There is an old good thread about these bongos -            
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=6978I got this set from a guy who went from New York to Cuba on this ship in 1956  -             
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Mongolia_%281922%29. 
He bought the bongos at the Solis shop. They are like new. He brought them home, put them on a shelf and then in a box for 50 years.  They are 6" tall, Macho 6 1/2, Hembra 7 1/2.  The Hembra staves are 3/4" thick, the Macho about 7/8".  There is a Solis sticker on the center block with the address 550 San Lazaro, Havana.  Inside the Hembra is a piece of the disclaimer sticker about weather affecting the wood.  In addition to glue, the staves are held together by these metal things hammered into the bottom.  I have seen these things on other drums but never before on a Requena.  They seem to work because there are no signs of stave-separation.
I'm going to keep them as they are for now.  I have the exact same bongo with new super hardware that I play a lot - they have a big sound for a small light bongo.  Where did I put my sterno??.