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George Way (left) inspecting Leedy & Ludwig Knob Tension drums in 1951
The Leedy Drum Company -
In the aftermath of WWII, which had totally disrupted Conn's drum divisions, it was decided to combine Ludwig & Ludwig with Leedy, creating the Leedy & Ludwig drum company. This new division became operational in 1951. A cornerstone product for Leedy & Ludwig was a new series of drums with a unique tuning system, the "Knob Tension" line. The concept can be attributed to George Way, although Way was not responsible for the final engineering which proved to be lacking, and the line was a spectacular and expensive failure. Knob Tension drums were discontinued within a year. Conn decided to discontinue the unprofitable Leedy & Ludwig division four years later in 1955. Wm. F. Ludwig II (of the WFL drum company) and Bud Slingerland (of the Slingerland drum company) teamed up to make Conn an offer. The Ludwig family got the Ludwig name back, and Slingerland purchased rights to the Leedy name. Ludwig and Slingerland spent weeks going through the plant to debate the division of tools, equipment, and inventory. Slingerland tried to introduce Leedy as a second line. They wanted to sell Slingerland drums to the top dealer in each town, and Leedy to the secondary dealers, leaving Ludwig the third-tier dealers. That plan did not work out. Except for a new lug design and badge, the Leedy drums that were produced by Slingerland from 1956 to 1965 were basically Slingerland drums. Slingerland quietly discontinued Leedy production and use of the name in the mid 1960s. The Slingerland family sold the drum company in 1970 in what was to become the first of numerous ownership shifts over the next 25 years. Each time, the purchase agreement included the Leedy name, patents, trademarks, and parts. Each time, that is, until Fred Gretsch sold Slingerland to the Gibson company in 1994. He retained ownership of Leedy and began to consider how he could bring this once great American drum name back into the marketplace! 
Some of the beautiful new Leedy Drums! For more information about the new Leedy Drums please contact us at; info@leedydrums.com
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