The strata wraps were a bit inconsistent. The later shells were prepped a dark color before wrapped so the clear spots in the pearl look different on those later Fullerton shells. The earlier look a bit more orangey because of the clear spots in the finish...you are seeing the actual shell. Out of the 3 stratas, pink, blue and black, the blue has the most variations. If you have Rob Cooks The Rogers Book 2nd ed. there is a pic I took of about 6 blue strata snares lined up in a row. No fade just different batches of pearl over the coarse of OH67-CAearly 70s. When in doubt for fade...pull a lug. Some sets all have the same batch of pearl and look to be a match. Others don't. Keep us posted if you find out if they are faded or just different batches of wrap. A drum with a lot of clear spots in the finish will make a drum look like a different animal or color completely. Hope this helps. Peace, Gary

My 9/72 Londoner is Black Strata. It's a freakin' cool mix of black, grey, white, silver, even brown....good stuff! :)