Tama Royal Star Rosewood years??

[wveeder]

Hola from New Mexico. I just bud on and own a nice Tama Royal Star kit that is Rosewood, or some parts are I guess. I think it's from the early 1980's. It DOES NOT have the Camco lugs...just normal Tama looking ones. Any ideas as to when these were done? Any more info about the Rosewood aspects of them?? This is my first post here and my first jump into the world of Japan made drums.

Pics to come...

[wveeder]

Bid on and won. Sorry.

[Bish]

Can't give you any legit information so I'll just say...

Welcome to Drum Chat!

Enjoy your new gear.

[N2Bluz]

I can't imagine ANY of the early MIJ Tama kits NOT being good. I have an '80s Swingstar that was entry level but still made in Japan (as opposed to China). It sounds great.

[slinglander]

Rosewood....ooh.

[kay-gee]

Can't imagine much rosewood being used except on the highest end drums, even then, in a more decorative way. It's pretty pricey and scarce. Guitar companies buy up just about everything they can source for fretboards etc...
What we're talking about probably, is wood that has been stained to have the look of rosewood.

all the best...

[Lefty]

I think I know what you're talking about. I had the red stained one. there were only two finishes. A dark brown finish with some exotic grain patterns, and red stain, similar to the cherry whine red. They called the wood Shina. The outside ply only, I think the rest of the plies were Mahogany. I asked Modern Drummer mag. about the different finishes from the same wood. They said Shina was an inexpensive Birch species with unpredictable grain patterns. They used the exotic looking plies for the brown finish and the not so wild patterns for the red. I think the brown was called Brazilian.

[IMG][/IMG]

[N2Bluz]

Pretty sure the Royal Star was one of the mid/upper level series. In today's terms, it should easily be semi-pro/pro level. Definitely a "gem". Nice score!

[wveeder]

Thanks Lefty. That's the kit but mine is red looking. Not here yet but I think mine's the same-ish. How do I post a pic?

[Lefty]

Thanks Lefty. That's the kit but mine is red looking. Not here yet but I think mine's the same-ish. How do I post a pic?

Well I copy pics. and upload them to a free site called photo bucket. Them I copy the url # then I go back to drumchat and click on the yellow picture icon and paste the url there. Here are some red ones I found when I googled tama royalstars.

[IMG][/IMG]

[signia fan]

I remember when this line came out, they were a great bang for the buck. They were priced one level higher than the entry level Swingstars, but had no sound deadening wrap or any thick finish, so they ended up being a nice resonant warm sounding kit. I thought at the time these were a better deal than the pricier Imperialstars.

[wveeder]

Thanks again LEFTY. My is much like that last one but the rim on the bass drum on the outer edge is red and I have three rack toms! Ha. Pics soon. Thanks again everyone for all the info.

[wveeder]

So just a very late update. My kit is a 1984 Tama Royalstar! After replacing a few tension rods and new heads it sounds very nice. Pics to come soon. Thanks for all the advice.

[Powertrip240]

Looking forward to pics! Good score, and welcome the DC!

[kaosotis]

Yeah they aren't Rosewood. They are Phillipine Mahogany, as were the older Swingstars and Imperialstars. The Shina wood is the outer 2 plies.

Royalstars were solid drums for the time, as were the Imperialstars. You should be happy to have them, as long as you didn't pay a lot for "vintage" or "rosewood" as they generally don't have high value.

By 1984 I think they may have discontinued them (haven't been able to confirm) but they had Arstar and Superstar by then, so these were not Tama's highest end line or anything. That being said, and being a Tama guy, you should enjoy them immensely. I almost bought a kit a few years ago, although I've been on the prowl for the Camco lug variant!

[cabasner]

I know this is an old thread but just wanted to throw in my $0.02 about Rosewood. From what I know, Rosewood, in particular the Brazilian variety, was commonly used in fretboards on guitars in the 1950s and early 1960s. This was not looked upon as exotic wood at all. Then, as it became more and more scarce, and it became illegal to harvest, it became a very pricey commodity. I paid, I think, $500 for an (admittedly spectacularly figured and colored) blank of Brazilian Rosewood for the fretboard of my last Fodera custom 5 string bass. If one was going to use Brazilian as a drum shell wood today, it would be extraordinarily expensive. I'm not sure what point I was trying to make here. It's early in the am in the Pacific time zone, and I'm not even awake yet!!

[signia fan]

The "Rosewood" is referring to the finish. There was no actual Rosewood in these shells. Many drum companies have done this same marketing white lie, Gretsch being one selling Maple shells with a Rosewood stain.

[Vertigone]

Hey wveeder-

I can confirm everything Lefty told you because I own the same exact kit as you (bought new in '84) right down to the blonde bass hoops. Bought them when I joined a rock band in '83 and they served me very well in that capacity for over 30 years until I bought my Mapex Meridians a year ago.

Did yours come with a 6.5x14 steel snare? Love that snare (especially for rock) and the 22x14 bass drum is a cannon.

If you don't mind me asking, what did you have to give for them? I doubt I'll ever sell mine (relegated to my practice room now) but it may give me a general idea what I could ask for them should I ever decide to sell.

1st time poster here but long time lurker. You'll find dc a friendly site with many helpful dudes.

If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask. These Royalstars are like an old friend to me.

Congrats on your purchase and rock on.