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The Porto-Pak is a very special snare drum. Punchy and articulate, this 5.5 x 13 1948 – 52 WFL Classic Porto-Pak snare drum is difficult to find these days. This drum was born out of the need for gigging musicians, be bop and club players to get their drums into the taxi cabs and onto smaller band stands and still hit the spot.
Read moreI got this rare drum from Bill Wanser of Olympic Drums & Percussion. Bill also pointed out a Ludwig Drummer magazine article that places Rose Pearl at 1929, this aligns perfectly as the Standard-Sensitive model was first seen in 1929. Bill agrees that this was an uncatalogued finish, L & L obviously had the material but it was never seen in a catalog, only in a Ludwig Drummer Magazine article.
Read moreI call it a “Monday Morning at the Office” drum because the scroll pattern is in every panel but there is no “Ludwig Chicago” engraving that would normally be just left of the strainer.
Read moreIt took me years to finally find a Ludwig Las Vegas 4 x 13 Snare Drum. I finally got the opportunity in May of this year to purchase one from a private seller in the U.S., although it did come at a bit of an inconvenient time. I was lying on a stretcher in the hospital waiting to go into the operating room for my scheduled spine surgery when I received a text message from the seller wanting to discuss my interest in purchasing this snare drum.
Read moreI really like the Ludwig pre-serial # Super Sensitive snare drum. I have 10 of them in my collection from the 1920’s – 1970’s. This month I will feature 3 of them that are from 1961 – 1964.
Read moreI’ve always been a fan of the blue and black “bowling ball” oyster finishes that Ludwig introduced in 1971. The blue is my favorite and I have had a couple of Hollywood kits (12, 13, 16, 22) over the years, but I’ve always wanted a Downbeat kit (13, 16, 22) with a rail consolette.
Read moreThis article documents the types and sizes of drums recorded in a large database of 1960s Ludwig Keystone badge drums to provide a glimpse into Ludwig’s 1960s production.
Read moreIn 2009, I saw an ad for a 1930’s Ludwig Standard 5 x 14 snare drum re-issue. Adrian Kirchler, owner of AK Drums in Valdaora di Sotto Italy, was making 60 replicas of this 2-piece shell snare. Even though I heard about it late, I was able to get on the list to purchase one through Long & McQuade, a musical instrument store in Toronto.
Read moreThe entire drum is bright gold plated. L & L did offer gold plating as an option so this drum could be a special order or the drum may have been plated after market.
Read moreThe Ludwig & Ludwig catalog of 1937 offered a Super -Ludwig Drum outfit consisting of a 14”x28” single tension bass drum, 5”x14” Super-Ludwig snare drum in “Abalone Pearl,” plus various other traps and cymbals, but no ‘separate tension’ tom toms. Slingerland, however, did offer separate tension tom toms in its 1936 (and presumably 1937) catalog in “Abalone Pearl.”
Read moreIn 2010, I purchased a 4.5 x 14 White Marine Pearl Broadway New Era snare drum from Soul Drums in Toronto. Over the course of time, I traded the drum to Century Drums, previously located in Toronto, for another drum. I regretted that decision and kept my eye out for a chance to buy another one. Luckily just last year, Soul Drums had another 4.5 x 14 Broadway New Era snare only this time in Red Sparkle finish. I’m not parting with this one.
Read moreI started to conceptualize this many years ago following a glimpse of a SS Ludwig Timp-Tom trio set.
After making a trade with a fellow drummer and friend for a beautiful original set of Timps recently in 14”, 16” & 18” I got to work
I was very fortunate to be able to buy this drum from a new friend, Bob Campbell, who lives in the US. I had been looking for this drum for years.
Read moreI was looking for one of these beautiful drums to add to my collection and found this one on drumsellers.com. I was able to contact George Lawrence who did a great job in helping me obtain it from a collector who was selling some of his collection
Read moreThe second was the 100th Anniversary Black Beauty. “Often imitated but never duplicated, Ludwig set the standard for all others to follow with the Black Beauty. The 100th Anniversary edition, hand-engraved and numbered by master craftsman John Aldridge, is more ornately appointed than all others before it, and features the mark of three generations of Ludwig history. “Chief” Keystone badge”.
Read moreWhen I started collecting Ludwig snare drums, I learned about the early 60’s Supras which I thought were all made of brass. Little did I know that some of the early Supras were made from steel and aluminum.
Read moreThere were very few Super Ludwigs produced with WFL badges which makes them very rare. The Transition Badge, as known by collectors, had the Ludwig logo on it and was used in 1958 and 1959.
Read moreI'm an architect and custom builder and have a difficult time restoring stuff. I have to customize everything and make it express my individuality. For instance, my daily driver is a hot rod 1952 Willys pick up truck with a custom extended cab and a fuel injected 454.
Read moreHere we have a nice example of an early 1950’s Leedy and Ludwig Knob Tension kit. This unique outfit first appeared in the 1951 catalog and made its last appearance in 1953.
Read moreThe 1st Generation of Super Ludwigs were made from 1925 – 1935 and they made 5 different sizes.
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