You quite right that it is Gon Bop and not LP that Akbar sold his Sol Percussion
to and is now working for -- there is a photo of him and his new "AkBlocks" on
the Gon Bops website !

I had visited his shop in San Francisco many years ago while he was still making
his Sol drums there and watched how he made the drums. I have a beautiful set
of 5 congas that he made in red oak that I got from him, (which is a very
light-colored wood despite the name, with a tight grain and very hard). The set
includes a beautiful super tumbe (18 inch ! ), which required extra effort and
special tooling. I also have a great set of 4 congas which he made in the style
of the vintage Cuban "dirty rice" darker stain. They are absolutely fantastic
drums and I am quite happy to have been able to get them from him while he was
still making them.

Thanks for the LP=>Gon Bops correction.