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Too many collector drums and not enough hands! I am selling a set of 3 Oak Skin on Skin; requinto, conga, tumba. I bought them used on E-Bay over 20 years ago and put new heads (6 months). They won't be put on E-Bay for a few days so if anyone is interested BEFORE they go on sale to the public let me know. Reach out to me on this forum ASAP.

Photos below.

That requinto has been heavily fiberglassed at the bottom if I am not wrong.
Mending a crack I suppose?

The wood looks a lot more like the ash SOS I have, but stained dark, than my oak SOS congas. My oak drums are all quarter sawn. If those are oak they're flat sawn, which I don't think was a regular practice of Jay's - but, I don't know all that much about his very early work. They really look like my ash drum though.

What you see is not fiberglass put a plastic hose around the bottom to protect the wood. Definitely not a repair.

As to the wood type, when I bought them I was told they were Oak. That is what I am representing them to be for sale. I can say these are the nicest sounding drums I have ever played and that is why I am keeping the quinto and not selling all 4 drums. After a year of waiting, Mr. Smith says my new drums ship next week!

I will put the drums up on EBay mañana. Message me if anyone is interested and we can talk price.

ya, my ash SOS sound excellent! I use it as my center drum as it has a bit more projection than the oak's.

If they are ash, they are still lovely drums. For salsa and playing over the din of a band ash may actually be a better wood choice. jay once told me that Giovanni swung by his shop and played his ash drums many years ago and then worked his sponsor, LP, to put out the ash line of galaxy drums that his face is plastered all over. Ash SOS are very, very sweet!

These drums appear to be flat sawn oak. Typically Jay installs clear rubber hoses in the bottom of his drums. This looks like a remarkably well preserved set. I personally would value these over a new set from Matt, but I've always preferred SOS to Ritmos.

Armando Peraza always says, "Its the conga player, not the conga". On second thought BongosNotBombs maybe I should hold onto the SOS until I actually HEAR the new Smiths shipped out today! Matthew said he felt they were some of his finest but frankly I say that to all the girls too. The thing I note about SOS though is the full range of tone , from low to high, you get even from the quinto which are unlike any other congas I have played.

Matthew sent me a picture of the newest mahogany, 3 of the 6 of which are heading my way as of today.Once I do the side by side taste test I'll have a better sense of which to keep and which to sell. So far no firm offers from my friends at MyCongaPlace so they may be on Ebay when the Smiths arrive next week.

MisterLatinJazz wrote:Armando Peraza always says, "Its the conga player, not the conga". On second thought BongosNotBombs maybe I should hold onto the SOS until I actually HEAR the new Smiths shipped out today! Matthew said he felt they were some of his finest but frankly I say that to all the girls too. The thing I note about SOS though is the full range of tone , from low to high, you get even from the quinto which are unlike any other congas I have played.

Matthew sent me a picture of the newest mahogany, 3 of the 6 of which are heading my way as of today.Once I do the side by side taste test I'll have a better sense of which to keep and which to sell. So far no firm offers from my friends at MyCongaPlace so they may be on Ebay when the Smiths arrive next week.

Would you be willing to sell just the SOS tumba?

Mr.Rumba wrote:

MisterLatinJazz wrote:Armando Peraza always says, "Its the conga player, not the conga". On second thought BongosNotBombs maybe I should hold onto the SOS until I actually HEAR the new Smiths shipped out today! Matthew said he felt they were some of his finest but frankly I say that to all the girls too. The thing I note about SOS though is the full range of tone , from low to high, you get even from the quinto which are unlike any other congas I have played.

Matthew sent me a picture of the newest mahogany, 3 of the 6 of which are heading my way as of today.Once I do the side by side taste test I'll have a better sense of which to keep and which to sell. So far no firm offers from my friends at MyCongaPlace so they may be on Ebay when the Smiths arrive next week.

Would you be willing to sell just the SOS tumba?

Someone else wants the Requinto. Putting a "set" of drums on E-Bay tends to limit what you get vs. selling them individually. message me privately to discuss you offer OK?

PM Sent

Did your Matthew Smith arrive yet?

The MATTHEW SMITH DRUMS ARRIVED!

POSITIVES:
Impeccable craftsmanship throughout. An Áro at the head. Heavy duty hardware. Beautiful skins. The Mahogany is just stunning in its colors and he did a great job in matching and accenting the natural patterns in the wood by how he placed the slats side by side each other. The drums sing and have a long sustain on sizes 12 3/4, 11 3/4, and 11. A 75 year old Rumbero and drum repairer("Drum Hospital" is his e-mail) inspected them and judged them the finest congas he had ever seen made.

NEGATIVES:
Heavier than a MF! Really heavy...Like Gio Palladiums heavy! Shipping weight was 2 x 44 lbs, 1 x 40lbs . I had heard Matthew makes lighter than usual congas but he himself attributed the weight to the density of this particular piece of Mahogany.

Compared to the SOS they do not have the full, rich bass tone that SOS seem to pull out even out of even a equinto but you still get the full range of tones you expect for Rumba. They seem to play themselves and sing out easily with a beautiful tone. The voice of the drum has the nice "Ronco" sound but somehow it is a mellower and almost a velvet sound. A voice in a conga I have never heard before.

Choice of drums is like anything else, a personal taste. At first impression I am floored by the manufacturing quality of Matthew's work and the beauty of his finished wood surfaces. They sound amazing but I will with hold judgement as to whether Matthew, Junior or Jay get's the prize. These instruments are worth the wait and also worth the 100% premium in price over "Brand Name" drums. Matthew is a true craftsman and I am happy to have taken Jerry Gonzales advice to make the investment on drums I had never heard of until about 15 months ago. It took 12 months for receipt from the time the first deposit was made.

MisterLatinJazz wrote: It took 12 months for receipt from the time the first deposit was made.

Great to hear his lead times are down on previous years. No doubt thanks to the positive change in his personal life along with the completion and launch of his new workshop.
I have also been quoted 12 months, possibly sooner on a customized set of 4 Mahogany's.
Still trying to make my mind up if to go with Black Walnut or African Mahogany.. Both are my dream set.

The 9.75" Ash requinto he made me is the finest drum I have ever played or owned. It absolutely kills at the rumbas.

Congratulations on your set.

Here is a Matthew Smith photo gallery of his newest Mahogany set. The trio shots are taken with 1/3 turn each photo. The single photos are taken with a 1/4 turn each; Quinto, Conga, Tumba. Beautiful work! Great sounding drums. A gozar!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfrumba/se ... 156023433/