17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

[piper2b]

Our band just recently "re-gathered" its drum equipment and we are trying to find the parts to put all of the drums in working order.

One of the drums is a 17" Ludwig tenor -- I've measured it several times and cannot make it a 16" or 18" no matter how I hold the tape measure! :humm: There is no serial number on the drum. Does anyone have any idea about the age of this drum and are we totally out of luck finding heads for it?

Thanks for any info/comments

[Drew McPheeters]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Hmmmm....

Never heard of a 17" drum myself.

Just a thought. Is this the measurement of the wooden shell without the rim?

[Petdrummer]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Hi Drew,

I've got a beautiful white pearl 1930s Leedy with a 17" shell. If anyone finds heads, or knows of someone that re-fleshes calfskin, please let me know.


Thanks
Galen


Never heard of a 17" drum myself.

Just a thought. Is this the measurement of the wooden shell without the rim? [/QB][/QUOTE]

[Drew McPheeters]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Well, I wasn't really thinking about drums that use skin.... but I'd look at some of those fife-n-drum places for leads.

[Pete Walen]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Piper2b -

The Ludwig logo around the air vent will be a good clue to the age of the drum - certainly far better than the dimensions. Collectors and vintage drum sites have examples of how the logo has changed over the years and that should be a good start as to the age of the drum.

Also, the direct approach works sometimes as well. Inside the drum shell, for many years, Ludwig placed a stamp of the date the drum was assembled. It may have faded so you may need to look carefully. Also, sometimes there will be notes scribbled as to who repaired a drum previously, when, and where. I've got one old drum with the note written in ink - "Repaired by (name), Holland, Mich., June, 1927." Brass hardware - gorgeous and incredible sound.

Cheers -

[piper2b]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Yes -- I measured the shell without the rim because I wasn't willing to believe the 17" measurement of the head. A guy (over the phone) at the local music shop is an ex-Bridgemen drummer and he thought the drum must be really old, but the band has existed only since the mid-70s. I suppose someone may have donated an old, used drum back then but no one in the band remembers.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll check more carefully for numbers inside the drum and explore some websites. I appreciate the help!

[Petdrummer]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

I would guess the drum is from the 1920s or 30s. Apparently 17' was an option then. The Leedy I have is stamped 1936 inside. Easily readable throught the tremendous rip in the bottom head. I have one 26" calfskin head from a 1933 Ludwig Pioneer bass I refurbished, but haven't worked up the nerve to slice it up and attempt re-tucking it myself. It was a fairly common skill in the pre-mylar days.

Both the Leedy and the Ludwig have the floating tension rod system that inspired the Hossbilt.


Galen

Originally posted by piper2b:
...A guy (over the phone) at the local music shop is an ex-Bridgemen drummer and he thought the drum must be really old, but the band has existed only since the mid-70s. ... [/QB]

[piper2b]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

I'm a newbie drummer -- what makes the tension rod system a "floating" one?

I did find a serial number on the drum that indicates a 1970's vintage (yet another thing about that decade to aggravate me). I did find some reference to oversized shells on some of the vintage drum websites that leads me to believe that Ludwig wasn't very particular about consistent sizing of the shells. The drum guy at the local music shop measured the drum at 16 7/8" or 43 cm, inspected the inside of the drum for serial numbers and declared it a Premier drum that someone had rebuilt with Ludwig hardware (why they bothered to put a Ludwig badge on it is anybody's guess). Anyway, the UK doesn't have 17" or 43 cm heads, so I guess I am out of luck.

The drum is currently sporting a REMO head, but I can't find a number to contact them and no one answers my emails sent from their sucky website.

I love the way Hosbilts look and sound, but we are a small band and purchasing one of those would be a true stretch for us -- we need many other things and a low tenor is a luxury item for us.

[Petdrummer]

Re: 17" Ludwig Tenor -- Ever Heard of?

Originally posted by piper2b:
I'm a newbie drummer -- what makes the tension rod system a "floating" one?

I don't know for certain if floating is the official term, but the tension rods are single rods running from a claw on one rim to a claw on the other rim. They are not anchored to the shell. They draw the two rims together to tention the heads. Easily seen in the Hossbilt design.

Most drums (Premier/Pearl) have a screw that goes through a claw or hole in the rim and thread into a lug bracket that is bolted on to the shell. They tension the head by pulling on the shell

Galen