Wow, that's interesting cz. Guitarists are used to seeing high priced Fenders and Gibsons, but the most collectible snare drum is the Ludwig Deluxe from the 1920's (also incorrectly referred to as a Black Beauty), worth no more than about $5,000 (far less than the most collectible guitars). It was a brass shell plated in black nickel, then hand engraved. The brass would therefore show through the engraving, making for a cool look. It was priced at just over a hundred bucks in the late 20's, a lot of money at the time. The Great Depression ended it's manufacture. For you McCartney fans: When he played the Super Bowl half-time show, his drummer (the great Abe Laboriel Jr.) played the mid-20's Ludwig Standard (exactly the same drum as the Deluxe, but plain nickel plating instead of the black nickel, and no engraving) I sold him in 2008. Sounded great, didn't it?!
DW Drums bought some old-growth maple logs that had been laying on the bottom of the Lake Superior for a hundred years (the barge they were on sunk), the temperature down there keeping the wood in excellent condition. DW cut the logs and made snare drum shells from the timbre, some of them built by master drum maker Johnny Craviotto, one-time drummer (in the 70's) of Neil Young. Nice drum!