Hmmm. I bought mine early - like I stated above - but mine doesn't have that flaw.......from what I recall anyway. I haven't played it much though. I'll play it this week and check it out again. Thanks for the information. It is a great drum - however, I do recall the strainer being not as 'high quality' as I expected. The rest of the drum is pretty cool - heavy brass with the very nice green finish. Carl Palmer says it's Bell Brass..........some say it is not. I don't know for sure but you'd think he'd know :rolleyes:

Any model Slingerland snare in original Mardi Gras Pearl to match my cocktail kit...

I dug the drum out and sure enough - the strainer does not function properly - it does not fully release. I'll remove it and see if I can do something simple to fix it. If not, I may see if I can find another strainer and replace it. I don't want to drill holes so it may not be a simple fix. I'm not sending back to where I bought it or to Ludwig....I'm in Canada and that doesn't sound like it would be easy/cost-effective either.

An aside: Ray Ayotte (drum builder in Canada) told me years ago how to get around drilling holes - using the same holes in the shell. He suggested at that time to make a plate to fit to the existing holes. You then mount the new strainer onto the plate - it can be done......but I've never tried it.

Thanks for posting the video.

Gary