Boutique-style drums with the working drummer in mind. Barton is a relatively new California-based company that, according to its website, makes “real, honest drums that you can keep for a lifetime.” In order to keep its prices within the working drummer’s budget, Barton limits its product range to a handful of finishes, configurations, and shell types, and it keeps the designs as simple and streamlined as possible. All Barton drums are handcrafted in Asia. Shell packs are currently available in a bubinga/kapur hybrid, European beech, a poplar/African mahogany blend, and American maple. We were sent the Vintage Beech setup ($1,049) with an old-school brown/black/orange Tiger Bartex striped wrap on 8×12 and 14×14 toms and a 14×20 bass drum. A matching 6.5×14 snare ($299) was also included. The Specs The Vintage Beech shells are made from 100-percent European beech. The toms have 7-ply shells, while the snare and bass drum are […]

June 2019 Issue