Daring to take a closer look

Most drummers don't look too deeply into what they play on. As long as the drums sound good and look good, that's all that really matters. We all prefer one brand or another. Why? Likely because of certain details we're fond of. That applies to modern drums as well as not-so-modern drums. Even vintage drummers only go just so far into the details without getting into all that "history crap."

But vintage-minded drummers know more about drum gear than others. They'll know the difference between a Jasper shell and a Keller. They'll know what woods certain drum shells were made of. They can recognize at a glance one make from another, basically by the lug casings or the tom holders or other hardware - even when the bass drum head doesn't have a logo on it.

It's the hardware that visibly separates one brand of drums from another. Otherwise we'd be pretty hard-pressed to distinguish one brand's finished drum shell from any other.

Vintage Drum Sets	Vintage Drum Parts	Vintage Snare Drums

Obviously, you have to be pretty interested in drums to learn such details. You have to want to look more closely to be able to know about drum shells and drum hardware. It's a passion born out of interest. It's an interest born from learning about the details. It's a knowledge gathered by looking into and learning the history of drums.

In the old days, it was catalogs from drum companies which provided the details we've come to learn and know. Today, the internet provides an unprecedented tool for research, where nearly anything can be googled from the comfort of home or office. Yet, even with the power of the internet, there are some things that just haven't been uploaded.

Researching the finer details of drums and drum set history can be a frustrating passion, even for experienced researchers. Ask one question, and it could send you into a whirl of confusion - for example, who was the first to use metal rod tensioning instead of rope tension? With a shrug, most of us might guess Duplex... But did the Duplex Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, Missouri actually introduce threaded rod tensioning? Or were they simply the first to manufacture it or put it to market?

Someone from St. Louis might have a viable answer, or have heard something along that line from a friend or a relative who knew someone who used to work in the factory when it first got going... But who has any proof?

I've read little blurbs here or there that stated how Leedy introduced the self-aligning lug. I don't contest it, because I haven't read the same claim from any other brand. But is that fact documented anywhere? Does the Leedy Manufacturing Company have a U.S. Patent on it? Has anyone seen it stated in a particular catalog?

Leedy & Ludwig	Duplex Drums	WFL Drums

Both Remo Belli and Marion "Chick" Evans proudly claim to have been first to introduce the synthetic drum head in 1957. Where's the proof?

I've always been interested in the details of drums and dum sets, and fascinated with the history of them, which has led me to ponder questions that aren't readily apparent by looking at catalogs or googling key words.

1.) When did tension casings (lug casings) replace tube lugs?

And who introduced the first ones?

(I believe Leedy introduced the self-aligning lug, and therefore the cast lug casing as well. Anyone know which year - '32, '34...?)

2.) When did the rail consolette single tom holder replace the hoop-clamp holder?

And who had the consolette first? (I'm guessing Walberg & Auge introduced it in 1952, because I don't see any rail consolettes yet on the illustrations in the Leedy & Ludwig or WFL 1951 catalogs, or in the 1951 Gretsch catalog or Slingerland 1951 flyers.)

Harry Cangany, in his book "The Great American Drums and the companies that made them, 1920 - 1969" states on page 54 that the Walberg & Auge rail consolette appeared in the 1930s. I respectfully disagree. Nowhere have I seen one in any catalog illustration before 1952. Toms were still using hoop clamp holders in the photos and illustrations before that. However, Mr. Cangany suggests that Bill Mather, a New York Slingerland dealer, invented the rail consolette, and Walberg & Auge built it. That sounds reasonably credible. But it wasn't in the 1930s. a 1951 Slingerland catalog illustration shows the 1-N Gene Krupa Deluxe Radio King still with the No.1285 (hoop clamp) tom holder. So I'm still guessing it had to be 1952 or '53.

3.) When did the first metal legs appear on floor toms? Who was first to use them?

(They're shown on the WFL 1942 wartime Victorious outfits, and on Slingerland's 1942 Rolling Bomber outfits.)

4.) When did permanent bass drum spurs replace hoop-clamp spurs, and who had them first?

(I'd read once that Phil Grant thought-up the disappearing (telescoping) bass drum spur for Gretsch in 1946, but I can't find any confirmation on it.)

5.) When did the first free-standing cymbal stands appear?

And who introduced them? (In photos taken during 1938, Gene Krupa's Slingerland set-up includes free-standing cymbal stands, though they may not have shown up in catalogs until at least the 1939 Ludwig & Ludwig catalog's New Royal Maple Deluxe outfit.)

6.) Who was the first drummer to be recorded playing with drum brushes?

(This one will "stump the band," no doubt. All I've been able to discover is that early ragtime jazz pioneer Warren "Baby" Dodds was seen playing with brushes as early as 1923. We know that drum brushes were originally invented as fly-swatters in 1913 by Alliston and Weinstein, and that Bill Ludwig didn't patent them.)

Many of my fellow drummers reading this piece will shrug and disregard it, and others might take up the challenge of one or more of the questions I've posed here. Maybe a few will feel encouraged to do some sleuthing and see what they can find out. I'm curious to see what kind of drum historians might be visiting this site, and who will have some enlightenment to offer us all.

-- Ken Hart -- (Beatnikjazz) 3/1/09

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