This snare was an exclusive to the Drum Center of Portsmouth in New Hampshire in the USA, and limited to approx 60 units. How we ended up with one, your guess is as good as ours. The following is taken from the Mapex Black Panther Snare archive:
In mid-2020, Shane Kinney the owner of the DCP was offered these ash burl maple veneered maple shells, that (for some reason) Mapex hadn't made available to the general market. He grabbed the lot - can you blame him?!
Like the Thomann exclusives, there a few minor differences to the main line Black Panthers, but nothing that affects the overall quality of the drum - they came fitted with Mapex branded Remo UT series rather than Ambassadors or similar, and according to Tommy Aldridge, who owns two(!), that's about the only downside to them. Also, Tommy points out that they have a really shallow snare bed, so the bottom hoop is cut to accommodate it (like the mid-2000s BPs).
Unlike other the snares in the 2020 range, they were fitted as standard with die-cast hoops rather than Sonic Saver hoops, and the throw-off is a Saturn Standard one, rather than the Cylinder Drive.
The photos depicted are of the actual snare drum that we have in store.
Specs:
Shell size: 14" x 5.5"
Shell Construction: Maple with Ash Burl Outer Veneer
Shell Finish: Natural Ash Burl
Hardware Finish: Chrome
Lug Castings: Sculpted Shield
No. of Lugs: 10
Hoops: Die Cast Hoops
Air Vents: 1
Snare Wires: 20 Strand
Snare Throw Off: Mapex Saturn Standard Strainer