1950's Premier Gold Sparkle

[baz1949]

I think this is a mid fifties Premier Kit ..... I acquired this kit with the 30's Dominion Snare I posted last night.....When I got this kit it was filthy ....all the drums seem to have cleaned up really well....underneath all of that grime there is shimmering Gold Sparkle that is in remarkable condition for its age...The locking system for the kick drum and floor tom is very unusual ...It is a little lever that you press to release a spur / leg ...then when you take your fingers of it ...it locks itself into position .....All the fittings are non magnetic....don't know whether they are brass or not....I can never remember Premier doing brass fittings....I have tried to set up the kit to give it a blast.....but honestly the only place that I can figure out where to place the Small Tom...is way on the left side of the kick drum.....Do you guys know if this is the correct positioning for this drum?...and the cymbal stands are something else....In fact all the fittings attach to the Kick Drum....The neatest pieces are the wood block and cow bells....The kit came with about eight Zyn and Super Zyn Cymbals....Oh and one Zyn Sizzle.....British Made Cymbals......Zildjian....Paiste....Sabian.....you definitely have got nothing to worry about.....Sorry all you Zyn fanatics out there ....I love this kit for its quirkiness .....and its looks.....but playing it is a different ball game...Sorry about the number of pictures....I am just trying to show you all the fittings as well......Baz

 

[mlayton]

awesome stuff there baz!

ive got a ludwig kit or two that uses a hoop mounted tom. they are in almost the exact postition as yours. i studied some catalogs on mine before placing it. also wanted to be in a good position to be functional of course.

mike

p.s. i sent you a private message to answer the questions that you had earlier. check it when you get a chance...

 

[studrum]

Woderful, wonderful drums. I have 70's Resonators (have the same BD spur mechanism as yours) and 90's Genistas. I spy a 70's/80's Premier 252 BD pedal - the best ever. They look in great shape, Baz.

 

[baz1949]

awesome stuff there baz!

ive got a ludwig kit or two that uses a hoop mounted tom. they are in almost the exact postition as yours. i studied some catalogs on mine before placing it. also wanted to be in a good position to be functional of course.

mike

p.s. i sent you a private message to answer the questions that you had earlier. check it when you get a chance...

Thanks Mike I have received your e-mail.....I am slowly getting their.....hope you all are enjoying my collection....there will be absolutely no bad vibes from me...only my love of the drums I have collected over the last 10 years.....and sharing them with like minded people....Baz

 

[Capt Wierd]

Hi Baz, OK full analysis, your bass and small tom are likely pre 1958 with the small tom being Imperial size, just a tad smaller than a normal modeern day tom, so smaller head size. Premier came out with Plastic heads in 1958 and this bass has calfskin heads. The tom holder is a little weird, looks like it was bent, the normal tom holder would have the same clamp as used on the cymbal holder with a long angle arm and female receptor to accept the tom holder.

The floor tom is of a different era, its a transition tom, post 1967 lugs, pre 67 imperial sized hoops and shell, slightly larger than normal 16 inch shells. I didn't see a badge.

How the wrap came up as a match to the earlier bass and small tom is interesting. It is a keeper

Chrome and wrap look in excellent condition

 

[baz1949]

Hi Baz, OK full analysis, your bass and small tom are likely pre 1958 with the small tom being Imperial size, just a tad smaller than a normal modeern day tom, so smaller head size. Premier came out with Plastic heads in 1958 and this bass has calfskin heads. The tom holder is a little weird, looks like it was bent, the normal tom holder would have the same clamp as used on the cymbal holder with a long angle arm and female receptor to accept the tom holder.

The floor tom is of a different era, its a transition tom, post 1967 lugs, pre 67 imperial sized hoops and shell, slightly larger than normal 16 inch shells. I didn't see a badge.

How the wrap came up as a match to the earlier bass and small tom is interesting. It is a keeper

Chrome and wrap look in excellent condition

Thanks ....for your input on this kit....I had a feeling there was something wrong with the tom holder.....all the teeth fittings are a little bit tired.....on all the fittings....and a couple fail slightly when weight is added ...you are right about the sizes...I have struggled to get new skins to fit ....advice on that would be appreciated....Like you say the floor tom lugs are different from the other two.....but the finish is identical....The badge on the Floor Tom is the same badge as is on the other two drums......Baz

 

[Capt Wierd]

Baz Remo makes the Pre international heads for the 12 and 16 toms, I don't know the product numbers but there a lot of guys on here that do

 

[doctor dirt]

Are the heads sizes metric? They probably have been together a long time and aged at the same time so the fading is equal. Are those maple with beech rings or beech with maple rings? Either was they have to sound great, for playing I'd put a suspension on the tom just to be safe and hang it off a stand. Premier has to be the most underated drum company of all time. I'm currently playing a Signia kit that just beats up YRc and most Pearl Masters and DW's!! What a great sound and to be honest I never heard of them!!! They slipped by me in the early 90s and when I was looking for a Pearl MMX (4ply maple rerings set) someone on another forum suggested looking into the Signia, I'm happy! Your drums are beautiful best of luck with them. Doc

 

[Capt Wierd]

Not metric, a better nomanclature is Imperial size, they never were metric but the term got stuck in the description.

They are birch shells with beech rerings

 

[Capt Wierd]

Oh, and one other thing, Baz, when you get the heads from Reno, the 16 will fit perfectly, the 12 inch will not! You have to take a file and file off a mm all around to get it to fit in the hoop

 

[gryphon]

Baz, nice kit. The combination of the pointy lugs and the older badge on the floor tom makes me think it's from 1967. The bass drum could be from 1958. Although Premier had Everplay heads in '58 the 22" bass drum still came with calf. They stuck with calf for that size until they went international size for that particular drum. If the bass drum is something other than 22" and has a calf head it is probably earlier than '58.

That calf head sounds wonderful if you tune it up a bit. Make sure that you don't leave a lot of tension on the calf if you don't plan on playing the drum for a while. Don't want that guy to split. You will also want to put a moleskin patch on the head where the beater hits it to soften the attack, and most important, to prevent the beater from wearing a hole in the head.

Heads for the toms are still available from Remo, and are readily available in the U.K. The part numbers are:

BA-0112-PR is a coated Ambassador for the 12"
BA-0116-PR is a coated Ambassador for the 16"

These are the only heads I've seen for these toms since about 1970 and all I've ever used outside of a smooth white Everplay extra I found back in the 60's. I have heard that pinstripes are available, but I've never seen one. I also have a Diplomat reso head on a 12" tom that goes back to the early 60's, but was discontinued around 1965.

I suspect the spurs on the bass drum were added later. I am pretty sure that in 1958 Premier was still using hoop mount spurs. I have a 1958 set which has Swivomatic hardware installed on an otherwise virgin bass drum.

Congratulations on a nice find.

jim

 

[ian-40]

I'd give my right nut for the tom & cymbal holders

 

[gryphon]

Just noticed the photo of the small tom shows an overlap of the wrap. The reason that the drums match so well is that they have probably been rewrapped at some time. Premier butted the wrap on their drums during the period when yours were made. That overlap is a dead giveaway for a rewrap job. Something about the grain of the glitter in the wrap also doesn't look quite like the stuff Premier used at the time. I wonder if those drums were original with Aquamarine. That color faded horribly and would have needed a rewrap probably as early as the late 1960's.

jim

 

[Capt Wierd]

Hey Jim, How's it going? The reason I said pre 58 was the calfskin heads and the inclusion of the fore and aft dampers. By 1960, the had gone to the felt strip for dampening. Also, the disappearing spurs were an option

Yeah I questioned the wrap, if it is a rewrap it was done very well, still a keeper

 

[mike17]

Still using calf heads for, (at least some of), the bass drums up into the mid 60s, even though all the other heads were plastic.
('66/'67 Olys, not Premiers but lots of similarities, overlapping parts, same factory.)

 

[baz1949]

I would just like to thank all you guys for your invaluable advice and tips....you have all been a great help ...but I would just like you to put my mind at rest over a couple of points.....CJ and Jim....thought there had possibly been a re-wrap.....so I have posted a few more pics and observations....the small tom and floor tom wrap overlaps itself.....I have tried to show this.....but the bass drum dosen't seem to do...but all the finishes seem the same.....the drum sizes are as follows Bass Drum....20" x 14"....Floor Tom 16" x 15"....This is a weird one....Small Tom....11.5" x 8".....CJ also thought the tom holder was incomplete or bent...so I have posted a couple of pics of that....and the badge on the Floor Tom......and last but not least ....sorry Ian 40... you are destined to keep your nuts......the parts you want are not for sale.......and CJ I have posted a picture of a kit that I got about 12 months ago ......I will try and set it up and post it on Sunday.....Baz

 

[Capt Wierd]

Hi Baz, You are very welcome. I wouldn't worry if it were a rewrap, it was well done it it was. It wouldn't surprise me if it was an Edie Ryan rewrap, fine workmanship.

I:ve looked at the tom holder, seems alright in the new pic

I see you have an eye for true vintage, love the Premier Pearls, all are excellent choices. The white duraplastic floor tom can be cleaned up and brightened using dish washing detergent and Armoral cleaning liquid.. The floor tom is a 10 luger, 16 X 20?, I would say mid 50s

 

[gryphon]

Hi Capt. I'm taking it easy for the winter. That's why I'm hanging around here until the wife finds some projects for me. Hope you're doing well. How's the vibraphone coming along?

That white duraplastic floor tom has quick set legs which I think are after '58. My 1958 16x18 has legs that are held with screw clamps. Maybe like me a previous owner really liked those mounts so they swapped them out. Set up and teardown only takes a couple of seconds, I wonder why they stopped using them.

I think that the wrap is a pro job, too. It's really well done. I wonder if BAZ can get some photos of the badge grommets from inside the shell. That would be interesting to see.

When did Premier sell a flat tom mount. I've only ever seen the round rod style, but then, I still haven't made the pilgrimage to Chateau Weird.

jim

 

[baz1949]

Here you go......They all look identical to me.....Baz

 

[comover]

Here you go......They all look identical to me.....Baz

It's hard to tell from those pics whether grommets have been removed and reinstalled, which of course would be the case with a rewrap.