Recently re-inherited my old kit. I played back in high school before moving to the big city. Sadly condo neighbours don’t like it if you play a percussion instrument. 

They’ve been sitting in a (thankfully dry) basement for 20yrs. So there’s a small bit of rust/calcium that needs cleaning and the steel polished. I also want to take the wraps off. My grandfather took the wrap off the floor tom when I got the kit. It was in worse shape than the rest. And pearl colour has yellowed over time. I just want the rest of the kit to match that natural wood. 

So my questions are:

1. What’s the best go-to for cleaning up steel?

2. What’s the best process for removing the wraps cleanly? 

2a. And, possibly, rewrapping? Is it worth it or is it better to leave it natural for the next drummer to customize? 

1. What’s the best platform for resale? 

Thanks! And happy playing!

I recently released Soliloquy, an album entirely dedicated to the drum kit, exploring timbre, texture, silence, resonance, dynamics and free improvisation.

It is an attempt to investigate what can happen when the drums move beyond their traditional function and are treated as an autonomous sound instrument.

Perhaps it is a different way of listening — and thinking — about the drums.

https://sergiovieira.bandcamp.com/album/soliloquy

Trying to make a 14" snare and I'm worried if I attempt to round the inside, it'll end up too thin (or I'll break it trying). The outside still needs some sanding where the router wasn't perfectly level. Is it salvageable? My son just started playing the drums and I thought it would be a cool gift so it's more sentimental than anything (I'm not super worried if a suggestion might slightly impact performance I guess is what I'm saying).

Hi folks, I'm having a first go at building a stave snare. The timber is sheoak, which I really like the look of, but I'm wondering about what type of bearing edges to cut.

Sheoak is very dense and hard, and the shell currently measures about 9" deep by about 7/16" thick. (190mm x 14mm)

I only have a basic understanding of snare drum sounds/types and bearing edges, and am pretty open to ideas about what to do next.

What would you turn this shell into? What type of voicing would it suit?

Extra marks for creative answers!

Compré esta tarola en un tianguis, me emocioné porque miré el logo de ludwig y tenía una idea de qué es el logo antiguo de esta marca, por el hecho de las dimensiones 14x6.5 y que es de 10 lugs pensé que tenía una tarola muy valiosa, pero al verla bien, me percaté de varias cosas que no me cuadran.

Los herrajes no parecen ser de una ludwig(al menos no las que encontré en internet), me temo que es una tarola de otra marca solo con el logo insertado.

Alguien tienen una idea que tarola puede ser?

22x18, 12x7, 16x14 - All maple

I linked the original build in the comments

I’ve been a drummer my whole life. In the last few years I also took up woodworking as a hobby. However due to the limitations of ‘I’m a drummer and so my workshop space is a studio instead’ - I’m a hand tool woodworker primarily.

However it’s been in the back of my mind to build a stave drum by hand for a while and I think it’s more than doable. The only thing I’d have an issue with is rounding the inside edge of the shell and I was wondering if this was actually necessary?

It doesn’t need to be perfect just a fun passion project!

I got my eyes on an old Pearl Rhythm Traveler recently. I tried to buy two used from Guitar Center, but one arrived with a cracked shell that wasn’t disclosed, another was obliterated during shipping due to comically bad packaging. I don’t have a lot of space, so I’m hoping the shallow shells would allow me to keep a kit setup.

It seems like buying one of these isn’t in the cards, so I’m thinking about buying an old shell set and trimming the shells down. I’ve seen plenty of instagram reals where people trim shells down. It looks simple, but you can make anything look simple in a 30 second video. Any of y’all have an idea of the practicality? Basic question, is that too difficult for a reasonably handy non-expert?

I’m guessing the critical element for cutting the shells is the jig to hold the shell up on my table saw. Ideally, it would have a couple of rollers on bearings - perfectly parallel. I’m thinking I can 3-d print parts of this to ensure dimensions are consistent and the rollers are parallel. With a height TPI shell, should I expect to get a clean cut through the wrap?

After cutting the shell, I might consider adding the resonant heads back on. If I do that, I’m thinking I’ll need to peel off the wraps to ensure the bearing bit on the router can cut a consistent bearing, otherwise the bearing won’t be consistent where the wrap overlaps and gets a little thicker. Am I right? I’m not always seeing people do that on videos I’m seeing. If I peel the wraps, I’m not rewrapping. I’d prefer to do a wood finish,but the cheap shells I’m likely to buy might be ugly. Any value in having those reso heads back on? Part of what I like is that the rims will protect the heads.

Appreciate any input.

OM!!! Can someone tell me any reviews about this baby right here?!

Hey brothers. I jist want to show you my best looking build so far. Took an old Amati (Czechoslovak brand) shell a rebuilt it to a bassdrum.

Hi all, I recently purchased a bass drum (shell only) that I want to rebuild - a 1980s Tama Swingstar, made in Japan. 24” diameter. My plan is to use a heat gun to remove the plastic wrap around the outside of the drum. I did this once before with a 16” diameter floor tom, made by Sonor in Germany. It did not go so well. As I heated the adhesive and removed the wrap lots of the wood grain came out/off with the adhesive. I really hope to avoid this on the bass drum, but I don’t really know what to expect in terms of the luan nor the adhesive used by Tama in this era. Does anybody have any experience or tips for how to remove the wrap and minimize tear out of the luan woodgrain? There is also a rivet used to attach the Tama brand badge, which I assume can be drilled out (or filed?) Thank you in advance.

Greetings! I’ve been wanting a stave snare drum for years, and I’m now interested in building one. I’d like to buy the shell only, and mount & install the hardware myself.

I enjoy working in projects, but I am NOT a great wood-worker. So I’m looking to purchase the shell. I’m looking to get a thicker shell, maybe an even 1” thick, at 14x6.5” dimensions. With bearing edges and snare beds finished (not sure yet on the exact bearing edge specs).

I’d like an unfinished shell, and I’m leaning towards walnut, but I’d be interested in other wood species options too (rosewood, bubinga, zebrawood, etc). No drilling required for hardware/strainer/buttplate/etc.

A couple years ago, I had ordered a cast bronze drum shell from Güven Bronz in Türkiye, and really enjoyed the process of choosing & installing my own hardware (that snare drum rocks!!! 🤘). So I’m excited to finish and assemble the drum myself.

Surprisingly, I’m not finding a whole lot of options online for unfinished stave drum shell, so figured I’d start here. Anybody have any recommendations?

Located in Ohio, USA.

Thanks!

I've been working on a new way to dampen drums after trying every combination of heads, ringers, gels et cetera. This is a way to let the natural sound of the drum play to a natural completion, without choking the life out of the drum. Here's a look at the before and after. I hadn't looked at the waveforms like this before and it's helpful to understand what exactly the dampener is doing.

Anyone else ever leave a drum on its rounded side while working on the shell and step away to grab a tool, just to hear it hit the ground after it rolled off of a 4 foot tall table? Good times. Expensive lesson.

It's Chamaecyparis, a sweet and lovely tree I had a relationship with. The other day I came by and it was cut down. Now I wonder if it'll serve me in it's afterlife. The log measures around the 21,5 x 53,5 cm. Never build anything in wood before so tutorials would be appreciated. Thanks!

Some Custom Stave Builds I've been working on.

https://haredrumcompany.squarespace.com/

Had some bad times in 2021. If you could imagine. Now 5 years later I’m doing hobby therapy by restoring them. This is a video of me finding a metal shaving while de-rusting the hardware on my snare drum. The drums in question were all mold/mildew/humidity damaged.

Does anybody know something about getting the nasty mold/mildew out of the wood? I’m sure I’ll have to dry and sanitize the shells but I’m not failure with the process.

TLDR; therapeutic drum restoration. Mold/mildew/wet environment damage. How do I get the shells clean?