Cooper’s Vintage Drums

Here is a 1939 Gretsch Catalina two piece drum set in original Black Duco lacquer finish with orange-yellow bake-lite lug casings. Gretsch offered these unique Catalina drums for a very short period, prior to World War II. Bake-lite, which was the forerunner to modern day plastics, was very popular in the 1930’s. Available in a variety of bright colors, this new plastic was used in the production of many products, including radios, clocks, and jewelry. Because of the fragile nature of the Gretsch bake-lite lugs, few complete sets have survived.

The vibrant orange-yellow color of the lugs on this Catlina set provides a great contrast to the black lacquer painted finish. The shells are made of three thin maple plys, typical of Gretsch drums of the 1930’s-50’s (no reinforcing rings). The painted finish has maintained its gloss on both drums, especially on the bass drum. The snare drum shows consistant crackling but is not flaking. Some chipping here and there.

The original Gretsch snare strainer was replaced by an early Ludwig strainer. Only two very small holes were left as a result of this change.

Gretsch Catalina - 2 PIECE set……$1095