THE BEGINNING OF A MIRACLE

For my next project I decided to embark upon a real challenge.  Something to hone my skills, keep me busy and pique my interest.  When I came across this Japanese kit  for $135.00 on Ebay I jumped right on it.

When searching for vintage drums it can be quite difficult to find a complete kit at a reasonable price, which made this little quartet a rare treat.  Usually I have to piece together drums from various locations all over the country to make up a matching set but in this case I found the bass drum, snare, tom and floor tom all in one place.

As is often the case with "off-brand" vintage drums, this set has an unambiguous "American-sounding" name on the badge: "St. George / Hollywood" (and then the admission in fine print: "Made in Japan.")  Despite this slight bit of deception, I recognize the lightweight hardware and thin luan wood shells, and understand this is just another "stencil" kit manufactured by the same Japanese factory that would in later years become Tama/Pearl.

But these cheapo, thin-shelled antiques are quite popular with many drummers - including me.  These "M.I.J." kits are fun to collect and tinker around on, and cost much less than American-made drums such as Ludwig or Slingerland.

It's a good thing, too, because this set is going to need a lot of work.  In addition to all the missing parts I will probably have to replace most of the existing hardware.  It is all very scratched, pitted and rusty.  But that's the reason I chose this project, because it will be an exciting challenge that should keep me busy for a good long while.  I am calling this "The Miracle Kit," because if I can restore this kit it will be a miracle.

Here are some close-ups of the hardware: