 kick and 13 tom for $2.00 at a garage sale. I asked the lady if she had anying else and I got a Ludwig 1968 Acrolite snare for $5.00. The key is not to look in the obvious places. Craig

LET THE GARAGE SALES COMMENCE!!! LOL It's finally nearly spring like here so hopefully the garage sales will start soon and maybe some spring cleaning will reveal some goodies.