I personally would never get a used head. Brand new or bust! It's hard to find a place that sells marching heads at a discounted price. I would say just shop around Columbus has them for 45 i know. See if maybe your band director can order an extra head for you during the school year. I know at my old high school the Band director got a discount for all of our drum stuff at Columbus Percussion because it was for a school. See if he can throw in a spare head for you or what not.

wow thanks for the advice, I'll try that =]

Yup, save your money if your looking for a kevlar head

40-50$ for a kevlar head is'nt that bad in the long run, replace a kevlar head every 3 years? (depending on how often you play) or replace a mylar head every year, sometimes even shorter?

Don't count on much of an educational discount on drum heads. Shops like Steve Weiss & Columbus Percussion already have competitive pricing when it comes to small ticket items like heads. If you really turn the screws on the vendor, you might be able to save a buck or two.

If you can get your band director to order your head with a school order (assuming he's willing to sort out the purchasing paperwork with the district or the boosters and completely ignore the sales tax exemption if you buy in-state), your biggest savings might come from not having to pay shipping.

Wow, that would be very little playing.

And listen to the crowd about buying- just get the new head, the $40 is worth it.

Ok then, I'll get a black max too, should i get a new bottom head for it too?
And also, do you think its a good deal if i get it for about 200?

$200 would be a good deal, but it looks like it's going to sell for more than that. It's already near $160 ($195 with shipping) and there are still three days to go.

If you do get it, I'd suggest springing for a bottom head while you're at it just to be sure you've got one you can tune & balance. It's only ten bucks or so for a Mylar head, so why not? (And if you want a Kevlar bottom head, you'd need to buy one anyway since that's not what the drum currently has on it.)

If you miss out on this drum, don't worry. The selection on eBay seems to be a little thin at the moment -- there are plenty of drums listed right now, but not a whole lot of bargains. If you keep your eyes open, you can spot a deal every once in a while.

your right, it looks like it'll go around 300, that's too high.

so do you think that drum for around 165-200 would be good?

The drum Skydog mentioned has been on ebay twice now with no takers. The guy is asking way too much for a second generation ffx in 2008.

A used ffx, sfz, or dfx under 200 is a good deal, anything over that it better have a harness, case, stand.

And consider the 400+ for a new one. At that price, they better include some chops.

so ill try to get him down to 165-180 without shipping, think thats good?...nevermind. i just found a new ffx, but its 13 by 11. does that make a difference in sound?