Bump O.K......O.K.

Hi and welcome!

I guess you have used the 'search' on the top of this website in the meantime ...

There are lots of information about MIJ badges and Star and Pearl of those days laying around here and waiting to be picked up by you :)

Ralf

I'm pretty sure that the Werco name was a Star stencil (the company that later became Tama.) A pic of the badge would tell us for sure. Is it a black oval badge that says "World's Supreme Quality" underneath the name? If so, then yes, it's definitely a Star drum.

Post some pics! We'd love to see it.

Thank you for your thoughts. Yes, I have used the tools available on this site to research. Just seems on this drum I had conflicking stories(not from this site) . So, alittle confusion set in. My days are filled with research of vintage drums. This site and you all are such an asset to that research. Sometimes I feel like I take 1 step forward and 2 back sometimes. Part of learning. Anyway, thank you...Joe

The Werco's I've seen had the oval "Supreme Quality"badge.Star product.

Yup, this badge would be on a Star made drum.

http://www.vintagedrumguide.com/images/snare_japanese/badges/werco_large.jpg

However, I did check the Pearl drums wikipedia page, and it did mention the Werco name as one of the many Pearl made early on. As we have seen, Pearl and Star did use the same names on some of the stencils, Apollo and Stewart, among others, were made by Pearl and Star at one time or another. But again, if your badge looks like the one in the link above, it's a Star.

That's it...Thank you very much. I'm learning !

Joe, please provide a pic of your drum. I need to see the strainer and badge and if you don't mind a lug. I am doing an intensive research project on our MIJ product and need all the research material I can get.

For your info, Werco badged drums was only produced for a few short years by Star for St. Louis Music Supply. They owned roughly 50-60 of the 60s and 70s stencil badges.

What most people are having a hard time understanding is how the stencil business worked for the 4 or 5 big players (there were more distributors, but only the big boys knew how to make it work) in the stencil biz back then.

OK, let's say you own a music store, Joe55 Music. I am your St Louis Music Supply sales rep, selling you saxophones and bugles in the late 50-early 60s. I also have some inventory of American made drums but your Ludwig and Slingerland reps have me beat to pieces as far a prices go. All of a sudden 61-62 rolls around and Pearl and Star (Hoshino family) come on the scene offering entry level kits imported from Japan for, literally, a song.

As your SLMS rep, I have decided to make up a bunch of names of my own, and the makers will badge them and build them to my specs, using similar, almost identical, parts to Slingerland, the Sound King lug and even Sonor teardrop style lugs, to be precise. (it is widely known that Bud Slingerland was too tightfisted to fight this move by the Japanese). My new line of drums, in thin 3 ply Asian "mahogany", or whatever species of wood it really is, are on the market and sound good for youth kits that are really inexpensive.

In 1964, the Beatles kill the drum and guitar market and I, your SLMS rep am overjoyed because Ludwig and Slingerland cannot get close to production marks as every 14 year old in the nation wants a drum kit.

Now, this is where it gets muddy. I am your rep and I offer you an exclusive territory, knowing that 1 1/2 blocks away is another music store, your biggest competitor, that I am going to sell the exact same drums to. I offer you an exclusive territory for Stewart drums. As an SLMS rep, my job is selling as much product as I can get out of the warehouse. So, when I stop off at Freds Music and Guitars, I am going to offer him an exclusive line as well, the Majestic line. Although they are identical in every way except maybe the badge, you both are selling my product, doors away and even the same exact drums, with a different name badge.

Now, how is that for for good old American ingenuity, using a foreign product?

Jonnistix,

Fantastic considerations! Sounds absolutely logical.

Here in Germany we never faced badges besides 'Star' ones only.

Maybe due to missing big music centers at that time.

The only importer of Star drums was the same who is still the one for Tama these days!

Below that there were single music stores only. And in order to get better prices from

the importers, these stores focussed on a few brand names per instrument normally and

couldn't offer the whole range from Premier, Ludwig, Sonor etc.. If I remember correctly,

my Star drumset was the only Star one at that store when I bought it new back in 1973.

Ralf