By Steven Zemanek
A book I wrote on the Ludwig Line of bass drum pedals exists for one reason. I ran out of room!
Collecting bass drum pedals was the farthest thing from my mind. Being an avid Ludwig drum player and fan, I decided to collect a drum set from every year in the 1960s on top of my original 1968 Hollywood Mod Orange set. It became apparent very quickly there wouldn’t be enough room in my basement to set up and display 10 drum sets after I acquired the fourth drum set. I sold three of them and kept my Mod Orange.
Now what? I had to collect something. Bass drum pedals seemed like the way to go. Ludwig & Ludwig, Wm. F. Ludwig, W.F.L., Leedy & Ludwig, Ludwig and Ghost. Something from Ludwig I could collect and not take up the whole basement. It started out small and turned into somewhat of an obsession.
I didn’t want to collect them all and decided to stay in the time frame of 1909 through 1969. Drum companies didn’t issue catalogs every year. Illustrations were readily used from catalog to catalog and not always updated the next time a catalog was issued. I want you to see photographs from the Ludwig bass drum pedal family tree from 1909 through 1969, not just the illustrations that were in catalogs. Most bass drum pedals from that point on were actual photographs.
What you are looking at today are excerpts from that book geared toward the GHOST bass drum pedal. I’m showing you versions and not variations. A variation would be things such as springs, nuts, bolts, screws and washers changing throughout a version’s production run. Ghost being the hardest line to confirm. Ghost model numbers and the years of production will be estimated as close as possible.
The third Edition of my publication will be ready for release sometime at the end of 2022. The first two editions were released as soft cover 8.5" x 11" full color publications. The third edition will be a virtual edition and available for download. I estimate it to be in the $20 to $25 range per download. Updates on the release date and final purchase price to come toward the end of this year. I would love to know if you have updates to my publication. Please drop me a line at sazemanek1@hotmail.com. “If you’d like to hear more about the Ludwig Line, please listen to my Drum History Podcast Episode with Bart Van Der Zee @ https://youtu.be/s58nKqM5qdE”.
Information contained herein was gathered from several sources. Individuals, catalogs, reference materials and through collecting the actual bass drum pedals themselves. No copyright infringement is intended.
You came here to see and read about the GHOST, so let's get to it. I've extracted several pages from my book so you can see the actual images of the Ghost's progression and their descriptions. I hope you have as much fun reading and looking at this as I did producing this. Enjoy! SAZ.
Brief Company History
1947 - 1975 • Ghost Incorporated
John R. (Bob) Ramsey of Springfield Oregon starts his Ghost bass drum pedal business on October 27, 1947 when he applies for the first Ghost Patent. It was granted on May 8, 1951. Ludwig bought the rights for GHOST in 1975. Ludwig discontinued the Ghost bass drum pedal in 1981 due to difficulties with the manufacturing process.
First edition • 1947 - 1951
The progression of a Ghost bass drum pedal can be determined by how the linkage attached to the rocker arm and footboard, openings in the footboard and wording put on the footboard and caps.
Second edition • 1952 - 1957
The second and third editions are also known as Transition models.
Third edition • 1958 - 1966
First appearance of STAR washers on the rod/linkage assembly. STAR washers would remain through the final edition of the Ghost bass drum pedal when Ludwig discontinued it in 1981.
Fourth edition • 1967 - 1969
First appearance of the redesigned Ghost after their second patent application. This design would remain the same with variation changes. The final edition of the Ghost was in 1981 when Ludwig discontinued it. First appearance of Ghost on the footboard.
Ghost Double Beater
Year Unknown
Ghost employee David Owens: “Bob Ramsey was always working to make the pedals better. And special work for jazz and rock pros like the two beater setup. Steve, I made that double beater diagram on Facebook to try and show how it worked.” “I asked Roy Peeler (Ghost employee) about it and he said he did not remember making a double beater setup. I believe what I saw was some design work Bob Ramsey was doing for rock drummers.” “As I think more, the design would have to have the bottom beater strike when the pedal goes up, and the top beat striking when the pedal is depressed. It would take some experimenting to get a quick bass roll going.” I made this pedal from parts knowing I would never find a prototype.
Fifth edition • 1970 - 1975
According to Ghost employee David Owens “Sometimes the painter would give a metallic silver green or blue finish rather than the plain silver. Seems like about 1975 the hole in the footplate was cast solid for more strength because a few had returned broken. Also used a set screw rather than wing nut to tighten.”
Sixth edition • 1976 - 1978
First Edition under the Ludwig name. New patent No. appears on the frame.
Ludwig / Ghost
Seventh edition • 1979 - 1980
Ludwig name added to the Ghost footboard.
Ludwig / Ghost
Eighth edition • 1981
Ludwig name is added to the caps. Discontinued in 1981. The Forgotten GHOST Pedal website has Bill Ludwig Jr. stating: “It was a maintenance issue. The clock springs were so hard to get in place.”
© Copyright 2021. Published by Steven A. Zemanek with all rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any fashion without explicit permission.
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