Our splendid Rogers kit belongs to Jeremy Peake. Jeremy bought the English Rogers because for some reason it included a Sonor snare drum, which he needed to complete a different Sonor kit. Also, Jeremy was able to match the Rogers with an Ajax snare drum in the same Black Pearl wrap.

He explains, “My 14x5-inch Ajax Pipper is from the same period with the same shell construction as the Rogers. I had it already and it looks and sounds good with the Rogers.”

So how to distinguish English from American Rogers? Checking inside the shells is the surest way. The English (Ajax) shells are mostly thin three-ply birch (occasionally beech) with reinforcing rings, while the American shells are maple, again with rings, but usually painted grey inside.

The other tell-tale sign is the English Rogers logo badge, which is horizontal with a thin underscore, while the American badge slopes upward.