My parents bought this drum set in the Chicago area circa 1994 while I was still in high school. It has sat in storage for the past 13 yrs or so, and now that I'm getting my chops back in order I have set to work refurbishing it. This is a first drum restoration project for me.

I'm pretty certain this is a 'players' kit - ie, not highly collectable or anything. But I would like a kit and this is the one I have, so I may as well fix it up! The tom mount has a Ludwig sticker on it, and it came with a Speed King, Ludwig hi hat stand, and Ludwig snare (which walked off at some point through the years), so we've always thought it was some old 60s Ludwig -- but after closer inspection, I wonder what it is exactly. The lugs, from what research I've done, look closer to Slingerland, or maybe Gretsch? Not sure. Similar to Ludwig 'Classic' lugs, but rounder. Most of the lugs have 2 grooves on them, but a few have shallower, more engraved-looking lines. The hoops are mixed as well. There never have been any tags or anything. The toms are 12", 13", and 16".

In peeling off the white wrap from the drums, I found traces of blue sparkle, and traces of sloppy red paint underneath that--so it seems this kit has had a few different facelifts. I've been tediously removing gray house paint from inside the shells with stripper and acetone…so far the only stamp I've found reads "P-040" (see pics for detail) inside the 13" tom.

As for the shells, long strips are missing from the outer ply on the uncovered toms. It looks pretty rough… kind of like a beaver got a hold of them at some point! So I figure a re-wrap is in order. The previous wrapper troweled on lots of putty so I'm removing what I can of it and re-doing it. On the inside, I'm doing my best to remove the gray housepaint. The 12" is lighter colored wood but the 13" looks more like mahogony. Uncovering the toms has created enough extra work that I'm thinking of just wrapping over the floor tom right over the white plastic shell (or--I admit the thought has crossed my mind--even just buying a used $200 set off Craigslist! but… the refurb project itself & the education gained are part of the goal, plus… pride of ownership from my first kit!) =)

The bass drum is missing a few claws on the outside. This hardware search is what first got me researching about what specifically I might be working with. Will try to attach pictures. Any ideas?

Thanks!

Dave in Kansas City