I agree that the pre-80's USA kits will always be collectible.

Yes, the 50s/60s/70s/ was the Golden Era of Pop/Rock.

80s........not so much! :)

Mitch

The boomer generation is (as usual in the US) a great driver of this trend as the golden age of drum making occurred during their prime so soft prices now may be a harbinger of things to come as someone else noted estates and flea markets will flood eventually with the gear of the 50s/60s. Guitars are a very different/broader market so I don't expect parity with them and also worth noting that guitars are thriving and growing in sales but acoustic drums are declining year over year.

We already see only the best of the earlier 20s 30s 40s gear get any real love price wise.

If I had a large collection and cared about my heirs, I would be selling the bulk and lower condition items sooner than later or the wealth you've tied up in these assets and the work you put into them will be diminished. (Ever watch American Pickers - you see this scenario play out over and over with what heirs have to deal with - thousands of dollars invested in hard to move barns worth of stuff as Mike lowballs the hell out of them for the 2 good pieces they have) Even if values don't decline, the effort to unload large collections inevitably results in below value sales due to the lack of knowledge or sheer work involved.

Here's the good news, selling can be fun. It's a chance to show your collection and talk with someone and share knowledge and isn't that kind of a big part of this anyway?

There have been many interesting, heartwarming and realistic posts in this thread.

Certainly plenty of food for thought for myself and I hope others, so thank you to everyone who responded and shared their views.

Clapping Happy2

Long may we all drum on.

D' Drummer

Ultimately, my thoughts are that Vintage Drums are sort of like cars from the Muscle Car era; 1964 or so thru 1972. The collectible cars from that era just keep getting more desirable. Certain models, with certain options, or color combinations, make them more rare, and therefore, they bring more money.

Same goes for the Vintage Drums, certain models are more rare than others, or certain colors are rare, therefore they bring more money. While I think that certain drums will stay the same; i.e. the BB's, RK's, Rogers, just to name a few, we are seeing more rare colors bring some high numbers.

I seriously doubt an 80's Tama kit will ever be "collectible", as they were mass produced. Likened to a Datsun B-210 from 1976. Sure, it may have been your first car and now that you are over 40 you want to hunt one down and restore it. Fact is, it will cost you north of $25k to do that, and even when it's done it's a $3000 piece.

Not to get the Tama folks rowled up, but that's just my opinion. I do think there are some rare kits and snares out there that are already rare and collectible from our recent past. Let's hope that continues too!

Just keep teaching our kids about music, and it's history, and it will all be fine!Yes Sir

I know more that a few young professional drummers in town that play older kits (50's-60's mostly) because of the perceived sound and vibe that comes with these drums. There's also the "hip" factor with producers and engineers if you walk in to their session with vintage gear. Of course it helps to be able to play well too.

One of the reasons I think the vintage market will continue in the future... even though the entry level kits you can get now are far superior to drums I started on in the early 70's.

I still have to laugh when I read a Craigslist add saying "Vintage Snare and Cymbals For Sale"....from the 80's. I don't think so junior.

I agree, some drums will be worth a lot and keep climbing aka museum quality, and they will do good but the players stuff , pitted that needs work extra holes will be worth salvage only , there not like guitars , a 65 tele relic from the era is worth a kings ransoms but a set of drums played and beat up will not be of any value unless it's 1 of as like a complete blue note etc,..