Welcome to Steve Maxwell Vintage and Custom Drums
Steve Maxwell Vintage and Custom Drums is Chicago and Manhattan's only Vintage and Custom Drum Shop and Museum. We have an extensive inventory that is constantly changing so keep checking back for new and unique vintage drums and cymbals. The links to your left will guide you through the web site. Please email us if you would like to sell any of your vintage drum gear or would like to discuss an item you see on this web site. We also carry new cymbals, heads, drums, sticks, books, and hardware. Let us know if we can help you in any way with your new and custom drum needs.
5/7/13: GRETSCH USA CUSTOM SHELL BANK READY TO GO!!! Satin Natural. SHIPS TODAY. Pick your sizes: HERE
5/6/13: Come see us at the Chicago Vintage Drum show May 18 and 19 and come to our open house at the Naperville shop on Fri May 17th from 11AM-9PM. We'll have refreshments and also pre-show deals on lots of the items we're not bringing to the show venue. All are welcome, so if you are in for the show stop in!
5/4/13: Spizzichino cymbals are here and sound files are now up along with photos!!! Steve has 8 Spizz ride cymbals in the Illinois store and a set of hats. 22" 2268gr; 22" 2246gr; 22" TW 2554gr; 22" TW 2333gr; 22" 2210gr; 22" Ka 2296gr; 24" 3125gr; 24" 2593gr . 14" hats 735/905gr. Trust me on this: My pick for a superbly matched set is the following: 22" 2296 Ka; the 22" 2333 TW; the HH cymbals; and the 24" 2593. That set was meant to be together and the 24 at 2593 grams is absolutely unreal and is as good, if not better than ANY old K I ever played. That set will not be separated and we'll sell that as a complete set. Call Steve: 630-865-6849 and see details HERE.
5/7/13: Steve is at Sabian and just picked out 110 more special cymbals from Sabian's Area 51 vault. These will be in our Sabian Sound Studio in NY and Chicagoland. Check the pics and also the Sabian video with Steve and Mark Love: HERE
5/6/13 and 4/29/13: Steve just ordered more Craviotto drum sets: See them and reserve one now, HERE
4/8: Mark your calendars!! Johnny Craviotto is in NY at our shop for the next Meet The Master session June 19th from 11am-6pm! Come on down! Call the shop to let us know you'll be there. We can set aside time for you to speak with Johnny one-on-one about a Craviotto kit.
4/8: I just ordered 40 more Gretsch sets. ALL USA Custom and USA Brooklyn. That's right, 40 sets. Call and reserve yours now! See the list HERE
4/8: See a brief video of the shell bank at the Gretsch factory from Steve's recent visit. Slideshow of the visit with audio too! Video HERE. Slideshow with audio is HERE.
3/30: Our NYC store celebrated its 5 year anniversary Monday April 1st! Thanks to all our wonderful customers for making the past 5 years a huge success for us in NY! We'll have a celebration for the event down the line a bit so stay tuned.
3/28: Sad News: Bob Zildjian passed away this morning. Steve's tribute is HERE
3/21: Video highlights:
- Tama solid maple snare drum with Star series bop kit: HERE.
- 3/21 Steve's updated tour of the Craviotto showroom in NYC: HERE.
- Steve's update of the NYC store 4th floor expansion. HERE.
3/11/13: See Steve playing and discussing the new Evans 360 heads which will be in our shops shortly. Incredible heads and THE answer for vintage sets: HERE
3/3/13: New for 2013. See the video HERE. The Gretsch Brooklyn series bop kit has a proper 14x18 with the 8x12, 14x14, 5.5x14 snare. First order of 5 sets sold out, but on 3/3 I ordered five more sets: Naperville: satin maple and satin mahogany; NY: satin maple, satin mahogany, satin tabasco. Call to reserve one now! Only $2130 for the 4pc kit!!!!
2/28/13: VIDEOS NOW UP. See our product review and videos of the new Tama Star series jazz sets that made their NY debut at our shop on Feb 18. HERE
1/25/13: For all 2013 NAMM show updates click HERE
1/25/13: SEE WHAT'S NEW AND COOL FROM LUDWIG IN THEIR LEGACY LINE, AND MORE HERE
NEW FOR 2013: Craviotto/AK Masters Brass!!! Only 150 drums total to be produced worldwide. I have purchased 59 and the entire run is now sold out as of 2-12-13. Details and more photos and video are HERE.
UPDATE 3/25: Adrian's first 40 shells arrived at Craviotto! The shells received are #2 thru #11 in all 4 sizes. Johnny will be building these out and we hope to have these ready to go within about two weeks:
12/14/12: Check out the new audio/video of the great Ludwig Legacy vintage build out kits and also a fabulous vintage black beauty: HERE
11/18/12: HERE WE GO! We introduce a brand new exclusive finish for Gretsch USA sets. Only available from us! ESPRESSO BURST! Order now! See it in large detail HERE
10/26/12: See the video of the latest and greatest that we're doing specially with Ludwig. My motto: "Yes, you can go back again..." See it HERE.
10/14/12: NEW! Get a jump start on everyone else and see what we just got in, but have not yet listed: HERE AND, see the latest Craviotto NYC showroom video. 13 drum sets on display! HERE
10/6/12: See a great video of our NY store done thanks to Ashley Syed, at NYU. See it HERE:
10/2/2012:  THE ROUND BADGE IS BACK ON USA CUSTOM GRETSCH IN 2013!!!!!!! THIS IS WHAT YOU HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR! For more info click HERE And, call Steve now and order your "vintage tribute" build out kit and get it with ROUND BADGES. Be one of the first on the list. What could be better than Gretsch USA Custom with a vintage build out and round badges!! Get a 12/14/18/5.5 and get it one of our special finishes like burgundy sparkle with round badges like Mel and Art. Or, mardi gras, fiesta, vintage copper lacquer, or ANY current USA Gretsch finish.
9/26/12: CRAVIOTTO SOUND FILES NOW ONLINE FOR YOU TO REVIEW! Right now there are 20 drum set and 70 snare drum sound files and we'll continue to add more!! These sound files will give you audio reference points for various woods and sizes and they were recorded in our NY studio. This will help you decide which type of wood, which sizes and which bearing edges you'd like on your kit. To see the list click HERE
9/26/12 MORE SABIAN NEWS!!!! 9/25: Steve just orderd 32 MORE of our special Sabian prototype cymbals and another 12 of the great Sabian SR2 series as well. AND, see the latest update video on our Sabian Sound Studio HERE. And, see the first of these special new Sabian cymbals HERE. I am thrilled to announce that we will be opening a Sabian NYC Custom Shop in our Manhattan store. The idea for this initiative came from my desire to help NYC drummers find exactly the right cymbal "voice". As a result, I have created an arrangement with Sabian whereby we will serve as the NYC conduit to Sabian for players looking for a special sound. I am setting up "The Factory on 4" on the fourth floor of my NY store and in this room we will have an array of reference cymbals on hand, and I will work with players to zero in on their sound. Then, I will contact Mark Love, Sabian's "Cymbal Master" and we'll get the cymbal built. And, I have 75 cymbals that have now arrived and 65 of these were hand picked by me from Sabian's "Area 51" and they are all INCREDIBLY SPECTACULAR!! Read more about it and see Steve's pics from the Sabian tour HERE
8/21/12 BIG NEWS!!! Crescent Cymbals ARE HERE NOW!! Michael Vosbein, Jeff Hamilton, Stanton Moore and Bill Norman have evolved their business and are now bringing even better cymbals to the USA. We are THE EXCLUSIVE dealer in NYC and the 5 surrounding borroughs and we'll also have these in our Chicagoland store. WE HAVE OVER 90 CYMBALS IN STOCK RIGHT NOW. For more infomation click HERE
8/3/12: CRAVIOTTO!!! The latest and greatest from Craviotto is here! Hybrid bearing edges on a stacked solid mahogany/maple kit. This is unreal. Listen to the sound file with headphones!! Here. And, 30 kits on order for stock and 71 snares!!!! Reserve one now! Incoming sets: Here. Incoming snares: Here
Naperville (Chicago-land): 630-778-8060. Hours: 11-6 Fri. 10-5 Sat. Other hours by appointment. Mgr. Dave Victor email: maxwelldrumsdavid@gmail.com
Manhattan Shop:212-730-8138.Mgr. Jess Birch email: jessmaxwelldrums@gmail.com Hours: Mon-Fri 11-7 and Sat. 11-6
Steve's email: Drummermax@aol.com Steve's cell phone: 630-865-6849
VIDEO CHANNEL: See all of our videos here: youtube.com/stevemaxwelldrums We've got over 130 videos.
LATEST PRODUCTS: cymbals, drum sets, snares, all items STEVE'S PICKS 06/05: Here ALL THINGS GRETSCH: sets, snares
ALL CRAVIOTTO: Here VINTAGE & NEW: sets, snares CYMBALS VINTAGE & NEW: vintage, other used, new
SEE HOW WE SUPPORT MUSIC VENUES: Here
NEWS AND INFORMATION SECTION:
6/28/12: GRETSCH USA!!! Steve just ordered 12 sets for stock including an Art Blakey Tribute set!!! Click Here
5/14/12: Steve's latest update on his Gretsch USA Manhattan showroom: Here. Steve's latest update on the Craviotto NY Showroom: Here
5/4/12: See the Latest video of the new Craviotto NY showroom and our espresso bar!!! Come on in and have an espresso on us! Here. 4/22/12 UPDATE: NY STORE EXPANSION CONTINUES. SEE PICS OF THE IN-PROCESS CRAVIOTTO SHOWROOM: Click Here. SEE THE LATEST INSTALLMENT OF OUR "IN-PROCESS" VIDEO HERE: WE WILL NOW OCCUPY THE 3RD AND 4TH FLOORS AND A MASSIVE NEW SHOWROOM IS IN THE WORKS. FOR MORE DETAILS: Click Here.
3/17/12: Now, Maxwell Drums brings you even MORE custom options for your Craviotto drum set! Click Here:
3/11/12: Gretsch Stick Chopper style replacement rims ARE HERE: Click Here.
3/11/12: NEW AND EXCLUSIVE TO OUR STORE. GRETSCH SEA FOAM GREEN. BOP SETS, ROCK/BIG BAND AND MUCH MORE, AND WE'LL CUSTOMIZE THEM FOR YOU TOO: Click Here. And, see Steve's video about these sets here: Click Here. Also, see and hear Steve on the bop kit with studio quality sound here: Click Here. And, here's Steve with a 6 pc rock kit: Click Here.
2/17/12: OUR NY STORE FEATURED IN THE NY TIMES SUNDAY 2/19. ONLINE HERE.
1/26/12: We're brokering Carl Palmer's ultra rare Billy Gladstone drum set!!! Click Here . And, how about a Craviotto Billy Gladstone Tribute kit while we're at it! Click Here
1/5/11 BIG GRETSCH 2012 NEWS: Steve waves the magic wand and saves you over $1000 on brand new Gretsch USA Custom bop kits. Here's how: Click Here
1/4/11: CANOPUS NEWS: We are now your exclusive NYC source for the great Canopus drum sets, snares and hardware. Call the NY store for details. We currently have the following in stock ready to go: Sets: 18/12/14 RFM - Walnut Oil; 18/12/14 NV60-M1 - Sky Blue Pearl; 18/12/14 Sword Maple - Natural Oil; 15/10/13 Club Kit - Champagne Sparkle. Snares: 6.5x14" NV60-M1S - Sky Blue Pearl; 6.5x14" Maple w/Die Cast - Natural Maple; 5.5x14" Carbon Fiber
12/15/11: THIS IS INCREDIBLE! The rarest set I have ever seen! Far more rare than Top Hat and Cane. One of a kind, Leedy Autograph of the Stars over WMP! The only example ever to surface, and it is a 71 YR OLD FULL, COMPLETE KIT FROM THE ORIGINAL OWNER'S FAMILY. UNREAL! Click Here. And now we also have: One of Joe Morello's drum sets. Very cool and lots of history here. Click Here:
11/16/11: CARL PALMER fans! We have Carl's ELP one-off Remo kit for sale. Click Here. Another First From Craviotto: New lug style bop kit!! Click Here. AND, HERE IS THE FATTEST, FULLEST SOUNDING KIT I HAVE EVER SEEN OR HEARD. Craviotto maple/poplar/maple hybrid with baseball bat edges. This is insane. Be sure to watch the video as well as listening to the sound file. You will not believe it! Click Here. Maxwell kits! New shipment has arrived! These sets are made exclusively for us here in the USA. Custom built, made-in-USA 4 pc bop kits for $1850!! Click Here. NEW!! Taye drums comes to our shops. We are NYC's Taye Snare Center and have some excellent items on hand in both of our stores (NY and Illinois). Also, GoKit ultra portable gig kit in NY as well. Great value with Bop kit at $1150 and GoKit 5pc at $779. Incredible value, great looks and pro sound. Click Here. Tons of new items. We've added tons of new items. See them broken down in categories by clicking on the word "Latest Products" in the home page banner at the top of this page, or you can see all items together by clicking Latest Products.
8/23/11: NEW! Craviotto "hybrid bearing edges" are here!! See our exclusive video of this great new innovation from Craviotto: Click Here.
Lots of snares, sets and cymbals just added. See them broken down in categories by clicking on the word "Latest Products" in the home page banner at the top of this page, or you can see all items together by clicking here: Latest Products
See our latest video and sound file for the new Maxwell bebop drum set! Click Here VIDEO TOUR OF OUR NEW CHICAGO-LAND STORE: Click Here.
5/7/11: NEWS!! Maxwell Custom Drums. Our line of custom drums reintroduced with three great set configurations and lots of options. See the new sets and also our video: Click Here
4/21: GRETSCH MICRO SENSITIVE STRAINER AND BUTT PLATE!!! GRETSCH HAS REDESIGNED THE MICRO SENSITIVE STRAINER AND BUTT PLATE! IT FITS VINTAGE SNARES TOO. AND, WE HAVE A VIDEO OF IT AS WELL!!! Click Here. And, see the first video episode of "Live from the Drum Shop with Steve" which talks about the great Gretsch USA Custom drums. Click Here.
4/5: Steve's Craviotto drum set product video is on line. Click Here and you'll also have this link embedded in every Craviotto drum set listing as well.
3/16: You can help contribute to Joe Morello's estate by purchasing one of his personal cymbals or one of our Joe Morello Ludwig Tribute drum sets. We contribute all net proceeds from cymbal sales to Joe's estate and a portion of the proceeds on every Tribute set. For Joe's cymbals Click Here. For the Joe Morello Ludwig Tribute drum set Click Here.
NEWS! We have a new Video Program section of our site. It is managed through MaxWeb Productions, which is the video production division of our business. Our website is evolving into a mini media station and the new video section is a big part of the website evolution initiative. We'll have product specific videos, interviews, instructional videos, special interest and more. Check this section out frequently. Updates will be made often. Click Here.
Steve Jordan's vintage Trixon Kit!! Click Here.
1/16: NEW GRETSCH CATEGORY! Get an advance look at the items we have on order for stock coming in: Incoming Gretsch Sets now added to the website. Get an advanced look at what we have on order and reserve one! And, get the first information about a new, exclusive finish we'll have for Gretsch in 2011! Click Here.
12/30: For our DAILY SPECIAL with more items added each day Click Here.
OUR SHOP FEATURED ON TV! To see the clip Click Here.
See us for ALL your drumming needs. Competitive prices on EVERYTHING and the best service in town!
Check Latest Products and also see Steve's Top Picks!! NEW! Check out our new category Top Picks From the Team. This is a new way for us to highlight what the staff feels are some excellent picks. We'll update this very often. So, now you have two ways to find new items: Latest Products shows you every single new item, and Top Picks From The Team shows you some special highlights.
INVENTORY UPDATES AND INFO FROM STEVE: SEE WHAT WE'RE ANNOUNCING. THIS IS SERIOUSLY COOL. Click Here.
LATEST PRODUCTS: Click Here Items are coming in FAST. Lots of vintage up here already, and LOTS more going in daily with some very cool recent additions!
EBAY auctions. Some special deals! Click Here
STEVE'S FEATURED PRODUCTS: Click Here
STEVE'S SPECIAL SALE ITEMS: Click Here
STEVE'S CELEBRITY AND ULTRA RARE DRUM GALLERY: Click Here
STEVE'S VINTAGE TIPS: Click Here
STEVE'S DEAL OF THE DAY: Click Here
MORE FUN STUFF BELOW:
Take a look at what we have here. Joe Morello's actual Brubeck era Ludwig kit and our new Ludwig Legacy 3 ply Morello "Take Five" Tribute Kit. You'll see both of these here at our shop. The Brubeck era set is part of our museum, but you can order a Take Five tribute kit right now! We're only doing 25 sets. To see it, hear the Sound File and buy it. Click Here
Almost all kits and SDs have sound files, many cymbals too. Go search through the categories on the left side of the main page and enjoy them all!
We have Elvin's Camco kit!!! What more can I say? Check this out because it's truly amazing. CLICK HERE. Plus, many more items added to Latest Products. CLICK HERE for a run down of details.
Pic of the day: "Gretsch Street" in our Manhattan store
Please always feel free to call Steve's cell directly at 630-865-6849 ANYTIME at all. We definitely want to communicate with you. The highest quality service is our hallmark, and we take this very seriously. Steve
VIDEO TOUR OF THE MUSEUM SECTION OF OUR MANHATTAN STORE: This is something that Drummer Connection filmed in October when they visited. This is just ONE ROOM of our Manhattan shop. Jess Birch, our NY store manager gives the tour. Click Here
SPIZ, VINTAGE As and Ks WITH SOUND FILES! Click Here
OUR NEW RAIL CONSOLETTE IS HERE!!! Click Here
Click Here for all of the Maxwell News and Latest Updates.
NEW YORK DRUMMERS UPDATE: WE HAVE PRACTICE SPACE AVAILABLE FOR RENT!! CALL JESS AT 212-730-8138. Teaching studio now open with Ron Tierno, noted Manhattan percussionist and instructor.Click Here.
RECORDING STUDIOS: WE CAN HELP YOU! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO.
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