Gene Krupa Cymbals

[hardbat]

This one:

 

[hardbat]

Gene died in 1973. And he was ill for the last few years of his life.

Yeah, but he was still playing great right up to the end. His swing feel and inventive solos on the live 1972 recording with Kenny Davern, Dick Wellstood, and Wild Bill Davison are astounding.

 

[Dead beat]

Ok guys here are the hats, which seem to have a similar stamp. Things are fussy from that far back in time. The things I remember clearly is in 1970 my dad took me to the Slingerland plant in Nile’s ( we lived in Elmwood Park the next town over) and bought me by first drum set. All MWP , which is mostly made up of the set you all have seen. I was around 20 at that point. It’s quite possible that the cymbals my dad talked about were lost in the same way that Ludwig set ( as seen with my dad above) he had disappeared. I have no recollection of where it went. At the time I probably that it was a crappy set with calf skin heads. It’s possible these cymbals are not the highly coveted ones I hoped they were but hearing the feedback I’ve received thus far it sounds like these were bought at the same time as my sling set.
Let me know your thoughts on the hats

 

[Dead beat]

I just looked at Genes cymbal set up you sent and that 18” thin crash sure fits the bill with the one I have. I sent pics of the hats just now

 

[zenstat]

The hats look like they are a similar production period to the 18" Crash. The trademark stamps are what we nickname the "60s" stamp. They look like the short (1.25") version not the tall (1.5") version. There were many years of overlap between the "60s" stamps and the "70s" stamp so nothing there which rules out the hats and 18" crash having been purchased new at the same time, or having been made in the factory at the same time.

60s stamp(s) years 196?-1979
70s stamp years 197?-1993

What would help is a weight for the Crash and each of the hats. That will give us an indication of model. Lbs and oz would do. Same with that 20" cymbal when you get to it.

 

[Dead beat]

I don’t have a scale so im not sure how to go about that. Sadly the 20” is gone. Long sad story

 

[K.O.]

I don't wish to sidetrack this thread, but I don't think this tangent quite merits it's own topic. I've mentioned before that I have a cymbal that I think belonged to Barret Deems. What brought it to mind again was the pictures of Gene's cymbal with the GK stamp. My 16" crash has the same stamp only it reads "BD". This cymbal was purchased by my drum teacher (and later drum buddy)when he was in high school in the late 1950s early 1960s. It was bought used at Franks Drum Shop in Chicago. I inherited the cymbal from my friend when he passed away in 2015. He never knew what the BD meant (when I was a kid taking lessons on his set all I could think of was "bass drum"...for some odd reason). He did say that when he went to buy a new cymbal the guy at Franks told him he should buy this used one as it was "special". And it was, he used it and cherished it through his whole 50 year playing career.

Anyway, none of this proves anything but the circumstantial evidence of time frame, location, and appearance do fit.

And now back to Gene's cymbals...

 

[hardbat]

I don't wish to sidetrack this thread, but I don't think this tangent quite merits it's own topic. I've mentioned before that I have a cymbal that I think belonged to Barret Deems.

Dang, I'm jealous! Barrett is one of my heros. I have a friend who Barrett gave a couple of cymbals to, but I don't remember if they had BD on them. Barrett passed through Sacramento many times because he had a close friend here, so I was lucky to see him a lot. Maybe the most tightly strung guy I ever met, but a nice guy! And a wizard on the kit.

 

[Shawn Martin]

Great story. Once you sell them there's no way to restore that link to history. Think it through carefully.
If you still have your Dad's drum kit.....even more reason to hang on to these cymbals.

Even cracked, that 20" could have significant value just by having been in Gene's possession. Not all cracks lead to an unplayable cymbal.
If you play your cymbals reasonably there's no risk of damaging them. Nearly all cymbal damage comes from the following: dropping them, hitting them hard (esp with heavy sticks) - especially around the edges and bell.
Crashing them at approx the same spot over and over takes a toll. If they're allowed to rotate and move or you rotate them.....not an issue. I pretty much only play cymbals from the 50's and earlier.....yet to cause any
damage, even on ones that I acquired with cracks already in them.


Ensure the cymbal stand top nut is on loosely allowing the cymbal to swing up and down freely....a major cause of bell hole cracks. Playing them moderately at home should be no issue at all.

If they were Gene’s cymbals, the usually have the “GK” stamp. Cymbals sent to him directly from Zildjian will have the stamp. However, as with everything else, there are counterfeit cymbals done by scammers tapping a stamp in them.

 

[Tama CW]

If they were Gene’s cymbals, the usually have the “GK” stamp. Cymbals sent to him directly from Zildjian will have the stamp. However, as with everything else, there are counterfeit cymbals done by scammers tapping a stamp in them.

This thread was about some cymbals gifted to the OP's Father from Gene. The story only claims that Gene handed over some cymbals....no guarantee that they were his personal cymbals (whether
played by him or not) or just some he picked up elsewhere. They have a personal connection to the OP because Gene passed them along. That's all we know. And that's the story. Accept it as it is.

 

[Cannons]

Dang, I'm jealous! Barrett is one of my heros. I have a friend who Barrett gave a couple of cymbals to, but I don't remember if they had BD on them. Barrett passed through Sacramento many times because he had a close friend here, so I was lucky to see him a lot. Maybe the most tightly strung guy I ever met, but a nice guy! And a wizard on the kit.

Yeah, Barrett was a genius.

 

[jmetatual]

This thread was about some cymbals gifted to the OP's Father from Gene. The story only claims that Gene handed over some cymbals....They have a personal connection to the OP because Gene passed them along. That's all we know. And that's the story. Accept it as it is.

We also know that the cymbals presented by the OP are not even from the appropriate decade.

 

[Tama CW]

We also know that the cymbals presented by the OP are not even from the appropriate decade.

They could have had the decade mixed up in their story. Maybe Gene stopped off in the 60's or even early 70's.
As long as they were told by their Dad that Gene dropped off cymbals at some point.....and they are no later than early 70's....then their story works "for them."
I'm not going to judge it any further than that. I believe his Dad got cymbals from Gene. As far as anything AFTER that.........who knows? I wouldn't pay a penny more
for them other than their generic cymbal value.....period. It's their story.......not mine.