i'd buy this in the interim..

http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/showthread.php?t=45754

mike

Here is a scan form the wfl 1949 catalog. [ame]http://www.drumarchive.com/Ludwig/1949_WFL.pdf[/ame]

Hmm. All the pics of drums in the catalog are with the newer, classic style lugs. There are pics of the matching lugs in the Parts section but I don't think this particular scan answers the question.

Mike - being picky about this situation...no project! :)

I've heard of 10x14 and 12x15 but have never seen or heard of 12x14.

There's a center lugged 12x14 in the 1940 Ludwig catalog. I don't have WFL catalogs going back that far but it was a standard size at the time for Slingerland and Gretsch too so WFL probably made one as well. Actually finding one might be a problem.

You see a lot of vintage pictures from that time frame of mixed sets with the bass and small tom being one brand and then the floor tom (or larger mounted tom) being something else although in the same sort of wrap (usually WMP or BDP). It seems that a lot of working drummers weren't too concerned about keeping the same brand when they expanded their sets as long as the color matched. I think you might consider accepting anything that seems appropriate to use in the short term and then keep hunting for the "right" drum. As a rule they seem to pop up quicker when you don't really need it anymore (and conversely the supply dries up the second the hunt for a particular drum begins).

I owned one ten years ago. It had Zephyr lugs.

They did make a 12x14 but finding any WFL drums with those lugs is tough. Those are called imperial lugs, though Ludwig and Ludwig had an imperial lug. A lot of WFL sets back in the late 30's/early 40's had mix and match sets with some imperial lug drums, zephyr lug drums ETC.

The imperial lugs were introduced with WFL's first drums in 1936/1937 and the design was used up until the war. In 1946 after the war was over WFL resumed using zephyr lugs and I think these lugs(at least on snare drums) until the invention of the classic lug sometime in 1947. I have the 1950 catalog and there are imperial lugs still listed in the parts section on the back but I'm sure they were not around long.

Most WFL sets in the late 30's early 40's did not come with a floor tom so finding them is pretty rare. The early ones also used a cradle instead of a set of legs. I have a WMP imperial lug 16x16 that was origionally set in a cradle. Someone upgraded the drum(I'm guessing in the 50's) to a set of the WFL spring loaded legs used on all 50's drums. I'm hoping to find a matching bass drum and tom someday but have not really been looking too hard as I am in no rush.

That tom is a perfect match to my floor tom..... Do you have the full set minus the floor tom?

Thanks guys. Y'all are a resource!

K.O. - you're right with that last comment!

wflkurt - I have a 14x16. Both orphans and a perfect match. My plan was always to make the 16" a bass (no drilling if I can help myself) and put together a 12/14/16 bop kit. Both the 12 and 16 sound incredible; if I can find a 14....heaven!

I do have a 12x14 Radio King project...but there's no wrap that will match the originals well enough (that I know of) so that's been sitting around collecting dust.

That sounds like it would be a pretty cool bop set! Those WFL drums are pretty hard to find but you may get lucky. Even if you could find a marcher(WFL was offering those too in the late 30's/early 40's). Make sure you 12" tom is really 12. They also offered a 7x11 as well and from a first look they look like an 8x12.