Kent drums

[drumdude]

Someone just gave me these drums tonight. He said they were old, but doesnt have a clue on how old. I've heard mention on this board of Kent drums. This is a 4 piece set, gold sparkle. The heads on the snare, tom and floor tom are original - E W Kent. The hi-hat is Ludwig (says Spur-lok on it), there is a cymbal stand with rivets on it. Found no maker on it, but it is flat-base (i'll get pics of it too, forgot when i took the ones below), the snare stand says WFL on it. I know they arent worth anything as they do need cleaning up, but is it worth cleaning up?

oh, there is a pair of hi-hats - the top of them say Kingston, stamped inside says Japan. The other cymbal (not sure if its a crash or ride) just has the Japan stamped inside.

I'm sure the hardware is useless (all rusty) unless someone needs one (cymbal and hi-hat). The wrap appears to need a serious cleaning.
The big question: are they worth cleaning up? From what I have read, they are a stencil kit and most arent worth anything.

[wayne]

Very nice drums!!...I think the guys who operated the company were x Gretsch employees and copied a lot of the ideas into Kent drums.Qlty control was hit and miss.If it missed it was terrible,but a few kits have popped up in exceptional condition.They were made in New York i believe.Clean them up and play them.If you want to sell them you could be anywhere between 3-700.00,and considering what you paid for them......

[big daddy]

Nice set indeed. I'm in the process of becoming a Kent expert, but I still have a ways to go :)

What Wayne said was right on and I can add a few things myself. Some of the drums appear to have been modified. The snare has a baseball bat muffler installed (Ludwig?) which is not original. Also, the kick has a Ludwig cymbal arm/tom leg mount on it which is also not original.

The wrap does look a bit beat up (stained) in spots and the rust on the hi hat stand looks considerable, but you can try cleaning this up. There's lots of info on the site about cleaning up wrap, chrome, etc... do a search and you'll find it.

As Wayne said, QC was hit or miss with Kent, which comes down to things like bearing edges, lug placement, snare beds, etc... Some or all of these things may be good/bad on your drums. The most critical of these would be the bearing edges and snare beds, but the only way to tell is to pull the heads off and have a look.

I have the exact same snare drum and after considerable work to make it playable, it's become my favorite snare. And I'm not the only one who likes it - I was in the studio 2 weeks ago and I swapped out the vintage Slingerland snare I was playing for my Kent, without the engineer realizing I'd done this. After playing for about 30 seconds, the engineer walked up to me asking what I'd done to the Slingerland snare to get it sounding so good. I explained about the swap and he offered to buy it on the spot as it was "the sound" he'd been trying to get for years. I still own the drum but I offered to try and find him one for his collection :)

If I were you, I'd tear them down and determine the condition of the shells (cracks, splits, bearing edges, etc...) and if they look decent, clean them up, re-head them and see how they sound. You might be surprised.

If you're not up to the task, there are several Kent guys (myself included) on this site who would be interested in this kit.

[Sparkletone]

Hi Guys,

I also have an interest in Kent drums. I recently purchased my first Kent snare drum off of ebay for $20! It's a six lug, white marine pearl model. Needs some major TLC, but for $20, it's well worth it.

Here's a great link for the history of Kent:

http://www.coopersvintagedrums.com/misc/kenthistory.htm

I think my interest in Kent is two-fold: (1) I have a soft spot for them because they were "underdogs" compared to the big boys like Ludwig and Slingerland (2) It seems that there is some level of mystery behind their company, simply because it wasn't documented nearly as heavily as the Gretschs, Leedys, and Rogers of the world.

Two Interesting things about Kent drums:
(1) Their badges are made out of foil - yes, FOIL! - to save money.
(2) I've read (in Great American Drums: And The Companies That Made Them by Harry Cangany) that Kent abruptly shut down after the owner's son was killed in a car crash. However, it is merely a rumor.

Anyway, good luck with your drums. Have fun, and congratulations!

[Bebop]

Kent was a drum company that made drums from the 50s to the early 70s.
As someone else said they were hit and miss. The most commmon kent drums are in champagne/gold sparkle (the wrap you have). Their strainers were faulty and prone to breaking. Quality wasnt consistent. Valued between 60-180 bucks. Prices fluctuate alot though. A 3 piece (most common kent set up) set just sold for 80 on ebay, which had all the badges,(blue badge not white. blue badge kents are more valuable) great condition hardware in BDP. Nothing missing. So that gives you an idea for pricing.
Kent was based in Kenmore, NY right up there by buffalo. Used Meinl cymbals stamped Kent Kenmore, NY. I have a 16" crash and VERY RARE 13" hihats.
In the later half of the 60's kent was going out of business so they tried to cut costs by using imported hardware. Eventually in about '72 I think they went out of business.
If you would like to sell the kit I would be interested. Or just the floor tom (considering the shape its in I dont think vintage drum gods would get mad =) My email is bentstraw@gmail.com if your interested.
Cheers
Harrison

PS I noticed that your kit has an aftermarket rail consellette mount on it bringing the vaue down.
This kit is going to need alot of work hands down.

P.S.S I was looking at the kent floor tom. it has the single tension lugs that Kent used when they started importing japanese hardware. Does this drum have a badge on it?

[drumdude]

Kent was a drum company that made drums from the 50s to the early 70s.
As someone else said they were hit and miss. The most commmon kent drums are in champagne/gold sparkle (the wrap you have). Their strainers were faulty and prone to breaking. Quality wasnt consistent. Valued between 60-180 bucks. Prices fluctuate alot though. A 3 piece (most common kent set up) set just sold for 80 on ebay, which had all the badges,(blue badge not white. blue badge kents are more valuable) great condition hardware in BDP. Nothing missing. So that gives you an idea for pricing.
Kent was based in Kenmore, NY right up there by buffalo. Used Meinl cymbals stamped Kent Kenmore, NY. I have a 16" crash and VERY RARE 13" hihats.
In the later half of the 60's kent was going out of business so they tried to cut costs by using imported hardware. Eventually in about '72 I think they went out of business.
If you would like to sell the kit I would be interested. Or just the floor tom (considering the shape its in I dont think vintage drum gods would get mad =) My email is bentstraw@gmail.com if your interested.
Cheers
Harrison

PS I noticed that your kit has an aftermarket rail consellette mount on it bringing the vaue down.
This kit is going to need alot of work hands down.

P.S.S I was looking at the kent floor tom. it has the single tension lugs that Kent used when they started importing japanese hardware. Does this drum have a badge on it?


i just got home. the floor tom is a 14", it does have a badge, the blue one. Appears there is a knob on the side that i guess goes to the muffler device. it has kent heads (top and bottom). the legs and lugs are rusty. the rims seem to be ok.

the 13" tom has the bat style muffler as well. the tom mount on the has ludwig stamped on it. it sounded good when i got it, surprisingly.

are you saying the tom mount on the bass was aftermarket item? do i need to remove it or is it too late due to holes drilled?

i'm going to try to see if i can clean these up before i give up on them. the interior of the bass, snare and 13" tom seem to be in good condition. I havent removed the heads from the floor tom. the wood hoops on the bass show major wear.

i'm going to see if i can fix them up or go as far as i can (with the forums help :) ) if not, i'll see if someone wants them that has the resources/talent to restore these.

[quinntheeskimo]

Check out this Kent (Japanese) kit. A five piece in Yellow Tiger Pearl, or Black Onyx. I don't think Kent really had a catalog for colors. I installed a Rogers-type snare strainer, and there are a few other unoriginal parts. It actually has both metal hoops with all the inlay (wow!). 20/12/13/16 .What do you guys think?

[wayne]

I see drums like this gaining in popularity....could be time for some changes.After all,this gear will NEVER be re-producedCryBaby

[big daddy]

What do you guys think?

Outstanding!! I love the weird wraps you see on some of the import kits from the 60's and 70's. I had a floor tom ages ago (mid 70's) which was wrapped in tiger eye (like the semi-precious stone). It was awesome and I wish I had an entire kit in that color.

drumdude - The tom rail is a Ludwig or Ludwig style, which means it's not original. I would leave it on there as it's (A) too late to do anything about it and (B) if it's in good condition, it will be way better than the Kent mount was.

I can't recall ever seeing any kind of muffler on an American made Kent drum (correct me if I'm wrong). It seems like someone used a bunch of Ludwig parts on this kit which improves the playability, but takes away from the originality (and usually the value as well). Consider it a "players" kit and heck... just play it!!

[Ludwigjoey]

OK Kent Fans.Here's my take on it.I've lived in Buffalo since 1971.About 1974,I purchased a gold sparkle Kent set from Edwin's Music Store on Broadway.It was used,and cost about 50 bucks,with original cymbals.The owners son,Greg Granchowski,told me the drums were assembled across the street in an upstairs attic.The building was razed in the aerly 90's.Greg died in 2002,but his brother still runs the store(on Sat morning)and owns another small drum making company.He would be the an expert on Kent drums,and their history.
joey

[bassbrother76]

Greetings! I saw your post, and had to reply. I've lived in Kenmore, NY for all of my 31 years, currently five blocks from where the Kent Drum factory operated. I own a 1966 blue sparkle Kent, and thought I'd share my story. I'm a bass player, but my older brother has been a drummer for over 25 years, and like most people who grew up in this area, his first kit was a Kent. Back in '98, I dropped out of college and went full-time as a butcher. One of the regular weekly customers was "Mr. Kent," and after my guitarist friend/manager of the meat market introduced me to him, I had a good talk with the retired owner of E.W. Kent Drum Company. I gave him my address and asked him if he could send anything, like old brochures, etc. He sent me a greeting card, apologizing that he didn't have any memorabilia that he could spare, explaining that Japanese competition and a fire had forced them to close, and wishing me well. My brother restored my blue sparkle Kent, put some Evans heads on it, kept the original heads with the company logo, and tuned it up. It sounds great, and was purchased for $20! I still have the greeting card, but I'm not sure if Mr. Kent is still alive. I thought it was interesting that he remained in the area, and as it turned out, he was a businessman who never played the drums! As others have stated, some of their kits were great, and some were not so great. My big bro has an orange sparkle, and the drummer in my current band had a blue swirl. Not much for tech info, but thought I'd say hello...just about every drummer in Kenmore and Buffalo has a soft spot for Kent drums...

[drumdriver]

Hi all, I'm new to this forum so forgive me if Ive started at the wrong place, but this thread seemed the most relevant to my enquiry!

I have purchased through ebay the following kick drum (these listings have ended as I have bought them):

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/390380719318?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_1930wt_1054

and snare drum:

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/390379983655?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_1987wt_1054

The listings made out they were either Ludwig or Slingerland and I thought the condition of the shells was very good and warranted purchasing and restoration, and then playing!

Since delving further into the sellers store out of curiosity, I noticed he had very similar looking drums, all sold separately, and it looks to me they are all part of the same kit (one photo shows the other drums inn the background). However, these other separate drums are without a doubt 'Vibratone' shells...

(listings are current as of 26th Jan 2012):

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/220913733189?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_1949wt_1054

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/220913732780?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_1930wt_1054

Now my research into Vibratone, led me to Kent drums, which led me here, and I have read the whole forum thread about Kent drums, and read through numerous links like the Coopers vintage drum kent museum etc to try and see if I could identify the kick and snare I just bought, but no luck!

All Kent drum info seems to talk of production post 1950, but the kick drum lugs and shell size seem to me to fit an earlier production era.

I also have learnt that Kent, as a cheaper option to the big four companies at that time were prone to irregular manufacturing processes and quality.

All images of Kent drums online are of the 'newer' style 'pearl shell' finishes, and none show a similarity to the ones I just bought. Looking at vintage Ludwig catalogues the paint finish does look similar to 1920's style shell finishes. I just cant tell withought actually having the drums here if it is a home-made copy of the style or an original finish, and the listings have no mention of stamps or badges with them.

If anyone can shed some light on the drums I've just purchased I would be extremely grateful!!

Looking at the shells I have a good feeling they will clean up nice and sound good after restoration, but I don't want to feel like Ive been ripped off thinking they were vintage Ludwig and have been sold a turkey.

Id really appreciate any comments or thought regarding these drums.

Thankyou!

:)#

[jccabinets]

Here are some pics of my Kents. Scored from c/l last summer for 15 bucks. They were a mess but cleaned up like new. I must be crazy but I dont see the pics of your drums in this thread. Good luck to ya!

Jeff C

[fishwaltz]

drumdriver: welcome to the forum.

Post some pictures of your drums. Please don't do the eBay links since those auctions go away in a while... There is nothing more troubling when doing research than finding 'the link' and it turns out to be an eBay link from three years ago...

[drumdriver]

Thankyou, yes fair enough about the links. I've spent some time putting together some pics and uploading them to make things easier.

Here is the bass drum I have bought, am told it is 27&1/2 inches, and Ludwig. No badge or images of stamps, but an older era looking shell construction than 50s?

http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg275/drumdriver/Ebay%20vintage%20drums/Bass_drum.jpg

And here is the snare I have bought, am told it is Slingerland (?-seller seems to be fibbing now?), 15" X 6", again no badge or stamp pics. Seller thinks the lugs are not original. I was excited because the kick and snare looked matching to me in the old ludwig shell paint from the 20s/30s, and was keen to restore them and play them as a kit, which is why I bought them:

http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg275/drumdriver/Ebay%20vintage%20drums/Snare.jpg

I then found way back in the sellers ebay store these items for sale, and well, was a bit disappointed! The plot thickens, or the mystery deepens as they say...
Seller describes this as Vibratone 14" X 10" tom, and well that looks right to me, but it has the same shell as the kick and snare!

http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg275/drumdriver/Ebay%20vintage%20drums/Tom.jpg

-And this as a Vibratone 15" X 12" Floor tom. (This has way crazy/short legs!)
*BTW seller says of every drum "they seem to have been painted"...again, same shell as kick and snare, there are other drums in the background, looks like the snare maybe and something else!?

http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg275/drumdriver/Ebay%20vintage%20drums/FloorTom.jpg

I thought Id ask the forum first of their opinions if the kick and snare were Ludwig?
Its hard to tell from pics of course, it definitely looks now like some sort of home-job in one way or another...does anyone know any info about Vibratone, in case the kick and snare turn out to be that?

I would ask the seller directly, but as he is awaiting for me to pay for shipping, I don't want to ruffle any feathers before I complete a transaction.
I'd like to feel more informed before entering into a discussion with him.

Cheers guys!

[jccabinets]

I thought this thread was on Kent drums. I never saw the pictures from the origional post by drumdude.

Jeff C

[drumdriver]

Hi Jeff, yes this is primarily all about Kent drums- my research into these is what led me here, I couldnt see the original pics either in the first post.

My post is related, as I read that Vibratone were made by Kent, and Im trying to uncover the mystery with drums I have just purchased on ebay which are/or seem to be part of a 'Vibratone ' kit.

Good job on cleaning yours up! Did you get a floor tom as well? Reason I ask is because I want to compare the legs/lugs with pics in my post, as the floor tom legs look ridiculously short.

Cheers,
Danny

[jccabinets]

No I did not get a floor tom with mine. Pretty sure mine was origionally sold as a combo, bass , snare and hang tom. I would like to get a blue sparkle floor tom sometime.

Jeff C

[Mouse]

The two Vibratone drums were made by Kent in the 1950's, shells with no reinforcement hoops. The other two drums look like Ludwig drums? To me it looks like someone had these four drums and re-painted them to make a set, this is just what I see.

Mouse

[drumdriver]

Thanks Mouse, yes its starting to look like that thankfully.
This would explain why the seller has separated them in the listings then, my fear was he was parading Vibratones as a 1920s Ludwig. So I hope it turns out that that is the original paint job on the kick and snare!
Perhaps I should post separately my enquiry about the kick and snare for some Ludwig enthusiasts who may be able to tell me what they are.
Cheers!