When I placed my order for a New Rogers set in 1974 I discovered after receiving them that the diecast collet noses were weak. My 'fix' was to get some of the old machined units to replace the diecast ones. I put the original diecast in storage and from then on used the machined units which protected the diecasts from the typical cracking at the ends and breaking off of the 'ears'. When the time comes to sell the set, the new owner gets both styles.

Gretsch: plywood shells (so no reinforcement hoops).

Ludwig: the first detachable bass drum pedal, 1909.

Slingerland: first company to market tunable toms.

There have been many knockoffs of Swivomatic with metal ball and socket or metal socket with plastic ball. Memriloc has been copied endlessly.

I believe Zickos may have been the first acrylic drum shells...? They also had a pretty cool lug design that had a kind of swivel insert thing.

Not all innovative designs caught on! (Arbiter, Peavey, North, etc.) but were nevertheless innovative!

Emile Boulanger and his design for independent batter/resonant head tuning was a biggy!

Bad idea would have been Ludwig riveting the wrap to the shell, 1970s.... :)

That "innovation" earns Ludwig a charter membership to the Drum Design Hall of Shame.

Great topic and submissions. The Fre-o-matic cracked me up because they not only pilfered the Rogers design, but even used the catalog language Rogers had used to describe their double tom mount's flexibilities (almost verbatin). Kudos to Boulanger!And recalling the Ludwig rivet deal was also a vividly awful memory.

As to my own submission, whatever company invented the mounted disappearing bass drum spurs was on the ball but I don't know who that was.

Not sure if Pearl was the true first, but the introduction of plastic liners on cymbals stand height adjustment rather than metal on metal squeezing or a screw going into a metal tube was great.

I remember seeing those liners first on Pearl stands back in the day.

Erich

Erich! I had read that it was Tama that introduced those plastic liners in the cymbal stand, but can't confirm if this is true or not.

-Mark

Pearl free floater snare although it appears to have been patented by CB.