I would liken Gretsch to be more like Chrysler than BMW. Sonor would be more like BMW than Gretsch I would think.

Leedy would be like American Motors/Nash/Rambler/Hudson, etc.

I would put Sonor=Mercedes. My point was, I guess, that Ludwig and Slingerland were "everymans drums" while Gretsch appealed to the "art" crowd. As in Luddys and Slingys were primarily used for pop music and Gretsch for jazz.

I understand where you are coming from, however.....in the 60's Gretsch had a rock following too......Mitch Mitchell and (dare I mention him as a drummer?) Mickey Dolenz to name a couple.....but yes, I would agree that most Gretsch owners were Jazz-heads.....BTW, some of the Artsy folks did drive Chryslers back then too...LOL!

Could I modify/expand that a little:

Ludwig=Chevrolet (basic, dependable, large numbers, a cut above Slingys - only because I'm a Ludwig/Chevy guy)

Slingys=Ford (basic, dependable, large numbers)

Gretsch=Mopar Hemi or what would be the equivalent of an American Saab or Alfa Romeo (high quality, relatively low production numbers, perhaps not the most practical with the out of round Jasper shells, tight fitting heads and difficult rail consolette, mechanical fuel injection, but an exotic and unique driving experience and an extremely strong and loyal cult following leading to its high collectability and value)

Leedy, WFL and Camco=Packard (old school solid quality, old school cult following, very rare, not sporty enough to have caught on with younger generations)

Oops, I forgot Rogers - Cadillac

Yeah. Rogers=Cadillac. I think also that drum sizes have an awful lot to do with pricing. Almost any 18" BD or 14"x14" FT will fetch more than a 22" BD or a 16" FT. Again, art crowd versus pop.

Every company back then had some kind(s) of "signature" things.

Rogers' thing was innovative hardware.

Gretsch's thing was innovative sound.

Ludwig's thing was to sell more drums than anyone else.

Slingerland's thing was to be a rival of Ludwig. Burger Kin

It's really just a matter of supply and demand. I think the demand for vintage Gretsch is about the same as it is for vintage Ludwig. However, the supply of vintage Gretsch is far, far lower than that of vintage Ludwig, thus the price goes through the roof. The same thing happens in every single antiques/vintage market.

It's funny how people complain about drums being seen as collectibles rather than instruments until it's time to sell their vintage drums, then they want the "collectible" prices!

-Bill

Besides the design features, a part of Gretsch's success, I've always thought, was due to the fact that they were in New York where the others were in Green Acres. Gretsch sponsored Gretsch Nights at Birdland and you can bet that Philly Joe and the other Gretsch boppers paid nothing or near it for their drums, which just happened to come with 50's Istanbul K's. :)

Micky Dolenz would have sat behind whatever drums they told him to, the Monkees even used Gretsch amps.

I always thought that the reason Mitch Mitchell used Gretsch was because he wanted (very obviously) to be Elvin. He was a rock Elvin.

Excellent point. LOL @ "Green Acres" :)