The finishes evolved through the years, after the shiny 60's early 70's finish, then they got a coated grey finish and now the present it is in a Black Galaxy finish. And the p-85 strainer has had some cosmetic changes as well.

what mark said was right on the money. people seem to like the older ones the most. all of them seem to be pleasing to drummers though. the further they got along the acro evolution scale, it appears the coating gets a little thicker. this could give them a more focused controlled sound in the newer models. the 60's models and some of the 70's as well,had anodized finshes that are very thin. some refer to these as "raw" finish acrolites.

mike

Thanks for the info. One other question is the shell basically the same except for the finish? If that's the case then the extra dollars that the Keystone brings is due to age and the fact that they have a Keystone badge. I know they all have their own unique sound but that's true even of two identical blacros. I mean you can have two essentially identical snares made a year apart and they will sound different. Plus you have to add in different heads and head combinations.

also a very big difference not noted is the rim thickness it changed from early on to later making a sound difference from early keystone to black and white ...

hard to say if the shells are the same. 60's and 70's,probably yes. its the same argument as the supra shells being the same through the years. good to remember though that the acros and the supras share the same exact shells during the eras in which they were made. they are one piece ludalloy shells just with different cosmetics and number of lug holes..

mike

I have a late issue Acrolite that sounds TERRIBLE! The problem is the lack of a snare bed, or should I say an extremely shallow bed. I've had plenty of Acro's from different decades and each sounded great and easy to tune. This particular Acro is a real PITA! The strainer has to be tightened so much to pull the wires into the head just to get a snare sound!

I've decided to experiment by transferring most of the parts to a Worldmax Black Dawg shell (black over brass) and see what happens. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Mark

mark-is this a black galaxy acrolite? either way...have you tried a Ludwig snare side head on it yet? if not, do so. can make a big difference..the beds are usually pretty subtle on these shells.

mike

Hi Mike!

Merry Christmas to you! Yes, I've tried a Ludwig snare-side head, which tend to be my head of choice! Makes no difference. And, yes, it is a Black Galaxy Acrolite. I have another Black Galaxy, with Ludwig snare-side head, that tunes up great and sounds fantastic. I've tried all combinations of heads and wires (I've got many to choose from!), but makes no difference in the pathetic snare response from this shell. Since I love to experiment, I'll soon have an Acrolite with a Black-Brass shell!

Mark