Another eBay Bargain

[BosLover]

My son Dan (MileStones) just saw this ad on eBay. Its a Billy Gladstone 7x14 snare. According to the seller its a rare gold plated prototype. and he includes a lot of background history. He is asking $49,000.

I'm not an expert on pricing, but the drum is very far from mint condition and while it may be gold, in the images it look more like brass to me. Its rarity may add a lot of extra value, but to my eyes it doesn't look good in its current condition.

The seller states, "After years of use there is significant wear and cosmetic damage to the gold plating, and some minor dents, as shown in the detailed photos. The heads, snares, and top rim have been replaced"

The price in this condition seems very excessive to us. What do you guys think?


https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rare-Origin...YAAOSwW21e877L

[al9000]

+$150 shipping. For that price, shipping should be included. For that price, the seller should hand-deliver.

Al

[grantro]

Here is a pic for future reference...

Cheers

[Dan Boucher]

I suppose there are at least two objective questions:

1. Will it be worth considerably more in 10 years, i.e., it is an investment.
2. Will the buyer get $49k worth of satisfaction owning it?

Personally, I don't see it as likely to meet either object.

Then again, I've bought a lot of things over the years that others didn't think were as valuable as I did. I know this because they did not bid as much as much as I did.

[jaghog]

Remove 2 0’s

[kdg]

It has a historical value because it was a prototype and supposedly one of only two metal shells produced, Having a replaced top hoop should be considered to some degree.
Something is confusing about the history of the ownership of the drum. The owner states that Gladstone made the drum for Morris Goldenberg, but according to the narrative, it seems Goldenberg never took possession, as Billy apparently kept it until his death. Where does this information come from? It may be that as a prototype, Billy may have felt it wasn't up to his high standards to let this drum into the marketplace.
Then, in 1961 (October) when Billy died, Mr Hyning bought it (1962) from a midtown Manhattan music store. So was it sold as a consignment on behalf of Billy's widow? We may never know.

[O-Lugs]

Cool drum. Look at it as art. There are a lot of paintings I can't afford to own, too. This is a one of a kind in a world of millions of drums that are all the same. As a drum to play, it's not worth that price and there's likely to never be enough gigs to use it on to pay it off if you see it that way. But, if you are wealthy and a fan of drums, and want to set it on a pedestal in your den to stare at everyday... then here ya go! There are a lot of wealthy people who would do it IF they had a chance. But these drums are all accounted for in the world of collecting and opportunities to even look at one hardly ever come up.

[BEC]

Too much? Find another one then.....(I owned a BG set and snare drum 35 years ago.)
Chet Falzerano would be the guy to ask/consult about this drum. Chet's the expert imo.
The price seems in line with other BG drums.

[thin shell]

Originally Posted by kdg

It has a historical value because it was a prototype and supposedly one of only two metal shells produced, Having a replaced top hoop should be considered to some degree.
Something is confusing about the history of the ownership of the drum. The owner states that Gladstone made the drum for Morris Goldenberg, but according to the narrative, it seems Goldenberg never took possession, as Billy apparently kept it until his death. Where does this information come from? It may be that as a prototype, Billy may have felt it wasn't up to his high standards to let this drum into the marketplace.
Then, in 1961 (October) when Billy died, Mr Hyning bought it (1962) from a midtown Manhattan music store. So was it sold as a consignment on behalf of Billy's widow? We may never know.

The ebay ad states:

"This drum is believed to be a prototype for the drum Billy made for renowned percussionist and longtime Julliard professor Morris Goldenberg"

Meaning it was the prototype that Billy made before making the one for Morris Goldberg.

[kdg]

Originally Posted by thin shell

The ebay ad states:

"This drum is believed to be a prototype for the drum Billy made for renowned percussionist and longtime Julliard professor Morris Goldenberg"

Meaning it was the prototype that Billy made before making the one for Morris Goldberg.

I see. So now my question is did Gladstone do this for every client or was Goldberg the first client which required him to build a prototype? And did he ever make another metal shell drum? Here is a picture of Goldenberg with a Gladstone drum, but I'm not sure it is his. It is of some note that the stand for the drum looks to be the same as the Ted Reed photo on his Syncopation book and on the BG book by Chet Falzerano.