Back in the game - with new Congas!

[Mike]

It´s been a while since my last post which originally was meant to be the last post on this forum.
But things change...

My mother passed away three months ago.
My kids are grown-ups now, need money for school and studies.
Consequently I sold a lot of stuff, also the Delaporte congas and the 70s Gon Bops.
The only tumbadoras which I kept are 1980s Natal Fiberglass.

But now, as the financial situation has made it possible, I decided to invest in a trio of Reiche mahogany congas which my deceased mum would have liked, as she raised and fostered my love for music and spiritual awareness as well as supported me mentally and also financially in the instruments that can convey that musical passion.

The drums are currently still in the making, but here is a little glimpse into how they are going to look like:

Jost Reiche is one of the very few drum makers over here - and in my opinion the best!
Just wanted to share my anticipation with you here.

[Juaort]

Nice Drum Mike!! Is that an 8 lug?

[Juaort]

Sorry to hear about your Mom bro! That’s a tuff thing to go through. My condolences.

Juaort

[Mike]

@Juaort
Thanks for both your understanding and your question: Yes, those congas feature a lot of lugs
which makes even or even super-even fine tuning possible.

[Juaort]

That’s awesome. I recently got my first pair of LP Palisades Park Congas. Always wanted a set. Outside of replacing the Tumba’s Rim, their in great shape. At some point they added a LP matador rim on the tumba. Already ordered an LP one, plus I’m upgrading to super nuts and adding the rubber bumpers.

[Chtimulato]

Hello Mike.
Sorry for your mom, and welcome back here.

I never played Reiche "in real life", but from what I know, they seem to be very good intruments, for very correct prices. I browsed the Reiche Trommelbau website several times, and promised myself to drive there one day to try them.
Edit : I just had a look at it, and it seems it's too late now, the site has been updated, and they now only offer what they call "congapads". No more congas.
At any case, the "Produkte" tab only displays their new Congapads.

[Mike]

Cheers, Chtimulato,
but no worries, I phoned Jost Reiche and he said
the website had a bug or something.
You can still order via e-mail or phone , as I did.

[Juaort]

Mike, just curious. What would a set of Conga and Tumba run for more or less?

[Mike]

You are looking into about 400€ per drum.
Here is a video clip of them being played by a pro:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5aVu6JOU4k

[KKonga]

Hi Mike,
I didn’t think Riche was making congas anymore.
The last time I wrote Jost he said he was going in another direction.
The photo looks like a great instrument. I have a set from years ago and am impressed with the quality.
Do they have a new website?

[Mike]

KKonga, I think he can still make congas, otherwise he would not have been able to sell me a set
If he is still generally producing or only only on request I do not know. His current website show only those pads and no congas, you are right there.

[Juaort]

Mike, just saw that YouTube clip. The Congas sound amazing. Have fun with those.

[Mike]

Well, they arrived yesterday, and thanks, I am having fun with these babies right now:

[Chtimulato]

Congratulations !

[Juaort]

Wow! Very impressive! Enjoy Mike.