The Tama version of the Camco pedal is commonly referred to as the Tamco pedal to distinguish it from an original Camco pedal. Tama began production of the same pedal under the Camco name. DW continued production of the pedal using the original tooling, rebadging it as the DW5000. As part of the deal, DW received the Camco tooling and manufacturing equipment while Tama received the Camco name, designs, engineering and patent rights.Īt the time, Camco was producing what was thought to be the best drum pedal on the market. Tama and Drum Workshop (DW) jointly bought the bankrupt Camco Drum Company. 'Star' continues to be used in the names of Tama's drum models to this day. Tama was the name of the owner's wife, and is also a homophone with the Japanese word meaning 'jewel'. The two higher lines of drum models, Imperial Star and Royal Star, were introduced to the American market and were successful lower-cost drums competing against more expensive American-made drums offered by Rogers, Ludwig, and Slingerland at the time.īy 1974, Hoshino decided to make a concerted effort to make high-quality drums and hardware and start marketing its drums under the Tama brand. While the production of guitars and amps was moved out of the factory by 1966, the production of drums there continued to grow. The drums were manufactured at Hoshino's subsidiary, Tama Seisakusho, which had opened in 1962 to manufacture Ibanez guitars and amplifiers. Hoshino, the family name of the founder, translates to 'star field,' thus the selection of the 'Star Drums' brand name. Hoshino Gakki began manufacturing drums in 1961 under the name 'Star Drums'. subsidiary also contributes to Tama's market research and development.

market are assembled and stocked at Hoshino (U.S.A.) in Bensalem, Pennsylvania. Hoshino has several offices around the world for marketing and wholesale distribution. Tama's research and development of products, along with production of its professional and most expensive drums, is done in Seto, Japan, while its hardware and less expensive drums are manufactured in Guangzhou, China. Tama Drums (from Japanese: 多満 (Kanji), タマ (Kana), read as tama) is a brand of drum kits and hardware manufactured and marketed by the Japanese musical instrument company, Hoshino Gakki.

Vintage tama snare drum parts