[COLOR="Red"][Item has been sold][It sold for only $260 on eBay][Frowny Face][/COLOR]

Hi gang,

This is my 1st restoration in over 15 years, and possibly the most valuable drum I have ever brought back from the dead.

This is also my 1st drum listed on the vintage drum forum, so let's see if this works out.

Up for your amusement is a unique, and hard to find, 1969 Ludwig Jazz Combo snare drum.

13"x3" (3-1/2" actually) 6-lug, piccolo type with all original parts.

Date stamped: Jan/31/1969

Original badge: Serial# 676801

This 1969 Ludwig Jazz Combo snare drum (Model No. 905L) has been (nearly) fully restored using only the parts that were on it when I bought it, with exception of the heads which are brand new. (The heads on the drum were possibly the originals, but the bottom was shredded and the top was COVERED in glue and paint)

The last "Jazz Combo" snare drums were officially made for only a few more years, making this a much sought after collectible. From what I have found in my research, very few have been found, and even less without the paint on the inside of the shell.

Drumshell:

The shell is 3 ply maple/poplar w/reinforcement rings and is in great condition (nice and round).

The bearing edges are clean and smooth, and still in original condition.

The inside of the shell is clean, and the wood grain is quite dark.

(In 1969 Ludwig stopped painting the insides white.)

The outside is the original "Gold Silk" lacquer.(Finish No. 8026.) 1969 being the First year available for this color per Ludwig's catalogs.

There are many small to medium size cracks, and a few chips in the lacquer finish, but NO dents or dings in the wood shell.

Some Jazz Combo snare shells have shown to have worn oval holes where the lug attaches to the shell. This drum does NOT suffer from that problem.

Rims:

The COS (chrome over steel) rims are in good to fair condition. I've removed as much paint and rust as possible without adversly affecting the plating's finish, which has several light (normal) scratches. There are some small speckles of stained areas still remaining. (see photos)

The top rim has a small group of circular scratches that were caused when my cotton Dremel bit flew apart causing the bit to skip across about 1" of the rim. (my fault, see photos)

Throw-off/strainer and butt:

The Jazz Combo is outfitted with its famous Pioneer (P-84?) throw-off which cleaned up nicely, but still has a small amount of corrosion near the string holes where the rust ate through the plating. The strainer is still fully functioning too.

The signature script Ludwig butt has no rust or scratches and looks nearly new.

Snares:

The snares are the original set, and are still in perfectly playable condition. (still springy, not brittle.)

Lugs and Tension Rods:

The lugs are in great condition, (shiny w/no scratches) as are the tension rods.

The Date Stamp:

During the cleaning of the inside of the drum shell the date stamp, which was already barely visible, has been rendered nearly impossible to see after a soft dry paintbrush was used to remove any loose dust around it. (again, my fault)

I took a photo before I started the clean-up process and will provide a jpg of the date stamp.(I had to increase the contrast using photoshop just to make out the date stamp.)

I didn't want to stress the lugs right away so I didn't even put the heads on for a day or so. Then I tuned her up a little each day. ("J!M" confirmed that this was a practice of his as well.) Thx J!M.

Awesome results:

With the new heads and the strainer properly tensioned it sounded very nice, but could probably be made to sound great with a better top head, and a thinner bottom, and of course proper tuning.

The snare drum will be carefully and securely packed, (tension rods loosened) and promptly shipped within 1 or 2 days of receipt of payment from Southern Oregon.

The true value of this drum is still somewhat of a mystery to me, so I am going to ask $500 + actual shipping to any of the lower 48 states. It could go fast as lightning or sit there like a lump. If it sits there like a lump, I can reach a larger audience with eBay, where I have a stellar feedback score, but you guys and gals deserve 1st "crack" at it.

(yeah, that was my attempt at a snare pun.)

Please, do send me a PM with any offers or even advice. I will leave this up until Sunday (24th) then eBay will have a crack at me.

Thanks again everyone.