Sabian - 4-Piece "Cymbal-Making Process” Display Set

Sabian - 4-Piece "Cymbal-Making Process” Display Set (S #23)

This SABIAN 4-piece cymbal manufacturing process display set was only available to Sabian dealers. The set details the evolution of a cast cymbal from raw bronze to a partially-finished cymbal: a foundry casting (“bronze cake”), a formed/pressed blank, a hammered unlathed stage, and a cymbal that’s halfway through the lathing process. A great educational and collector display illustrating the core steps SABIAN uses—casting, forming, hammering, and lathing—on the path to a finished cymbal..

What the 4 pieces represent.

1. Cast bronze “cake” / puck (raw casting) 5.25"

A rough, round hunk from the foundry stage (B20 “bell bronze” is copper + tin, and SABIAN describes melting these metals in the foundry at very high temperatures).

2. Pressed/formed blank (“cymbal blank”) 11"

The center hole is drilled and the blank is shaped into the basic cymbal profile (bell + bow) before it’s “voiced.” (Factory tour overviews and SABIAN process explanations show drilling and shaping as early steps before finishing.)

3. Hammered, unlathed cymbal (“raw” / “as-hammered”) 14.5"

Hammering compresses and dims the bronze and is a major contributor to complexity and feel.

4. Partially lathed cymbal (your “halfway lathed” piece) 16.25"

Lathing removes material and tunes response; SABIAN’s own lathing article describes lathing as a key stage before edge finishing.