How to trace Paiste serial number?

[zambizzi]

I recently bought some cymbals from a lady here in town who may not have known what she was giving me.

One of them is a 22" vintage Paiste ride w/ no markings except for the Paiste stamp (star & crescent and the word "Paiste")

I found the serial number, is there a way for me to find out what it means? I'd like to at least get an approximate date on it.

It sounds friggin' great! I played it for a few minutes last night...very nice!

[Goody602]

I'm pretty sure the first number of the serial number indicates the last number of the year the cymbal was manufactured so if, for example, your cymbal's serial number starts with an '8,' it was manufactured in 1978, or 1988, or 1998 and so forth. You should be able to tell the decade by the model, stamp design/condition, and overall condition of the cymbal. Like for instance, formula 602's started with no ink in the, then when to black, then blue. 2oo2's started with black and then moved to red in the eighties.

[zambizzi]

Excellent, thanks for the info! It's a 6-digit number that starts with "7" so it's 1977 or 1987...given the look and wear, I'd definitely say '77

I attached a sound clip of me doing a little sticking on it earlier w/ my crappy PC mic. I slapped a pic on here too.

[Pedro]

Wow, that sounds perfect!
Is it a sound creation dark ride?
Great, great cymbal....you are a very lucky man. How did you find it?

[zambizzi]

She is a beauty, eh?

It's kind of a funny story - my wife hunts around on the local craigslist a lot. She found a local drum teacher selling a bunch of Paiste Alpha turds for $100 - which isn't a bad deal since we'll turn around and sell them, all are in very good shape.

As my wife was leaving after purchasing, the lady grabbed her and gave her this cymbal w/ the alphas...for free!

Talk about a lucky grab. It's in near-perfect condition...other than very slight keyholing (almost unnoticeable!)

I have no idea what kind it is, the only markings are the serial number and the Paiste stamp (attached).

[Goody602]

That's awesome. I'm not a hundred percent certain of the model, but that hammering looks like a Sound Creation, which of course, have long since been discontinued and always seem to be in demand on eBay, especially the 22"s.

[wolfmoon]

I would call Paiste and see what they say...

[cornelius]

Looks and sounds like a Sound Creation Dark Ride. I have one just like it from that same year. It's sort a transition period between the Formula 602 Dark Ride and the Sound Creation Dark Ride. Great cymbal.

[Pedro]

I have one just like it from that same year. It's sort a transition period between the Formula 602 Dark Ride and the Sound Creation Dark Ride. Great cymbal.

I agree with you. ....

[zambizzi]

Wow! I auctioned this baby off on ebay and it ended last night, care to guess what I got for it?

Here's what a collector told me:


Hey, Told ya this one was special! It is 1 of 100 known cymbals ever made like it in 1977 (extremely rare). It was the transition prototype from a Formula 602 cymbal to what became the infamous Sound Creation Dark Ride (notice that the logo is from neither series, it's the 602 logo without the FORMULA 602 wording included). Notably, this single cymbal launched the entire SC series that followed, which is now considered by most to be the finest Paiste series ever produced, making it a landmark item.

[fooleeze]

Was that the one that went for $440 something?

[zambizzi]

Yep, that was it! It jumped from $280 (appx.) to $445 in the last three seconds...what a trip!

It paid for about half of my new cymbal setup...so I may get to eat this month.

[Mediocrefunkybeat]

Personally I would've kept that puppy, but that's your decision. Really superb and amazing ride though, certainly a find that's for sure. Good work.

[zambizzi]

Believe me, I wanted to keep it...but I have a wife. ;)

If I hadn't just bought a new kit and completely replaced my cymbals I could have justified hanging onto this one...hell I would have even played it a little...but alas...drum gear is expensive and I had to recoup the costs somehow.

Bad timing for me, good timing for the collector who nabbed it.

[uhoh38125]

i saw one of those go for over 700 bucks last night...it was mint

[alex2992]

hey :D i have a 1977 black label 20" ride in good condition just a few scratches. how much would that go for?