Ludwig, I would like my drums please

I try to steer clear of too much involvement in these threads so as not to give an overtly partisan impression (although I don't perceive any competitive position with Ludwig), but really, nearly 2 years for anything is just obscene.

Well, when he ordered the Leprechaun Green Lacquer finish and Sasquatch Bone hoops, he didn't know that Ludwig was fresh out of Leprechaun blood and Abominable Snowman femurs. Sometimes living the good life is rough. :]
 
Really? That's just insane. I've never heard of that kind of a wait....especially for an endorser.

In reality though, how much do "we" hear about things endorsers get?

Gretsch drums have come into the shop in just under a year. People waited for them.

A friend at the shop was quoted by Yamaha, it would take over 6 months to get a Hot Red floor tom. he didn't want to wait, so he didn't do it....but it's been a few years now too haha! so he could have had the drum he wanted a long time ago.

Some DW, OCDP, SJC kits have taken a long time as well for customers. 5-6 months at least.
6 months is a long time, and 22 months is really long and crazy. But, if it's a custom thing, a one off, then it gets done when it's ready.
It shouldn't get put off, but if there's production to be filled, then it has to get filled.

A re-do for a customer should get more attention, but how does a customer (Soupy) know that Ludwig has been called so many times REALLY?
The shop may call once a week, or every two weeks to see what's going on, but say they call more.
You aren't going to get anything done faster by calling everyday.

People can say baloney all they want, but, Ludwig is in process of making good, so unless they don't, there's no other course of action but to wait, or get a refund, which Soupy isn't doing right now.
 
Really? That's just insane. I've never heard of that kind of a wait....especially for an endorser. I can't believe you've put up with that this long Bermuda. I know you're a Ludwig guy, and I admire your loyalty, but sheesh, how much longer will you wait until you say forget this? You could have grown a tree and built your own drums in that amount of time! :eek:)

Yeah, there's a bit of a story, someday I'll spill it. But how much longer? Oh, not much...

But I've also received non-rush orders in the 1-3 month range, so it balances out. Sort of.

Bermuda
 
I think it's Bullsh*t that anyone has to wait for more than a month for anything!

Ludwig is a big enough company with plenty of staff on hand to get those drums made/fixed and out to you in an expediant manor!!!!

Shame on them! I would go directly back to your drum shop and DEMAND my money back!
There are way to many other drum companies out there.... boutique and big production, that would do anything for their customer satisfaction rating!!

SCREW LUDWIG! go by your self a nice Spuan kit or a Brady.

I will GAURANTEE.....you will get treated properly.

Every single persons satisfaction directly effects the survival of their company,... and they know it!

Not to offend anyone I hope,... but I would feel the same about, Tama,Pearl,Yamaha,Preimere, DW, ect. anycompany that would snub me and not treat me like a paying customer!

Oh, and by the way, I'm willing to bet the next kit is subpar also.
Sorry to say that,....but I'm willing to bet.
I also think they are'nt doing anything at all about it,...sorry:(

I have to dissagree completely.Spaun or Brady?Granted they make great drums,but wait you will,and at twice the price of Ludwigs.

Gretsch USA customs take at least 8 months from the time you order.In fact any drum company will take on the average 5 to 9 months for custom orders.

You're telling us that you can get a CUSTOM Spaun or Brady kit in a month?Sorry mate but I don't believe that,and neither do you.BS

Steve B.
 
I have to dissagree completely.Spaun or Brady?Granted they make great drums,but wait you will,and at twice the price of Ludwigs.

Gretsch USA customs take at least 8 months from the time you order.In fact any drum company will take on the average 5 to 9 months for custom orders.

You're telling us that you can get a CUSTOM Spaun or Brady kit in a month?Sorry mate but I don't believe that,and neither do you.BS

Steve B.

No!...That is not what I'm telling you!

I'm telling you IT WILL BE WORTH THE WAIT!

I *personally* will not wait that long for a kit! I will walk in to my local drum shop, money in hand,...and walk out with a suitable drum kit.

I've spent my share of time waiting on drums! I will not ever do it again! Life is to short!

The DrumPad in the suburbs of Chicago or Vic's in the city, have more high end kits than you could ever imagine! I'll walk right in there for my next kit and walk right out with a "KILLER" kit!
But for now... my StarClasssic's suit me just fine.
 
I *personally* will not wait that long for a kit! I will walk in to my local drum shop, money in hand,...and walk out with a suitable drum kit.

That's how it was in the old days. You rarely ordered a kit, music stores usually had a good selection of gear from various companies', in stock and ready to take home. There were few imported lines to compete for floor space and budgets; you saw a Ludwig kit, it was US-made, and as long as the finish was right, you bought it. Same for Rogers, Slingerland, Gretsch and Camco. There were very few options that drummers considered, so a kit on the floor was usually just right.

In the last 25 years in particular, stores have been inundated with quality Asian brands, as well as Asian-made US brands, and choices being further expanded by the plethora of boutique builders. Not to mention the tremendous selection of drum sizes that were rare back in the day (do you remember when US drum companies added 10" toms to their catalog? It wasn't that long ago, and now they're extremely common.)

What I'm getting at is, a store can't begin to stock exactly what every drummer wants in their kit, there are too many brands and configurations. It's not nearly as easy to walk into a shop now and see the drums you want, as it was 40 years ago when our 'wants' were simpler and more instantly fulfilled. Drums almost always have to be ordered.

So yes, it's not hard to find a "suitable drum kit" on the spot. But is that what we want, something suitable? Do we try a snare, say "it sounds fine" and then buy it? I hope not! I buy the snare that makes me say "it sounds great!"

Soupy didn't order the Ludwigs because he wanted something suitable. He wanted what he wanted. If you wanted US Gretsch drums, would you really go buy a Catalina kit just to have it the same day, and be just as happy?

Because of all of the choices we have, it typically means having to order - and wait for - the things we really want. If you know of a workable business plan that would allow a manufacturer to step-up production, shipping, keep the quality high, and not go broke in the process, I believe there are thousands of companies in various industries that would love to hear from you.

Bermuda
 
For what it's worth: A few months ago I tried to place an order for a Classic Maple kit through a dealer. No problem, but the dealer stressed several times that the wait was going to be long (6+ months) because Ludwig couldn't keep up with production.

I'm guessing that perhaps the company is rushing construction to keep up with demand.

Anyway...I wanted a natural maple finish so I started to shop around. I found that Memphis Drum Shop had exactly what I wanted -- in stock, but their prices always seemed bit on the 'high' side, so I delayed the purchase -- especially since I was quoted a price $500 less from the original dealer for the same configuration. After a few weeks, I decided to buy the kit from Memphis anyway because I didn't want to wait the 6 months. So I held my breath and prayed that the kit would arrive safely. Well, not only did the kit arrive safe and sound, but it's among the most blemish-free and 'in round' kits I've ever owned, and I've owned almost thirty over the past ten or-so years! I did have one small issue, where the kit arrived with the wrong bass drum rods -- they were supposed to be the classic 'T-handles' -- Memphis promptly shipped out the correct rods and let me keep the old ones too!

Bottom line is, there's kits out there if you're willing to wait or pay a bit more. Good luck with everything. :)

Here's a pic of my new kit. The only other issue I've found is that the rack-tom's classic mount keeps coming loose, so I ordered a 'Keystone' mount, and I hope that does the trick.
 

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I *personally* will not wait that long for a kit! I will walk in to my local drum shop, money in hand,...and walk out with a suitable drum kit.

I've spent my share of time waiting on drums! I will not ever do it again! Life is to short!

The DrumPad in the suburbs of Chicago or Vic's in the city, have more high end kits than you could ever imagine! I'll walk right in there for my next kit and walk right out with a "KILLER" kit!
But for now... my StarClasssic's suit me just fine.


Pretty soon you CAN walk into Vic's and walk out with a Brady kit. There will be one in there in early 2012 :)
 
Anyway...I wanted a natural maple finish so I started to shop around. I found that Memphis Drum Shop had exactly what I wanted -- in stock, but their prices always seemed bit on the 'high' side, so I delayed the purchase -- especially since I was quoted a price $500 less from the original dealer for the same configuration. After a few weeks, I decided to buy the kit from Memphis anyway because I didn't want to wait the 6 months. I did have one small issue, where the kit arrived with the wrong bass drum rods -- they were supposed to be the classic 'T-handles' -- Memphis promptly shipped out the correct rods and let me keep the old ones too!


Well, you could look at it like you paid $500 for an extra set of BD key rods :)
 
I can say that when I was still looking at new kits the drum shop told me that Pearl was the worst on turn-around on custom drums, up to 10-12 months. So waiting a few weeks is really not that bad IMO.

Signals, beautiful looking kit BTW!
 
That's how it was in the old days. You rarely ordered a kit, music stores usually had a good selection of gear from various companies', in stock and ready to take home. There were few imported lines to compete for floor space and budgets; you saw a Ludwig kit, it was US-made, and as long as the finish was right, you bought it. Same for Rogers, Slingerland, Gretsch and Camco. There were very few options that drummers considered, so a kit on the floor was usually just right.

In the last 25 years in particular, stores have been inundated with quality Asian brands, as well as Asian-made US brands, and choices being further expanded by the plethora of boutique builders. Not to mention the tremendous selection of drum sizes that were rare back in the day (do you remember when US drum companies added 10" toms to their catalog? It wasn't that long ago, and now they're extremely common.)

What I'm getting at is, a store can't begin to stock exactly what every drummer wants in their kit, there are too many brands and configurations. It's not nearly as easy to walk into a shop now and see the drums you want, as it was 40 years ago when our 'wants' were simpler and more instantly fulfilled. Drums almost always have to be ordered.

Bermuda

I agree that A drum shop just can't stock everything, but being lucky enough to be able to personally shop and purchase from 5 or 6 shops, most being Five Star drum shops, I can usually get exactly what I want from one of them directly off the floor. I have the drums in hand, hence I know their sound, quality, condition and finish first hand. The only drums that I've ordered were add on drums were I felt that if something should happen in their manufacturing or their shipment, the shop would get it resolved while I still would have the main part of the kit at my disposal.

I could go back just 20 years and feel much more at ease buying drums with less manufacturers and fewer choices. Sometimes the more choices seem to complicate matters. If I could find a set of Ludwig Legacies in white marine pearl in basically the sizes that I want, I'd buy them because I would have the chance to examine the drums before I handed the shop my money. Little things such as the drums having "Keystone" or "Classic" brackets wouldn't bother me at all. One of the drum shops where I do a lot of my business offered to order the kit I wanted without any obligation on my part to buy them when they arrived, them knowing that they wouldn't have any problems selling the drums if I didn't want them. I guess this would be like buying them off the floor. There's basically only one reason I'm looking for this particular kit, so I'm very patient. If I was new to all this and this happened to be my first set of drums, maybe patience wouldn't factor into it

Dennis
 
Pretty soon you CAN walk into Vic's and walk out with a Brady kit. There will be one in there in early 2012 :)

I just know what works for me. When I walk in there for a kit,.... I will find one that "SUITS" me.
That does not mean it won't be exactly what i'm looking for....because it will.

I like Tama, I always have, i will be looking soon to add an 8" tom to my kit. when I do,... if it takes 8 months, thats fine, because I already have my 2 kits to play.

But if I did not have a kit, and I wanted to play the drums or buy a new kit, I'm sorry...but I could not wait that long (at my age). especially when I could walk into a *honeyhole* like this and pick something out!
 

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I agree with Gruntersday and cancelled my black beauty order of 9 months yesterday. I have very little confidence in Ludwig right now.

That doesn't mean I don't want a perfect Ludwig BB or COB or hammered Bronze, because I do and am currently eying up a COB-B stock as I type this. But it is at a very reputable shop and inspects all the drums they receive down to the bearing edges. So, if they think the drum is fine, I'll most likely agree.

But I'm not going to place any brand new orders directly from Ludwig till I start hearing less of these kinds of stories (remember, I got two junk LM402's this year alone).
 
I hear by proclaim that from now on Dec 4 is to be known as Gruntersday.
If on this day Gruntersdad comes out of his condo and he sees his shadow there will be 90 days of winter.
 
I hear by proclaim that from now on Dec 4 is to be known as Gruntersday.
If on this day Gruntersdad comes out of his condo and he sees his shadow there will be 90 days of winter.

I would love to have only 90 days of winter weather...
 
Because of all of the choices we have, it typically means having to order - and wait for - the things we really want. If you know of a workable business plan that would allow a manufacturer to step-up production, shipping, keep the quality high, and not go broke in the process, I believe there are thousands of companies in various industries that would love to hear from you.

Bermuda

This is such an important point. I mentioned earlier I would love to have the $ to buy Ludwig and fix the problems, but the reality is I probably wouldn't know how to do that any better than whoever is there now. I can't imagine anyone wanting to do a sub-par job, but Bermuda is right - running a business isn't as simple as making a good product.
 
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