Considering some cymbal trades/upgrades- need some advice

[dkerwood]

Alright, so I found a guy about 3 hours north of me that is selling some killer cymbals for great prices. My church is wanting to buy themselves a set before I move and take mine with me. As I got to looking, however, I realized that I could get involved with the transaction and a) save me a dedicated trip, b) help this guy unload a few more pies, and c) maybe get a bit of a discount since we'd be doing 5 or 6 cymbals at once.

Anyway, here's my situation. I bought a used 18" K Custom Dark crash a few years ago, and it cracked with normal use within a week (I think it had been abused by the previous owner). I called up the guy from Saluda cymbals and asked him to make me a clone of a K Custom, but dark. Boy, oh boy, I had no idea what I was asking him for! The cymbal he sent me was SUPER dark- so much so that it wasn't in the same ballpark as the rest of my As and A Customs. The guy up north has an 18" Constantinople that he's selling for $220. If I sell my old set to my church for $200, that pretty much buys me a K Con. I really need it to be a versatile cymbal, serving as the darker voice of my collection but also being the go-to crash/ride for jazz gigs. Would the K Con be a good match for my needs?

Cymbal need #2: I have a 16" A Custom Crash that I've been using as an accent crash over my ride and occasionally as a main crash alongside my 17" A Custom Fast Crash. Problem is- it's cracked. I bought it that way (I was young and stupid and needed more cymbals), and it hasn't gotten worse, but I'm always afraid to really hit it. I want something punchy and bright, but fairly dry and gets out of the way quickly. Guy up north has two cymbals that seem like they might fit the bill- 16" K Custom, and 16" K Custom hybrid for $160 each. I figured my Saluda might be a direct trade, or at least pretty close. I've been a big fan of the hybrids, but I also dig the dry tone of the K Customs that I've played. I'd appreciate some opinions there.

Cymbal need #3: These last two are just to get my two Sabian cymbals out of my hair and put Zildjians all around me. Pretty dumb, I know, right? I've got a 16" Sabian HH Orchestral that I really really like. Of course, it sounds best doing cymbal rolls, but it's a great sounding crash, too- more wash than punch, which is a good contrast to my punchier A Customs. I usually set it off to my left with the big setup as a good color crash. I don't know if he has anything that would be a good match, other than the two 16" crashes mentioned before. Value-wise, this HH Orchestral should be an even match for either of the K's, right? Not sure that I'd want to get rid of this, though.

Cymbal need #4: Bought a AAX 18" china from a buddy of mine several years ago, and while I like it alright, it never really fit the bill for me. Since then, I've sort of been testing Zildjian chinas (because I'm a fanboy) to see if I can find one I liked better. The only one I could find was the K Custom hybrid. Enough bright punch to serve as a trashy crash, enough wash to roll on, and enough ping to use as a color ride. Of course, I didn't like it $350 better! Guy up north has the K Custom 19" Hybrid for $200. I'd hope that my AAX in trade could roll off some of the price for the K Custom.

So what are your thoughts?