Ideas for a Mini Kit

[Clayton_C]

Hey all,
My jazz combo has been getting gigs lately, lots of dinner parties, and we've realized that most of the jobs we're going to get are going to be low-volume, low-intensity settings where our highly-rehearsed, experimentally-arranged jazz is going to be slightly out of place. Since my drums (a Sonor Force 3003 with Sabian AAs) apparently project a bit too much for our keys, bass, and sax quartet, I've decided to throw together a jazz "mini kit."

This is my drum set now:

http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/kitnow.JPG

As you can see, I only use my 10" and 13" toms for the full kit, and decided, what the heck, why not try to make a mini bass drum out of the 14" tom that's just laying around? I know that this usually works best with a 16 or 18", but hey, sure enough, I managed to get a very nice sound out of it!
I put a dishrag between the shell and the head, and then tuned everything pretty low, using duct tape on the reso to muffle the ring a bit. It obviously doesn't sound as sharp as the real deal, but it's far better than I anticipated with a 14.
http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/close1.JPG
http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/close2.JPG
http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/reso1.JPG

I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations for using this thing in a kit? I can't find any particularly useful-looking mounting systems (especially for a drum this small), but I know a lot of you guys/gals have tips in this area, so anything there would be greatly appreciated.

I also have the hardware mount, which I fooled around with a bit to see if I could mount a snare and a ride on there, and while it WORKS, it's hugely ineffective, and so I was wondering if you knew of any racks or mounts that would help cut down the schlepping time (i.e: I can just grab 2-3 items from my trunk and then my whole set is on the floor).

http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/hardware2.JPG
http://home.bak.rr.com/chanceysoft/hardware3.JPG

Thanks in advance, guys!

[Rimshot1]

I was looking into the possibility of converting my 16" tom into a bass drum sometime last year and in order to do this effectively when I researched what I needed one thing that stood out was how to raise the drum off the floor and then also how do I clamp my pedal onto the small rims of the tom. I found out that Mapex do a rim wide enough for the 16" to clamp the pedal on and also there is something called a riser which will take the drum off the floor to the required height. During my research, I also came across a site which specialises in professional smaller Jazz kits (but they are not cheap).

http://www.tamburodrums.com/tamburodrums/en/

I you follow the links on the site and click on the product link and then to the basic set up (click on the first picture link) you will see a picture of the riser on a kit. It could also be of help for you to see how the various kits have been set up and how they come sold for ideas of conversion for your own project. I am not sure if any of this will be of use to you as you have not used the 16" tom but one of the smaller ones but you could get a rough idea of how to go and what you need. :-)

[harryconway]

I'd pick up a 16 or 18 inch floor tom http://cgi.ebay.com/SONOR-FORCE-2001-16-FLOOR-TOM-RARE-COLOR_W0QQitemZ280270568504QQihZ018QQcategoryZ3809 6QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem (here's a Sonor auction) and get a Gibraltar Dunnett conversion: http://www.gibraltarhardware.com/?fa=news&art=758 The conversion kit runs about $80.

[wonder1]

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/laubrothers/PIC_0710-1.jpg
May be you find this idea usefull for you Jazz-kit convertion?Look for a good Carpenter they can build it for you.The "L"shape metal plate you can find it in hardware shop.Is my old Tama 16x12 floor convert to mini-kick!

[Disco Stu]

^^ COOL!!!

Do you have any pics of the full setup?

[wonder1]

^^ COOL!!!

Do you have any pics of the full setup?
Thanks!just go to page:2 look for "Mini Kits with 16" Kick"you will see the whole pic of the drums!

[Tuxido]

A couple months ago before I received my "real" kit, I made this riser.

It cost me about 9$ because I used old wood I had, and screws and used an old droor handler to attach the pedal to it.


http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t172/Tuxido9/HPIM0460.jpg

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t172/Tuxido9/HPIM0464.jpg

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t172/Tuxido9/HPIM0459.jpg

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t172/Tuxido9/Picture8.png

[TheAnalogKid]

I have a link to my mini kit in my sig. Mini kits can be very fun, and often times when mic'ed correctly, can sound very large in a small-gig venue.