Does anyone know a thing about whitehall

[funnylikeaclown]

Hi, my name is john I am looking to sell a set of Whitehall drums the set consist of a blue sparkling base drum with two toms and a floor tom(the toms are sprakly too). I have searched the web for a price on these babies and have not found the best of luck. I would very much like if someone could tell me the price on them and some background. They do have some dings in them but if someone would put some time into them they would make a good collectors item. All I know is that they are foreign and my grandpa bought them in the 60s. I most likely selling them on eBay and I would like someone to tell me a good starting price. Thanks!

[funnylikeaclown]

If you want to see a pic of the drum its my profile pic!

[Webmaster]

I owned a Whitehall Snare many years ago and they were Japanese imports from the 60's. Check the internal shell ply grain. If it is running up and down then it is for sure.

Unfortunately they do not have a high value like their American counterparts. They were made to sell for less. To do that of course besides cheap labor they used inferior materials.

Interestingly enough a lot of drummers parents were able to afford them so that generation is more likely to buy the drums. There is always something about having your first drum set.

On a good day a set like that should sell for between $100 and $200 if in excellent condition with the matching snare. Sometimes if it is a strange finish they can sell for more. I might have seen a set sell for $400 at one time, but it was a very strange finish and had all of the drums.

I hope that helps

David
Webmaster

[whitehaller]

Hey John.
I have a relatively complete Whitehall kit (bass, two rack toms, floor tom, original hardware) which my parents bought for me in 1976 (when I was still in high school) from Gillett's Home Entertainment Center in Michigan. It is the only kit I have ever owned and it's still going strong; still looks great and sounds better than ever. It has served me well through half-a-dozen different bands, including my two current ones.
It has a beautiful gold pearl finish and, besides a few nicks and scratches, is in great shape considering it's age and the abuse it has taken being dragged around to hundreds of gigs over the years. It looks so nice, in fact, that I have had other drummers offer to buy it from me on the spot. One of the offers was for $500, probably more than it's worth on paper, but not enough for me to part with my old, reliable friend.
Some history: Whitehall Drums were imported during the late 60s by David Wexler & Company of Chicago. They were made in Japan by Pearl and very much resembled Slingerland drums, especially the lugs and pseudo Stick Saver hoops. The drums came in red sparkle, blue sparkle, white marine, gold pearl. A later model, the W-500, came in jet black, wine red, and forest green.
The original specs were:
Snare drum - 6 1/2 x 14" - chrome - 16 lugs
Rack toms - 9 x 12" and 10 x 13" - 10 lugs
Floor tom - 16 x 16" - 10 lugs
Bass drum - 14 x 22" - 16 lugs
Double tom mount with tom arms - 7/8" diameter tubing
Snare stand - double braced
Cymbal stand - double braced
High hat stand - double braced
Bass drum pedal - double spring
Spurs are retractable
Drumheads - black front bass drum - all others clear
Deluxe padded drum throne - double braced
Set includes 16" cymbal and a pair of 14" high-hat cymbals
Obviously, I've had to replace many parts over the years (cymbal stands, heads, pedals, etc.) but to this day it plays and sounds as good as any kit I've heard.

[vintagedrummer53]

one of my japan kits has a 13"x8" blue sparkle Whitehall tom with re-enforcement rings top, bottom and middle. I know from the lugs it's a '60s Slingerland copy. it's a luan shell, but I think it sounds great! Pearl, Star/Hoshino/Tama or whatever, it rocks!

[jonnistix]

one of my japan kits has a 13"x8" blue sparkle Whitehall tom with re-enforcement rings top, bottom and middle. I know from the lugs it's a '60s Slingerland copy. it's a luan shell, but I think it sounds great! Pearl, Star/Hoshino/Tama or whatever, it rocks!
Whitehall was ALWAYS a Pearl stencil. The name died out then they revived it for a short time in the 70s.

[calfskin]

I have been using a Whitehall 14x14 blue sparkle floor tom for about 6 years now as an add on to a 3 piece Roxy jazz(14 x5,10x8,20x13) setup. It matches the others fairly well,but the Roxy lugs are different. has a grey painted interior on a thick shell(probably luan) and came with triple flanged hoops(which I replaced with sticksavers)----16 lugs, which vibrate loose about every 2 years. Pretty good drum. I paid 49.00 for it 6 years ago on ebay.(U.S.)-----has an internal muffler,which I like. The brand was never here in Canada. We had mostly Stewart,Coronet and Silvertone. Pearl arrived sometime in the 60's. I did once see a very old kit that emerged from a barn, complete with bongos, that reportedly came from the 50's, badged Pyramid in a pyramid shape .Had exactly the same lugs (slingerland knockoffs), like Whitehall,Stewart,Silvertone.

[jonnistix]

I have been using a Whitehall 14x14 blue sparkle floor tom for about 6 years now as an add on to a 3 piece Roxy jazz(14 x5,10x8,20x13) setup. It matches the others fairly well,but the Roxy lugs are different. has a grey painted interior on a thick shell(probably luan) and came with triple flanged hoops(which I replaced with sticksavers)----16 lugs, which vibrate loose about every 2 years. Pretty good drum. I paid 49.00 for it 6 years ago on ebay.(U.S.)-----has an internal muffler,which I like. The brand was never here in Canada. We had mostly Stewart,Coronet and Silvertone. Pearl arrived sometime in the 60's. I did once see a very old kit that emerged from a barn, complete with bongos, that reportedly came from the 50's, badged Pyramid in a pyramid shape .Had exactly the same lugs (slingerland knockoffs), like Whitehall,Stewart,Silvertone.
This is a post 67 drum. They both (Pearl and Star) went to the thicker 6 and 9 ply shells at virtually the same time. The shells for most kits after this time were the 6 and 9, but there are some 3 ply shells from some of the "special" kits after this period. I have seen some of these and they are, for the most part, nicer than the thicker variety. Now, in the Taiwan days, there are a ton of those thin snares and most are really bad. For some reason the 3 ply shells from Taiwan are nowhere near the quality of the earlier Japanese 3 ply stuff. Star, for instance, made a stencil line for St Louis Music called "Majestic" and they offered two lines, believe it or not, one called "Semi-Pro" and they are 3 ply w/re-rings. The main line, the "Deluxe", are the thicker ones. The Semi-Pro line have some wonderfully deep and resonant tones.

[Mouse]

Whitehall was ALWAYS a Pearl stencil. The name died out then they revived it for a short time in the 70s.

Whitehall wasn't always a Pearl Stencil.

Mouse

[cn679]

Mouse, did Whitehall ever have one of the black oval "World's Supreme Quality" badges?

[Mouse]

Mouse, did Whitehall ever have one of the black oval "World's Supreme Quality" badges?

I'm really not sure, never saw one, there is others like this site shows like Apollo etc...Whitehall maybe, but I do know they were an American made drum first, before the name was sold to Japanese Drum Manufacturers, that's what happen correct?

Mouse

[bknack]

Hello,
I have a 16" Whitehall floor tom. It has the black round oval badge that says, "Instruments of Quality" under the Whithall script. serial # 7615. It has the Slingerland looking blue pearl finish, mahogany shell. Great bearing edges on these things. Sounds good. Using it with a Preal President '69 bass.
Putting on Ebay this afternoon. Curious to see what it brings.

[eamesuser]

I swear I saw on one of the forums a Whitehall drum,and it looked just like a rogers Daisy snare from the mid fifties.

[jonnistix]

I'm really not sure, never saw one, there is others like this site shows like Apollo etc...Whitehall maybe, but I do know they were an American made drum first, before the name was sold to Japanese Drum Manufacturers, that's what happen correct?

Mouse
I don't think so, Mouse...Whitehall, as far as I know, has always been a Pearl stencil and I think it (the name) was owned by the outfit from San Antonio, the importer that owned a few of the other names. I am not 100%, but to my understanding, they have always been stencils from Pearl. They are like all the rest, using an American companys' brand name to look and act like American, but they are just like all the rest. I have a 16, or had one, it is now part of a donor kit, but is was a Pearl stencil through and through, and it was a 3 ply shell, an early one. It had a foil badge as well.
EDIT: Found something more substantial::
Some history: Whitehall Drums were imported during the late 60s by David Wexler & Company of Chicago. They were made in Japan by Pearl and very much resembled Slingerland drums, especially the lugs and pseudo Stick Saver hoops. The drums came in red sparkle, blue sparkle, white marine, gold pearl. A later model, the W-500, came in jet black, wine red, and forest green.

[idrum4fun]

Hi, my name is john I am looking to sell a set of Whitehall drums the set consist of a blue sparkling base drum with two toms and a floor tom(the toms are sprakly too). I have searched the web for a price on these babies and have not found the best of luck. I would very much like if someone could tell me the price on them and some background. They do have some dings in them but if someone would put some time into them they would make a good collectors item. All I know is that they are foreign and my grandpa bought them in the 60s. I most likely selling them on eBay and I would like someone to tell me a good starting price. Thanks!
Whitehall drums were made by Pearl. I sold my 4pc 1968 kit a bit more than a year ago on eBay. Sold for a little over $300 to Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz, drummer for Weird Al Yankovic. Jon picked the kit up at my house and we spent a fun hour together talking vintage drums! My kit was in very good condition, so use that as a guide for what you might get. Good luck!

[wayne]

I just won a Whitehall 10 lug COS snare drum on ebay for 15 bucks.I think this was a good dealExcited