A friend calls me and says there's a club clearance near his house, and that there's a Peavey kit that's going for dimes - and he sounds impressed too: "Wtf, doesn't Peavey make guitar stuff?". I've really spent a lot in the last couple of months, but I think 'what the hell?' and I get there pronto.

It' s pretty messed-up, so full of dirt and grime it almost looks like caked mud, but it's all there: 22"x18" BD, 10" and 12" TTs, 14" FT (all on Puresound rims) and a 14" snare - the whole kit weighs a ton. No hardware, the BD and the snare are missing their reso heads, no rubber feet, the rest seems pretty much OK. The badges are actually stickers that read 'Radial-Pro 1000'. I take a closer look, and that's some fine maple that looks back at me if I'm any judge. The guy there says a friend of his is coming to take it away cause he doesn't need "that piece of junk". So I give him $200 (which he grabs, thinking he's getting the better of me) and load the 'junk' in my car. An hour later (and after some very gentle cleaning), here it is.