Total eye candy ahead....

Location: Ontonagon, Michigan
Price: $21,850.00 B.I.N.

Wow!- is the first thing that came to my mind when I found these beauties tonight. I have total appreciation for this drum kit. I have no idea how they sound or what kind of shells they are other than Maple with Zebrawood inlaid wraps.

Yes, I know each piece costs approximately $5,500, but I can guarantee you that you'll never see another kit like it.

Just look at the detail! The hoops alone must have taken a month to build.

I'll be the first to admit that Zebrawood isn't my favorite wood, but this kit has me memorized.

This Alusta Artworks one of a kind drum set titled “Timeless” was designed and handcrafted by artist Jon Ollila in the Alusta Artworks studio to be as striking and classy on display in your home as it will sound on the road or in your studio.

I'm not so sure I'd be taking this kit out on the road, but I could definitely see it sitting in my studio... or is that a spare bedroom?

Anyway, it's an amazing kit and appreciated by anyone who lays their eyes on it.

There are a lot more photos and a link to the sellers website on the auction site.

Cheers!

dd

Location: Camarillo, CA
Condition: Outstanding!
Price: $35,000.00

Not much to say here-

#30 of 30, never been played and every option! Even if you aren't a fan of DW you have to respect the sellers ability and mind control to buy this kit and not touch it. I was in Camarillo, CA last year and had I known about this kit I would have done everything in my power to stop by and check it out. I'll admit that I am not a huge fan of gold hardware, but these kits are a sight to behold and this one has every aspect of the ultimate collectible drum kit.

Here is my personal gift to myself a few years back. This is an unused brand new authentic R-30 Kit. One of only 30 made in a joint effort between Neil, John Good of DW and Guitar Center. I would never think of selling my prize gift to myself, but I am trying to start a new company and just need the money. I am not a drummer and they have never been drummed. They have been in an office (climate controlled) at my work. Basically, on display for people to see. I still have all the DW boxes they came in, and every accessory that was included in the once in a lifetime offer. I also added a second snare stand (24K) that the original purchase did not include. I also will throw in some personalized autographed stuff given to me buy Neil. last but not least, this is the only kit with the original sales poster that was on display at NAMM. BTW: I was the 3rd person to purchase one of these kits when they came out, and was given the most valuable build # out of all thirty (#30 of 30) last one ever built. that was the only condition I requested during the purchase.

Cheers!

dd

Location: Overland Park, Kansas
Price: $3,195.00 B.I.N. OBO-

I know there are a few fella's out there who'll argue tooth and nail that their Sonor drums sound better than anything on the planet. Luckily for us, that don't have an opinion, Sonor can still produce a visually pleasing drum as well.

Sonor calls this wood veneer wrap Scandinavian Birch, but for me, in my little world, we call it Karelian Birch Burl. It is usually most prized for its 'tear drop' figuring and obviously the more it has the more valuable it is. Length of Birch Burl also plays a huge factor in how it is priced on the open market, but fortunately for drum manufacturers drums are relatively short so they don't have to pay for the premium veneers.

For me, Karelian Birch Burl is one of my favorite burls and I commend Sonor for not putting a burst or fade on it. Perhaps this is a custom order kit and the buyer didn't like it either. Either way, this is a neat little Bop kit that needs a new home.

Flawless Sonor Designer Birch "Bop" kit in Scandinavian outer ply.

Shell sizes are:

18" dia. x 16" virgin bass drum
14" dia. x 12" suspended tom
10"dia. x 8" tom

*Track mount & "rocket launcher" also available...

Cheers!

dd

Location: New Berlin, WI
Price: $4,299.00 B.I.N.

In light of a recent discussion I was involved in over at www.SonorMuseum.com I felt compelled to post a set of drums that has 'real' Macassar Ebony on them. Oh, and welcome back from a 15 page (at the time of publish) discussion.

I know I post a lot of DW gear, but they are the easiest to find with exotic wood and I've seen this particular kit in person so I can speak the truth.

This kit is the real deal- 100%. No, it's not cheap nor is it easy to work with, but it's true beauty shines right through the high gloss lacquer. This is how it should look when you're being sold Macassar Ebony. Yes, Alpi Reconstituted veneer is real wood veneer, but don't believe for a second that it's real Macassar Ebony wood veneer.

I like Alpi products and what they do to for our industry and environment. In the real world every tree has it's own character and personality much like us. What Alpi has done is basically clone our natural beauties and make them available to the masses, but in a much cheaper fashion. They take a cheap, plentiful natural resource and make it look like something else. "Great!" I say, but it becomes a thin fuzzy line when companies are touting their products as 'real wood veneer' and not 'real wood veneer made to look like (insert your choice)".

I've owned a set of cheap Birch Sonor and loved them! They sounded great, price was right and I still couldn't play to save my life.

Bottom line is this- If it looks good to you and you have the cash to pay for it- Buy it! If you are a wood guy like myself you're gonna be upset at what some of the hang tags say at the drum store. Don't know? Send me a picture and I'll tell you exactly what it is because I'm unbiased and have no ties to anyone.

Oh, and if you are interested in purchasing the kit in the picture you can do so by .

Cheers!

dd

Location: Agoura Hills, CA
Price: $4,850.00 B.I.N.

You just have to love DW's ...er... John Good's imagination when it comes to drums. Yes, I'm a huge DW fan and I have good reason to be. That reason you ask? I'm a seasoned 25 year wood guy and I can tell you that no other drum manufacturer does wood veneer like DW.

Okay, now that we have that out of the way-

Tropical Olive, also known as Mozambique, (and if you guessed correctly it comes from Mozambique) is typically greenish in color and has a nice figuring. I personally like Mozambique and think John knocked it out of the park using this specie in the Twisted line up.

This is beautiful Twisted Tropical Olive Kit from the John Good gallery. 2 bass drums. A 22 and a 20. Multiple use kit. Brand new. Some of the heads do have stick marks. 18x22, 18x20, 8x10, 9x12, 14x14, 16x16(not pictured as it is still in the box) and the 5x14 snare. I included the pics of the drums on the assembly table. Also the Stock DW pic is the same kit. All the drums are perfect.......

Just in case you were wondering and have never had the opportunity to visit DW- That is DW's final assembly inspection area in their shop.

Should you have any interest in this awesome kit you can check out more pictures by

Cheers!

dd

Location: Eugene, OR
Price: $2,250.00

Ah.. yes, one of my favorite drum wraps can be had on this set of DW Collectors Series Exotics.

Curly Figured Maple has a clean, clear and simplistic appearance that I can't get enough of. Especially, when it has a nice creamy color to it along with the the 'pop' of the Curly Figure. John and the boys in Oxnard do a great job of selecting veneer for the wraps of their Exotic series. I truly appreciate all of the Maple veneer they locate from the Curly's, such as this one, to the Birdseye's and Quilts.

Up for bid is an incredible DW Collector's series five piece shell pack in rich red fade specialty lacquer over exotic curly maple with chrome hardware. These drums are jaw dropping and the kind of kit you would see featured in DW's showroom. The depth of the finish is incredible and is enhanced greatly by the 3-D affect of the exotically figured curly maple. The true rich color of the kit isn't close to accurately represented by the camera. The drums are in excellent shape. John Good states that only 3-5% of maple harvested contains curly figured maple so this is one of the rarest exotic woods he uses. Drums were born on February 19, 2004 and are timbre matched. Included are: 10X8, 12X9, 14X11, 16X13 fast toms and a virgin 22X18 bass drum.

Cheers!

dd

Price: $2,650.00

Phattie- Pretty Heavy and Thick or Pretty Hot and Tempting? Hopefully, they had Pretty Heavy and Thick in mind when they named the company.... of course because their drums sound that way.

Yes sir- you could split this baby in half and make two kits if you so desired although it looks pretty impressive as it sits. If nothing else you could look good sitting behind such a massive kit even if you didn't know how to use it all.

I usually don't post up Plain Jane kits, but for some reason this one really caught my attention. I'm still trying to figure out exactly what it is, because I don't think these can sound any different than any other Keller made shell. If I had to point one thing out I'd say it's the warm brown color that draws me to them..

See- don't they just look all warm and fuzzy? I just want to touch it and see if it feels as smooth as it looks.

2008 Phattie Custom 8 peice kit "NEW" condition. These drums are part of a Monster 12 piece kit that was never used. Drums have new Remo clear heads, in line tube lugs, wood hoops on all drums with mounts and floor legs for the floor toms. Custom hand rubbed Maple Keller shells with a medium Maple stain.

Cheers!

dd

Up for grabs today is this super looking Mapex Orion Series 6pc Mappa Burl LE kit. I really like the black chrome hardware next to the light color of the Mappa Burl. If there is a down side to Mappa Burl it's that it has a ton of small holes in it. Usually, simple wood filler is used to fill the holes, but in some cases it's possible to plug or knock out the bad spot and replace it with a sound piece of wood. You can compare it to the spot healing brush in Photoshop.

Check these out and let me know what you think.

18x22 Bass Drum
16x16 Floor Tom
14x14 Floor Tom
9x12 Mounted Tom
8x10 Mounted Tom
5.5x14 Matching Snare

Eight coat, hand applied deep gloss lacquer finish
Exclusive Isolated Tom Mounting System on all suspended toms and floor toms
Exclusive Isolated Tom Mounting System on bass drums
Spring-loaded floor tom legs
Low mass, single-point-of-contact lugs
Low profile, cushioned, die cast bass drum claw hooks
2.3mm Steel Mapex Powerhoops
Remo® Ambassador drum heads

I personally like Mapex and think you get a lot of drum for the money. The last time I sat behind a Mapex kit I remember thinking to myself "these sound damn good and especially for the money!"

Although fancy wood wraps won't make any kit sound better it certainly adds to the 'bling' factor. Not to mention, you get to brag to your buddies when they see them for the first time.

Cheers!

dd

Location: Rockville (?)
Price: $619.00 B.I.N. on ebay

Looking for a great kit, but are on a budget? I personally think this is a killer deal on what could be the find of a century. Pearl sessions were on the expensive side when sold new and have since been discontinued, but they do pop up from time to time.

Here is a Pearl Session series 4pc shell pack (drums only) up for sale. These drums are in great condition and are perfect for both live and studio play. The shells are made of 100% maple. The color is a very nice birdseye wrap finish. They have a nice deep warm sound to them. The toms are 12, 13, and 16 inch and the bass drum is 22 inch

Okay, so the previous owner couldn't trace and cut a perfect circle for the resonant bass drum head, but for a couple of Benjamin's you're in business. You're probably asking yourself "why does Doug like these so much?" Well, it's because they are wrapped in Carpathian Elm Burl- I know the description says Birdseye, but this seller has no clue what he's talking about. And make no mistake, this is the real deal and isn't a man made version like Sonor pushes and calls 'Roots'. Carpathian Elm Burl has become extremely hard to find the past few years and like most burls the raw material sizes have become smaller and smaller over the years. As we all know, most drum manufacturers prefer wood species that will cover the entire shell utilizing one leaf of veneer, but Carpathian Elm Burl just won't do that. If, a drum buyer did stumble across a log of Elm Burl squirreled away in a warehouse that would cover a bass drum with one leaf it most definitely would be cost prohibitive.

On this particular kit Pearl chose to utilize a 'book match' face assembly method and it looks fantastic! If you can't tell by now I'm pretty high on this kit and I'll say it again- I think it's a steal of a deal at $619.00.

Cheers!

dd

Location: Lake Tahoe, NV
Price: $4,400 B.I.N.

Since I've been slacking (again) and I wanted to come back with a BANG (no pun intended) I chose this stunning set of DW Collectors Series wrapped in Quartered Figured Eucalyptus. You don't see this particular veneer used for wrapping drums very often due to it's PITA workability. Yes, it's highly figured and along with those beauty marks come brittleness, rough cut and checking or cracking. However, when you can find a nice smooth, flat one get ready to be wowed!

This is a DW Collectors Maple 5 piece EXOTIC ECALYPTUS high gloss lacquer drum kit. The shells are 100% maple. Here are the sizes:

18x22 bass drum
12x14 floor tom SUSPENDED!
9x12 rack tom
8x10 rack tom
5x14 snare drum

Surely, you have to agree that these are beautiful drums. Eucalyptus typically has a tan to fleshy pink tone to it, but it's not uncommon to see it with a green cast, such as this kit has, as well.

I'm quite certain these would look as good under your tree as they would sound in your home studio. If you're interested to pick this set up.

Cheers!

dd