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Need help dating vintage ludwig floor tom! Last viewed: 1 hour ago

date ludwig serial vintage
Posts: 7 Threads: 4

Hi

I just bought a 1959 wfl in excellent condition. I think it's a club date kit since it only has kick, snare, and rack tom - never had a floor tom. I found a 60s 16" floor tom that the seller claims to be 62-63. There is no internal date stamp but the red felt baseball bat muffler, white interior, and the first generation ludwig script logo suggest early 60s. But the keystone badge haso a serial number 55970 which appears to fall into a gap between 64-65 according to ludwigs serial guide on their website. The reason I'm trying to figure out the date is I'm trying to figure outhat if this is mahogany poplar which should match the wfl kit. Anyone have any idea what year/shell this actually is?

Posted on 9 years ago
#1
Posts: 6524 Threads: 37

"take it to the zoo"

Actually, if you dampen the edge a little strip,(I just spit on my finger) the end grain will soak up a bit, Mahogany is very dark wood and Poplar is almost white, you should clearly see the differences if it`s mixed layers.

It`s a drum,.....Hit It !!

.....76/#XK9207 Phonic Sound Machine D454/D-505 snares !i
Posted on 9 years ago
#2
Posts: 617 Threads: 7

Serial # 55970 indicates the drum was finished in early to mid 1964

Posted on 9 years ago
#3
Posts: 560 Threads: 147

It should be the Mahogany/Poplar/Mahogany but I recently had a transition badge (from WFL to Ludwig) with a date stamp of 1959 that was Maple/poplar/maple. Mahogany is super dark so it should be easy to tell.

Posted on 9 years ago
#4
Posts: 6170 Threads: 255

I would also say that the 55970 is consistent with drums that i have in that serial range with 1964 date stamps.

Mike

Posted on 9 years ago
#5
Posts: 7 Threads: 4

Thanks everyone! The outer ply is dark so based on research and your feedback, I'm confident this is mahogany/poplar/mahagony and not a maple poplar mix - so I'm picking this one up!

Posted on 9 years ago
#6
Posts: 1345 Threads: 175

For me the shell construction is no biggy as long as the wrap matches, but I live in a country where these drums aren't exactly abundant so I'm happy to have any old Keystone badge drums. My WFL set has a Ludwig Keystone Floor Tom. Does the trick for me.

Posted on 9 years ago
#7
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