My Hand Built Snare

[mattwolfdrums]

I had an idea a few years back that I wanted to make my own snare drum from scratch. So I got a big 'ol hunk of pine and went at it with a hammer and chisel until I had a very crude drum shell that unfortunately ended up being 5"x11", so it was pretty much useless.
Then, a few years later I had another opportunity to create a better snare drum for a project at my high school. So I found a guy that turns bowls for a living and he had some idea of how to help me along, so he taught me the basics of using a wood lathe and lemme have at it.
The entire process took about two months (including two separate three week periods in which the unfinished shell sat in my closet drying)
The wood is poplar and it is 5"x10"
Tell me what yall think and shoot with any questions ya got.
thanks,
Matt

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744839_5722.jpg
This is the wood i was going to use. It is a White Oak that my neighbor had taken out of his yard and it looked good enough to me...

http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744840_6993.jpg
...But apparently it wasn't big enough plus oak cracks alot when it dries anyway, so I just used this great chunk o' poplar instead

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744843_8174.jpg
Mounted on the lathe, after much of the roughness had been taken off...it's a bit more cylindrical at this point.

http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744844_9327.jpg
Some more detail...working out the innards of the chunk to make it hollow.

http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744845_496.jpg
Safety First!

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744875_4010.jpg
Sorry I didn't take a picture after all the lathing or while drilling the holes, but this is me applying red wood dye to the finished shell

http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744876_5202.jpg
My fingers were red for three weeks.

http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744877_6373.jpg
Applying a few coats of clear lacquer...

http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744878_7571.jpg
And of course(haha...coarse :\ no pun intended) steel wool-ing between dried coats of lacquer

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744879_8885.jpg
Here is the hardware i bought to mount on the shell.

http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v150/122/12/774705025/n774705025_1744934_8778.jpg
Beautiful!

And I'll attach a sound file for your audio pleasure. The song is called Towers of London performed by my band, Stingray. Recorded live @ Sector 7 G in Augusta, Georgia.

http://www.supload.com/sound_confirm.php?get=1380185793.wma

[Deathmetalconga]

WAY WAY COOL! You built your own solid-shell drum!

A lot of people here finish a Keller shell and say the "made a drum." You're one of the few people here who can really, honestly say they made a drum.

Where did you get the poplar for the shell? I think it's really great to make you drum from something local as well.

[GRUNTERSDAD]

Man that is cool. If it sounds even halfway pleasant you have the pride of knowing you BUILT your own drum. As it starts to age and crack and dry out it will only gain more character. It looks great and thanks for sharing.

Hint from an old man. Cheap disposable plastic gloves from the paint store. Or water based paint. Then again you were caught red-handed. Good job. And as DMC said you didnt just assemble your own drum, you BUILT it.

[mattwolfdrums]

WAY WAY COOL! You built your own solid-shell drum!

A lot of people here finish a Keller shell and say the "made a drum." You're one of the few people here who can really, honestly say they made a drum.

Where did you get the poplar for the shell? I think it's really great to make you drum from something local as well.

The fellow that let me use his lathe had a few chunks of poplar aging in a pile of wood shavings and since I couldn't use the oak I had originally planned on using, he was nice enough to give me one to use.

[NIMBY]

that is pure awesome! bet your super proud of that, i know i would be!

[Class A Drummer]

Dude absolutley amazing. Ive never seen anyone use their own wood and cut it out from scratch and everything. Thats awesome, gj.

[Tomage]

That is sooo cool! Id be so proud. Good work! =D

[tooldrums1000]

Man I wish I had a lathe. That finish looks very nice too sounds good too.

[iamtak]

very cool!

whats up with the inside of the shell?

[eddrummer05]

crazy man!! you should open your own company!!! hey hire me when u get big ok hehe..
blessings...

[drovja]

Wow!!! That is awesome! I am so impressed by that..... I wanna steal it.

[Wavelength]

A lot of people here finish a Keller shell and say the "made a drum." You're one of the few people here who can really, honestly say they made a drum.

Yeah, but I bet he didn't grow the tree!

[Gilded]

On my list of "Things to do before I die'', maybe one day. The finished product looks so good man.

[aydee]

Impressive. I have great admiration for people who make stuff...

[fourstringdrums]

Looks and sounds great! I was thinking "Should have worn gloves" too when reading this *lol* It looks like some of the finish got onto the bearing edge, but for your first time you did an incredible job (better than I could do that's for sure).

[Drummer Karl]

Beautiful! Has a nice crack and looks great.
How did you make the bearing edges?

Mhhh...there is a nice basswood tree in front of my house. *hehe*

Karl

[fourstringdrums]

Mhhh...there is a nice basswood tree in front of my house. *hehe*

Karl

There's the answer to your wanting a new set :D

[Drummer Karl]

There's the answer to your wanting a new set :D

Well...makes me think.
Though the diameter of the drums would be pretty small, wouldn`t it?

10", 10"...8"...6".......3".

But seriously, making your own drum out of your own piece of wood is impressive.
Good work!

Karl

[mind_drummer]

Very very very nice !

Congrats, awesome work done here. Did you left the wood block dry before or after the lathing ? I have thought of doing this with maple or north american white birch but i'm afraid the block or the lathed shell would crack as it dry.

Look very pro !

Two thumbs up !

very cool!

whats up with the inside of the shell?

Look like the scratch from the inside shell lathing/chipping.

[mattwolfdrums]

very cool!

whats up with the inside of the shell?

Ahh yes, the inside is not quite as clean as the outside.
This is because to use the lathe, the shell had to be mounted on a base so I couldn't just cut the bottom out while it was spinning on the lathe. So because it was my first time attempting this, I used trial and error on cutting the bottom out, one of which included drilling a series of holes through the base close to the inner circumference of the shell and then using a jigsaw to cut the base out. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it didn't work out too well as you can tell. Fortunately I don't believe it has adversely affect the sound of the drum.

[mattwolfdrums]

Did you left the wood block dry before or after the lathing ? I have thought of doing this with maple or north american white birch but i'm afraid the block or the lathed shell would crack as it dry.



Good question. The man that helped me with this project, like I said before, makes bowls for a living, so he knows a thing or two about the properties of wood. Basically, the wood cracks when the water and sap evaporate too quickly and the wood shrinks so fast it splits. So, the slower you let the wood dry the better.
After my first session with the lathe, i had a very (very very) rough shell which he suggested I wrap in newspaper and stick in a cool area where the temperature doesn't fluctuate much for three weeks. On the fourth week, I went in for my second session, but after I had dug into the wood, I could tell it was still very wet, so I took it back home for another three weeks where the wood lost about five pounds of weight and about 1 inch in diameter.

[driver]

Sounds good. Looks amazing too. It's one thing to make your own snare from scratch but to make it look awsome is another thing! Red and black is a classy touch. Enjoy it mate I really enjoyed reading and looking at the pics.

Any plans to make another?

[drumbandit]

100% built your own snare, I bet you're really proud. I'm gonna attempt doing it one day.

Tom

[mattwolfdrums]

Any plans to make another?

Yes I would love to make another. If I did it would probably be a deep shelled 14" snare. And using the knowledge I gained from my first go at it, I should be able to make a very decent drum next time.

[driver]

Thats great good luck with that. Make sure you document all your future builds for us to drool over!

[Deathmetalconga]

Yes I would love to make another. If I did it would probably be a deep shelled 14" snare. And using the knowledge I gained from my first go at it, I should be able to make a very decent drum next time.

You could start a company doing this. Seriously.

[punkdrummer1]

woah. Very nice bro. I want to do that some day :D

[The popes love child]

I've contemplated building drums in the same manner before, the only thing that kills me is the amount of wood you waste by having to carve out the center of it. It would be nice to start with a huge piece, and find a way to drill it where you could make smaller drums from the same piece of wood.

[mattwolfdrums]

I've contemplated building drums in the same manner before, the only thing that kills me is the amount of wood you waste by having to carve out the center of it. It would be nice to start with a huge piece, and find a way to drill it where you could make smaller drums from the same piece of wood.

I've thought of the same thing before i wish it was possible somehow... maybe i'll figure it out one day...

[dom]

I've contemplated building drums in the same manner before, the only thing that kills me is the amount of wood you waste by having to carve out the center of it. It would be nice to start with a huge piece, and find a way to drill it where you could make smaller drums from the same piece of wood.

there is away to do that....
there is a guy over at GN who is getting a whole set in walnut from just one stump...

[crazyhorse]

www.ghostnote.net

Welcome to the addiction.

[DogBreath]

Very impressive. And to think that I'm proud of myself when I manage to organize my sock drawer.

[leeskea]

Hey i was going to make a snair but my school told me i couldnt because they didnt know what to use but now i know , your snair is lush , nice finish love the red would you do the same when makeing a 10"TOM

[Deathmetalconga]

This will blow your mind. Exquisite natural whole-shell goodness with very little wood wasted. He also makes furniture and other wood cylinders. If there is one set I could consider trading my Spirits for, it is the nine-piece Siberian elm set. He holds a patent on this process but is willing to license it out to other people.

www.heartwooddrums.com

[AnotherRandom]

Very nice snare, i love the finish on it, looks amazing Gratz on making it from scratch aswell

[Velimor]

I had an idea a few years back that I wanted to make my own snare drum from scratch. So I got a big 'ol hunk of pine and went at it with a hammer and chisel until I had a very crude drum shell that unfortunately ended up being 5"x11", so it was pretty much useless.

Can you give any more info on this project? We have some wood lying around here and the thought of making a drum or two crossed my mind. I doubt I could get it anywhere close to perfect, but it'd still be fun to try.

Great looking snare, by the way.

[mattwolfdrums]

Can you give any more info on this project? We have some wood lying around here and the thought of making a drum or two crossed my mind. I doubt I could get it anywhere close to perfect, but it'd still be fun to try.

Basically I used a hammer on a hatchet to get the ouside diameter close to what I wanted taking off big chunks at a time.
Then I went in with a 3/4 inch chisel to fine-tune it and try my best to make it as round as possible.
For the inside, I took the largest diameter drill bit I had and drilled a bunch of holes all helter-skelter around the inside. That just makes it easier to get started with the chisel. If your piece of wood is big enough you could also use a chainsaw to make a big X in the middle of the chunk to help get you started.
Then just take the chisel to the inside, working your way out until you get your desired thickness.

Don't forget that wood shrinks a good bit as it dries and certain woods like pine and oak tend to crack rediculously as well so watch out for that. But its a fun project, you should enjoy it.

And dont worry if the size of your drum is not a standard size or shape for hardware....theres ways around that :)

[mattwolfdrums]

This will blow your mind. Exquisite natural whole-shell goodness with very little wood wasted. He also makes furniture and other wood cylinders. If there is one set I could consider trading my Spirits for, it is the nine-piece Siberian elm set. He holds a patent on this process but is willing to license it out to other people.

www.heartwooddrums.com

Good god. This is absolutely glorious.