I love that configuration I have owned many slingerland Gene Krupa 1N kits which are those exact sizes !

Dan - These are my Burgundy Sparkle 58' Gretsch (3-ply Jasper shells, Brooklyn plant Round Badge) kit in 13", 16", 20" w/5.5" snare. Telling you what I like about the configuration is easy... it's everything you could possibly want in a drum kit.

The 20" is deep, punchy and really warm.

The 13", 16" tom configuration gives the kit a solid bottom end. Again, the warmth of tone is outstanding with these drums in these sizes.

The snare in the kit was a complete surprise to me because until I owned this one, I never much cared for Gretsch wood shell snares. This one has it all.

Great size combination, with a range that can suit any musical situation. Easier to load in and out with the smaller bass drum too! Still, the 20" does the job admirably.

[IMG]http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/n632/PurdieShuffle/k1.jpg[/IMG]

13", 16", 20" - love them.

John

I was inquiring in part because I put together a set from loners to use this spring and possibly leave with this band for future use. They came out pretty well. The only drawback is that there are some parts that are not correct for the year of manufacturing of the shells, which is late in 1968. However, nothing really to impact the sound. I got them back together this week after flying with them disassembled in a couple of well padded hard-shell cases.

I set them up today and find the sound is very good and much as John describes for his Gretsch set. Early last year I used standard 20,12,14 and later in the year a 22,13,16. I think I'm going to like this middle of the range set-up, and agree that hauling the smaller bass will be a bit easier (I always like that part). I have them coupled to a COB PowerTone, so a nice compact set-up overall. I do have a right-handed 12" tom for use by others, as we sometimes play multi-band nights where the other drummers come to the city here from the outlying areas. They typically want the other drum, which I don't tend to use. It will be easy enough to drop the second drum when I'm on and that is why I chose to use a Londoner bass. I actually like the feel with the tom up on that kind of mount.

The bass is original in jet black, but all the toms were re-wrapped drums on which the pearl was shot, but the shells and other parts still very good. Of course, being jet black it all matches perfectly as that wrap never changed over the years.

So far I'm pleased with it and am anxious to give it a real workout.

PS - John, that Gretsch kit is fabulous looking. Is it all original, and if so, where did you find that and how long have you had it? Looks like something Mel Lewis would have played. That is the Gretsch "Bop" kit, is it not?

PSS - vintagemore2000,

I checked out the Vintage Drum Guide catalog section and did see the 1N kit you referred to. I think I would like that in the era with the set-o-matic mount. One of these days I'm going to have to go Slingerland to shed some weight. Rogers drums are quite heavy. :o

Gretsch "Bop" and Slingerland 1N from Vintage Drum Guide catalog cuts.

Dan asked:

> "Is it all original?"

With the exception of the wrap, it's all original down to the last nut, bolt and washer. The original parts were 'all there' when I bought the kit. The drums all had major wrap issues and I mean -major- issues when I got it. The only thing holding the original sky-blue pearl wrap to the drums was the hardware. Rehabbing the kit involved performing a complete re-wrap.

> "where did you find that"

In the same place that I find many of the great scores I get to make... the VDF For Sale section! The original owner of the kit, a 73 year-old gentlemen who was a first-time poster here, offered the kit for sale for $350. I bought them, had them shipped up north to me from their original home in Louisiana and I put them right again with an additional investment of $250. for wrap. These 50's Gretsch kits are hard to come by 'intact' and at a price that I can afford. It was very fortunate timing for me to find this one, have the expendable cash on hand to pull the trigger, and then to follow through and be able to save it.

> "how long have you had it? Looks like something Mel Lewis would have played. That is the Gretsch "Bop" kit, is it not?"

I've had it for about two years. And yes, definitely something Mel would have played back in the day. Here's a clip of Mel using the 13", 16" tom combination with what looks like an 18" bass drum! In a big-band setting yet! Only a confident and competent bop drummer can pull-off using an 18" BD to compete for bandwidth in a big band, but Mel loved the 13"/16" tom combination.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO-LoinkYpY"]Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band drum solo - YouTube[/ame]

I'm not certain, but I think my kit is the Progressive Jazz model because of the 13, 16, 20 combination. The Bop Kits would have had 18" bass drums with smaller toms. One of the Gretsch Gurus will chime in and correct me if I'm wrong. It's a great sounding drum set and I love the sizes. Tune em up, or down, whatever you need.

John

I've often thought a 13" tom looks too big on a 20" BD, but I don't see that in any of the pictures in this thread. A mere visual concern anyway...

Interesting that C&C and some others are offering a lot of 12/16/22 configurations. I had thought that meant others agreed about a 13" looking too big on even a 22" BD, but in reality anything goes and it's all good!

20/13/16 were by far the most common MIJ kit sizes...

Mitch

From my perspective, John, it looks like Lewis was using the 20,13,16 layout and I'll bet that was a driver for Gretsch to feature the set in their catalog during that era. Stop the track at 3:14 and you'll see the proportions are right-on with your Gretsch kit. As to calling it Bop, Gretsch called that kit Bop and the 20,12,14 Progressive. Nowadays, most do call the 18" bass set-up Bop though.

As to Mitch's comment on what tom looks too big in relationship to the other drums, the one size range that has always "looked" a bit odd to me is 20,12,16. However, over the years I've realized that the tonal range was what that setup was after. You could get a very high pitch when needed, but also the very low end if you wanted to beat out Sing, Sing, Sing or Bo Diddly. That set-up seems to have disappeared for the last time in the 60's. You never know though. Someone may resurrect it any day given all the vintage reproductions out there.