Gretsch 22/13/16/6.5x14" Broadkaster Telecaster Blonde Ltd Edition

I bought this awesome Broadkaster kit from Steve Maxwell a little over a year ago. He had sold them new, and the customer had recently placed them on consignment with Steve. They are 100% original and are in excellent condition. They look like they never left the original owner's studio. I've since picked up a couple of vintage round badge kits and need to thin the herd a bit. See my other listing for a 'Born Together" 22/13/14/5.5x14 kit from 1962.

Per Steve's notes below from the original listing, I reached out to Paul Cooper at Gretsch to get a bit more information on these. He confirmed that they were a very limited run done for the NAMM show around 2018 (see email in the photos).

The pictures are from Steve's original listing, and the kit is in identical condition. The only exception is that I had Steve swap out the original reso head for a new one with the later classic Gretsch logo, which I prefer (see last pic). They have never been gigged, and have remained in my studio since I purchased them in February 2025, Please let me know if you'd like any detail pics of anything specific. Here is the copy from the original listing:

Steve’s notes: This is a nice set of Gretsch Broadkaster drums, sized 14x22", 9x13", and 16x16" with a matching 6.5x14" snare drum and finished in ”Telecaster Blond” gloss lacquer. This was a very limited offering shown at NAMM many years ago. Gretsch designed this limited run outfitted with tone controls and a Gibraltar rail consolette, but is otherwise modern standard build. The gloss lacquer finish has some cosmetic nitrocellulose lacquer checking on its surface - this is hard to pick up on from more than a foot or two away, but up close it is visible throughout the set.

Here's some more info from Gretsch on their Broadkaster series drums:

"From the 1920s through the 1950s, the Gretsch flagship drum set was the legendary Broadkaster Series. It featured a thin, three-ply shell and produced what was to be, “That Great Gretsch Sound.” Today, in the Gretsch Drum Factory in Ridgeland, South Carolina, USA, with the help of advanced drum-making techniques, the Broadkaster has returned, bringing with it all of sonic brilliance of its namesake.

Broadkaster shells are made with a North American maple/poplar/maple formula. Each shell includes an interior-ply scarf joint that supplies added structural integrity to thin, musical shells. Like all USA-made Gretsch drums, shell interiors are finished with classic Gretsch Silver Sealer. The shell is hand finished with the exclusive reverse roundover bearing edge, which allows greater surface contact between the bearing edge and drumhead. The result is tone that is incredibly deep and warm."