Are you buying or selling? And where are the pix? This is a nice kit, Wayne. If you are looking to buy it, you will pay 300-500 for it, more than likely. It's a Yamaha Birch Custom, Nice drums. I don't think you will get it cheap. Is there anything with it, stands, pedals, cymbals etc?

I may sell this kit,i own it,but if all its worth is 400 bucks,i may as well hang onto it.I was thinking they were worth more like 600.They,re not the same as your regular MIJ gear...im surpised:confused:

All in the eyes of the buyer. They are worth what someone will pay, and up your way they may be worth more. Do a search on ebay anbd see what you find on a Yamaha birch set from the 70s.

I was watching a set like this on eBay and it had the matching wood snare and original soft cases. (It was the black version finish and not blue)

Strangely the new buyer emailed me and the floor tom was lost by the USPS and he was trying to find more info on the drums history.

It sold for $500 on eBay plus the shipping.

They sold for more a year or so ago. Usually $600 - $750 depending on the finish and snare drum.

I would trade some Sonor gear for it :)

David

Wayne, are you selling these on the NY craigslist? If so, I sent you an email, i'm in NY. Nice looking kit!

Larry

Wayne,

A drummer from Macedonia left a message on Drumset Connect asking about a Premier set he bought that had the word Asama on it. He wanted to know if the seller lied to him about the drums being Premier. Here's how I responded.

Jovan,

First, you're not the only one looking to find out about Asama drums. I have found some others, and these people have more questions than answers. There's not much information out there. I have reached some conclusions, but I can't prove much.

Second, I believe that Asama Percussion was a Japanese business. One of the largest volcanos in Japan is named Asama, and lots of things are named after it, like ships and bullet trains. Why not a percussion company? Can't prove it tho.

Third, Asama sold drums, drum synthesizers, and music synthesizers. But I don't know if Asama was a manufacturer, distributor, or and off-brand for another manufacturer. There were also Asama guitars, but I don't know if Asama Percussion made those. One guy owned two Asama guitars, and he was asking his forum if Asama was a manufacturer or a brand. No one replied.

The Japanese Drum Museum offered some information which may explain this, or may not:

Paraphrasing, it says that in 1961 Pearl built a huge factory to meet the worldwide demand for drums due to rock 'n roll. The drumsets were cheap and bore the name of the distributor, namely: "Maxwin, CB-700, Crest, Revelle, Revere, Lyra, Majestic, Whitehall, Apollo, Toreador, Roxy, Coronet, and others -- over 30 brands in all! Tama, also known as Star and Hoshino back then, also followed suit . . . . many of the models were sold under many different names or badges." So, could Asama have been one of these distributors or brands? It's possible. Not sure.

In 1962 the Hoshino Gakki company in Nagoya, Japan established TAMA Seisakusho Inc. and started to manufacture drums, guitars, and amps. These drums were not called TAMA. I don't know what they were called from 1962-1964. Starting in 1965 they were called STAR drums. And starting in 1974 they were called TAMA. What were the 1962-1964 drums called? Wish I knew.

But from 1974-1977 TAMA drums made "stencil kits." In other words, they made the same generic drums but put lots of different names on them. Could one of these names be Asama? And since TAMA Seisakusho also made guitars at this time, might they have named them Asama?

The key piece of information, I think, is that both you and the woman mentioned below have noticed the similarity of TAMA and Asama drum fittings. I think this means it is possible or even likely that Asama drums are one of the TAMA stencil kits. The TAMA stencil kits were not sold in Japan but were shipped to the USA and Europe mostly. None of the TAMA Seisakusho Inc. drums were sold in Japan before 1980. Maybe that's why you're finding this kit in Macedonia. And if these drums were sold to any drum manufacturer who wanted to sell them as a second line, that may explain why you have both the names Premier and Asama on it. I also saw a kit for sale online that was called Hohner Asama.

I found a picture of an Asama drumset online. The page is written in a foreign language -- don't know which one. But the title on the page is:"Batterie Asama idem TAMA." I'm pretty sure "batterie" means drumset. Can someone decipher the rest? Also, check the badge. I believe this set is for sale in Europe, so now we're looking at a TAMA Asama kit available in Europe. I think. This page is at: http://www.leboncoin.fr/vi/63497232.htm

Maybe the best thing I have for you is this next page. A woman has purchased what she believes to be an Asama kit. She was attracted to it because the fittings look like TAMA fittings, and she loves TAMA.

This page has GREAT PHOTOS, GREAT CLOSEUPS!

http://www.vintagedrummuseum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=119&t=405

Next, go to this page, SCROLL DOWN, and check the badge and drums on this Asama kit. http://www.drumsmylife.com/asama-percussion-t19133.html

If you were in the TAMA Seisakusho Inc. factory stenciling different names on drumsets, would you think of using the name of a large volcano about 150 miles from factory? Seems pretty reasonable to me.

My best guess is that Premier put the Premier name on Asama drums and sold them as a second line. Seems possible, even reasonable.

So the seller may not be lying to you; Premier may have sold those drums under the Premier name. But, the bottom line is, I really don't know.

I have,nt posted my kit anywhereyet,im still kicking it around.Its a beauty little jazz kit but i will unpack them and send out pics to you guys.Just send me your email address,i,ll do it tomorrow.

1)

http://www.leboncoin.fr/vi/63497232.htm

Sale is French, here is a translation from my Google browser:

hello

branded TAMA

good general condition, just need little cleaning

snare drum, viola, medium and low tom mutes equipped Tama

viola and drums in medium deep (best resonance)

1 foot pole "DIXON" cons with heavy weight

1 foot pole "percussion more" cons with weight

1 foot stagg hihat (nine)

1 ride 20 "paiste 502 more

1 crash 16 "paiste 502 more

1 charley 14 "paiste 502 more

bass drum pedal to choose different models

opportunities to purchase other cymbals and double pedal "MAPEX" (Photos available on request)

possible test of course ....... by appointment,

MUSICALEMENT.

Now here we have a MAJOR discrepency: those lugs are known to be, without a doubt, Pearl. So what is this telling us? Are those in fact TAMA badges? And if so, how is this possible? Did TAMA and Pearl collaborate? Did someone exchange the lugs?

2) The Japanese Drum Museum offered some information which may explain this, or may not:

Paraphrasing, it says that in 1961 Pearl built a huge factory to meet the worldwide demand for drums due to rock 'n roll. The drumsets were cheap and bore the name of the distributor, namely: "Maxwin, CB-700, Crest, Revelle, Revere, Lyra, Majestic, Whitehall, Apollo, Toreador, Roxy, Coronet, and others -- over 30 brands in all! Tama, also known as Star and Hoshino back then, also followed suit . . . . many of the models were sold under many different names or badges." So, could Asama have been one of these distributors or brands? It's possible. Not sure.

I know for a FACT that Majestic uses all STAR hardware, it can be seen in the Star catalog, the end caps on the rail consollette on my set bear out this fact, as does other hardware usage. So now the waters are even more muddied...Who runs the "Japanese Drum Museum"? Can we get this information updated? I know and I am positive, as is Ralf, that many of the stencil brands listed as Pearl, are, in fact, Star.

Star was made by Hoshino Gakki's TAMA division starting in 1965. Hoshino Gakki changed the name of their drums to TAMA in 1974. But from 1974-1977 TAMA made "stencil kits" -- a generic drumset with different brand names on them. Is Majestic a TAMA stencil kit? These stencil kits were all exported. Starting in 1975 TAMA became a brand with only one name, and starting in 1980 some of the TAMA sets were sold in Japan. Hoshino Gakki still makes TAMA drums today.

I can't read what the badges say in the picture on your post, but I have a larger picture of the badge in my previous post that looks like the same badge and says "Asama." Did you read my whole post and look at all the pictures? Please do.

I'd love to get to the bottom of all of this. I have even wondered if Pearl and Hoshino Gakki used the same production lines for awhile. Gimme shelter!