FYI My '89 Tama Granstar Custom set of drums is vintage.

No one will ever be able to tell me it's not. hehe

Yup!

depending on your def. they are exactly that!

I am in the unenviable position of having to define "vintage drum" for the new NSMD Blue Book of Drums I am writing for Blue Books inc. My take on it is that the word vintage is only one of a set of words used to describe old drums. The word vintage in its purest form really only means the year of production and it came from the wine industry. It does not denote rarity, collectability, popularity, quality, etc. "What vintage is that wine?" "Why, it's a 2011 Ripple, dummy!"

But then again we do use the word vintage in the common vernacular to denote something that is old, rare, collectable, not in production anymore, quality instruments of a bygone era, etc. How old? Therein lies the rub, eh? I have chosen to use the word vintage to denote any model of drum that is no longer in production. Why? Because it is at that point that collectors and buyers and part seekers start looking for drums and parts at the sources known for advertising used drums: i.e. the vintage drum community, Ebay, this site, NSMD, etc.. So I think that this is a fair use of the word vintage and one that most can agree on because it does NOT define by a certain period or year, or by a quality level. It keeps the description neutral and uses the word as a noun instead of as an adjective. Adjectives are always subject to interpretation. Vintage would mean only "no longer produced". "Desireability" is so subjective that it is futile to define it. I like 60s Gretsch drums -the other guy likes vintage DW drums from the late eighties. Both are vintage because neither one is in production any more (the production materials and specs changed).

Classic is a good word for drums that have withstood the test of time and remained popular. I think this is what most people mean when they describe a drum as a "vintage drum", just as connoisseurs of wine would say "vintage wines" to denote old wines that are good; "It was a very good vintage, a classic". Yet, use of the word classic is a subjective thing also. I find that what usually defines classic is the time period in which the drummer first started playing drums. Some will say that certain drums from before the seventies were better made and sounded better, when what they really mean is that they liked the those drums because they worked well and sounded good. I can tell you with at least a small degree of authority as a drum shop owner for 25 years that many high end drums made these days are better built, more durable and, in many cases, sound as good or better than old drums. I find no old drum that rivals Johnny Craviotto's snare drums in sound and construction quality, for instance. The glues are better, the metal parts are made better, etc. So, classic should be used only with drum models that are universally accepted as having withstood the test of time.

Rare is self explanatory; hard to find, thus more expensive than the original price

Collectable; Buy it at fair market value, and it will increase in value over the long haul.

Antique; Really old. I see it used mostly with drums that predate Gene Krupa and the swing era; before tunable bottom heads on toms. Dixieland drums from the teens, twenties and thirties.

Anyway that is how I'm seeing it right now but I'm open to any logical alternative explanation that makes more sense or would be more readily accepted by the majority of vintage drummers (now there's a term that is easy to define :-)

Very well put.

Interesting take. One thing I have learned since I asked this question is that there are several interpretations of the word vintage and coming to some sort of consensus is most likely impossible. I have found that age, collectability, desirability, quality, rarity and personal opinion all weigh heavily in one's qualifying a drum as vintage.

when its too old to find parts or repair and your afraid it will brake or 1 of a kind then like me its vintage !!!!!!!

How About "if there's no way you would gig with it" then its vintage!

I will vote for any USA drum made before 1970,and made IN AMERICA.Ebays Vintage area is a joke.Same goes for non-USA drums.V

1. When the wrap or finish ambers (yellow) out.

2. When the company changes it's hardware and you can't get replacement parts.

3. When the company goes belly-up or is bought out more than twice.

4. When you're at Guitar Center, talking to the "drum tech" (phrase used loosely) about your drums and he says, "Huh? Never heard of them."

5. When Cherri (or Pooder) sells a kit like yours for 4 times (or more) what you paid for yours and some sucker actually buys them.

:D

"4. When you're at Guitar Center, talking to the "drum tech" (phrase used loosely) about your drums and he says, "Huh? Never heard of them."

"LOOSELY" being the operative term here.

I know GC does their best from the pool of candidates to hire at least experienced drummers but I have heard so much mis-information from drum counter employees that I wouldn't be surprised if someone said "Huh?" never heard of DW!

I honestly overheard this exact quote while at GC one Sunday afternoon.

Customer: "What do you think of Ludwig drums?"

GC Drum Tech: "They used to make good drums in the '80s but then they went out of business and now you can only get used Ludwigs"

I wouldn't be influenced by the opinions of GC "drum techs"