The Artisan - HR EL PIERNAS congas bongo timbales

[OLSONGO]

Silvaza, the prices are fair if you are in Colombia, what kills us here is the shipping...from Colombia to USA , and those congas, bongos, and hardware are not light.

Silvaza, esos precios estan bien para Colombia , lo que nos mata... es la mandada de Colombia a USA, y esas congas, bongos, y herrage no son livianos.

I suggets if you can go to Colombia, its a beautiful country and the woman are to die for, make sure you have a trusty guide.
Gracias
Paz
Olsongo

[juancho]

Aiku,
Naugh.......no orders yet with Edilberto however he got in touch with his boss Don Hector Rocha to send us his kid's tel# and contact here in NJ,NY to find out what kind of price they are asking here and compare if it's worth ordering directly from Colombia or not which I doubt. Pero Olsongo tiene mucha razon.......vale la pena darse un viajecito por Cali.....I myself is from Cali however I have not been there since 81 so I don't know what it looks like now but I heard it's off the shelf !!! I'll send out any information as soon as I get it from Edilberto or anyone out there gets it then please send it out.....Oh...Neftali on this forum got an order from them and mentions that it was expensive but got his order......It's a long holiday so please make a safe one pero que siga la rumba!!
Corto y fuera
Juancho

[juancho]

I guess we are all going to Cali..........as per Edilberto representative for HR:


"amigo hable con HR y lo que me dice es que sus hijo si estan alla trabajando con orquestas y que eventualmente osea de vez en cuando llevan intrumentos de colombia cuando viene a cali, pero por encargo, osea favores a amigos, pero no tienen almacen ni venta de instrumentos"

Tony.....what Edilberto is saying that Mr. Rocha does have his sons here and they play for bands and sometimes they go to Colombia and bring back instruments as favors for their friends but they don't have a store/warehouse nor they sell instruments......sorry guys.
Juancho

[juancho]

Here's the address for those going to Cali:

carrera 17D trasversal 30 No 30-31
Barrio Saavedra Galindo
Tel (2) 2147082

Home Studio (Audio e Imagen digital)

[PRDRconguero]

I remember seeing set of bongo in El Barrio Music Center on Lexington at East 116 St. (NYC) a few years back.

I called today, and the gentleman I spoke to said he thinks he has one El Piernas Bongo in stock. He said he thinks it's $250....he seemed to be busy when I called.

Just putting it out there to anyone interested. I am not sure if they ship. Since they are hard to get in the states, it may be worth it to speak to a rep to confirm that the ones sold at that store are of the same quality, etc.

Otherwise, It's a well known shop...their original location was up the street. I can't think of a more boricua-fied music store.
It's just a cool shop to browse through too.

http://www.elbarriomusiccenter.com/index.html
El Barrio Music Center
1870 Lexington Ave
New York, NY 10029
(212)876-3409

[OLSONGO]

If anyone here is really interested and I mean really interested , send me a PM . I have relatives that come to visit and I personally go to Colombia. Ther is a handling fee...but not quite the cost of shipping from Colombia. And if you just wait , I am currently having a master craftsman, family member ... develop some drums that are going to be the BOMB. Based on what we all want in a drum , be it conga or bongo.

Paz
Olsongo

[Bacalao]

Hey if anyone is interested, I have a tumba made by H.R. in Cali that I purchased ~ 3 yrs ago on a 2 week visit, that's up for sale. The first thing I did when I arrived in Cali was go to his shop and asked him to custom make me a 5 band tumba. He had some shells that were in the rough just waiting for a customers request, but none had the bands wood worked out and he was happy to oblige. I would check on them every day almost for 2 weeks while he finished the drum. It is made from Guayacan with a very thick skin and HEAVY DUTY hardware, this thing is bomb proof. The drum has a warm DEEP tone and sound awesome. Let me know if anyone is interested because I'm trying to finance another purchase.

[ABAKUA]

Ese tambor esta impresionante!!

[OLSONGO]

Abakua, if you think Palladiums weight a ton , wait to you pick up an HR. they put the H on heavy.

Paz
Olsongo

[ABAKUA]

Ah.. major turn off then. Not a fan of heavy drums.
Especially having to lug 3-4 of them after 3 sets of straight up heavy descargas, timba & salsa dura with a 10-11 piece band!

Thats why I traded in my Palladiums as part of my LP deal, was fed up with their weight! Every 2-3 yrs I trade in and get replacement drums. The Palladiums, I endorsed for under a year. Waaaaaaay too heavy! Have been the happiest with Classics.
mmmmm till the day I own my 5 Matt Smith Mahogany Ritmo's I wont rest!!

HR El Piernas certainly look solid and surely sound fantastic.

[seisporocho1]

Bacalao,

Why are you selling it?!
It sounded like you waited anxiously for you drum to be finished and now you're getting rid of it....

It does look beautiful and must sound massive. How much are you selling it for?

[KING CONGA]

With all due respect, I think that the drums looks awesome but Im not sure about the band job, if you amplify the image it appears that the bands don't come into full intimate contact with the shell surface, please correct me if Im wrong.

[Bacalao]

Bacalao,

Why are you selling it?!
It sounded like you waited anxiously for you drum to be finished and now you're getting rid of it....

It does look beautiful and must sound massive. How much are you selling it for?

I'm making another trip to Cali soon and will be ordering another one without the bands.

With all due respect, I think that the drums looks awesome but Im not sure about the band job, if you amplify the image it appears that the bands don't come into full intimate contact with the shell surface, please correct me if Im wrong.

You are correct, it's not the best band job in the world! Especially in the summer they kind of float around the drum except for the attatchment points. These bands ARE strictly for cosmetics, know what I mean. The rest of the drum and the overall uniqueness is what gives it character.

[seisporocho1]

Bacalao,

I am going to Cali at the end of the month...how much do they charge you to bring the drum back to the US?
How do you compare these drums with congas like Matthew Smith or SOS or Islas etc.?
If you've never tried those, then how would they compare to a Matador or main stream drums?

It's a good sign to hear that you're buying another one. I thought perhaps you weren't happy with the drum and that's why you were selling it....

thanks.

[Bacalao]

Bacalao,

I am going to Cali at the end of the month...how much do they charge you to bring the drum back to the US?
How do you compare these drums with congas like Matthew Smith or SOS or Islas etc.?
If you've never tried those, then how would they compare to a Matador or main stream drums?

It's a good sign to hear that you're buying another one. I thought perhaps you weren't happy with the drum and that's why you were selling it....

thanks.

I got lucky and was able to to bring mine as my only baggage item. I pack light and just added my stuff with my wife's and used my alloted baggage for the conga. International flight's ( at least back then) allowed a person more baggage. I went through a huge hassle getting through customs on the Colombian side because of the size of the box and the weight. After packaging it so well they literally tore it open for inspection. I was furious because I would've opened it to were I could have just repackaged it like I had originally.

I have no exp with the makers that you mentioned except LP. As far as the tonal quality it's superior. The hardware is beefier although less refined. The wood used for the shell is absolutely beautiful and solid as a tank and the skin is like none other I've seen.

If you're going to get one from H.R., make sure you go and see him first thing when you arrive. This way he can source everything he need and make any adjustments as in my case with the bands. I had him basically working on mine non-stop at his shop. You have to remember that over there they really don't have the resources to acquire the finest of materials all the time and he does best with what he can get. I won't hesitate to buy another drum from him because they are a rare representation of craftsmanship.