The Drum Modification Thread

I have a Yamaha Stage Custom Advantage kit that I really like. Wonderful features for the money. Anyway, I'd like to make it a bit more unique from a sound point of view. My first thought was to pick up some high end rims that could add some uniqueness to the sound. What do you think about this? If this is something commonly done, is there a preference for what folks believe to be primo rims to upgrade too?

I like a more vintage sound. Warm and fat. I like to do rim shots on my toms as well as my snare.

Ring can do the trick if the bearing edge was well made. You can also think about just using different type of drumhead.
 
just wondering if someone can help me...

I stripped the wrap off some old CB's and decided to stain a bold strip along the middle the drum horizontally. Problem is that the stain ran a little bit and the edges are not 100% perfect at all. Also, I made the mistake off brushing i the stain sideways to the grain rather than with it
I'm debating whether i should cover it up with some kind of material bordering the stripe's edges to cover up the run...or try to create some kind of fade to the rim of the drum... or should I should I just paint the whole shell and forget about getting fancy.

thanks
 
just wondering if someone can help me...

I stripped the wrap off some old CB's and decided to stain a bold strip along the middle the drum horizontally. Problem is that the stain ran a little bit and the edges are not 100% perfect at all. Also, I made the mistake off brushing i the stain sideways to the grain rather than with it
I'm debating whether i should cover it up with some kind of material bordering the stripe's edges to cover up the run...or try to create some kind of fade to the rim of the drum... or should I should I just paint the whole shell and forget about getting fancy.

thanks

You could always make the strip wider to cover up the running?
 
If you are really set on that strip you can always resand and start over and do it the way you should have done...sounds to me you had a look you wanted and now are settling for something less...its your world bud

just wondering if someone can help me...

I stripped the wrap off some old CB's and decided to stain a bold strip along the middle the drum horizontally. Problem is that the stain ran a little bit and the edges are not 100% perfect at all. Also, I made the mistake off brushing i the stain sideways to the grain rather than with it
I'm debating whether i should cover it up with some kind of material bordering the stripe's edges to cover up the run...or try to create some kind of fade to the rim of the drum... or should I should I just paint the whole shell and forget about getting fancy.

thanks
 
After much thought, and quite a few unsuccessful attempts to drill a clean hole through some scrap ply, I added some extra venting to my M Birch snare, more out of curiosity than anything else.

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It does seem to have dried things up a little compared to before, though that might be my imagination

It certainly sits nicely with the kit, and is a pleasantly subtle change to the main snare, so I'm happy - count how many weekends until I drill more holes to see what happens then :O)
 
Not sure if this goes in this thread or not, but here's a quick way to add some flare to your drum set that i did.

I went to Walmart (yes Walmart) abd bought a small green flashlight (like REALLY small but really bright), some velcro and attatched the flashlight inside my bass drum. I got it in a spot so that it looks like the light is coming out of the sound hole. The velcro is great cause if you don't like it, or want to point the light another way, you can.

Not the flashiest modification ever, but it's cheap (total cost was like $30), easy and it'll make you stand out alittle.
 

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So I have a crusty old Powerbeat drumkit and I wanna turn it into Elvin Jones yellow kit thats on the video of him on this website haha. Ive stripped it right back to naked wooden shells I reckon I can replicate the look of it.. but

HOW DO I IMPROVE THE SOUND OF THE SHELLS.

should I be sanding inside smoothing it out? putting resin on the edges? what will change the sound.. Im thinkin that coated ambassadors will be the go..

ps I want a jazz sound.. pretty crucial criteria really

some ideas and help thrown around would be very much appreciated. thanks
 
So I have a crusty old Powerbeat drumkit and I wanna turn it into Elvin Jones yellow kit thats on the video of him on this website haha. Ive stripped it right back to naked wooden shells I reckon I can replicate the look of it.. but

HOW DO I IMPROVE THE SOUND OF THE SHELLS.

should I be sanding inside smoothing it out? putting resin on the edges? what will change the sound.. Im thinkin that coated ambassadors will be the go..

ps I want a jazz sound.. pretty crucial criteria really

some ideas and help thrown around would be very much appreciated. thanks

well first off yes the heads should offer a significant change. i'm new to drum mods and builds but i would say to have a look at your bearing edges, you may want to customize those a bit. there's always venting, which is a little harder to undo. but look at the pictures attached and you'll see what i mean when i say ANYTHING can be accomplished. i don't really know how to achieve the desired jazz sound, but do wish you the best of luck in finding someone who does lol.
 

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thanks for the reply srge. I went and had another look at mine, Ive got some little cosmetic splint chips not too deep around where the tuning pegs are/were. Are these going to drastically effect the drum sound.. will they at all, how can I fix them properley, can I fill them with resin or will the sound be secondclass? heres some photos of the shells, Id appreciate any ideas.
 

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in the last days i was thinking about re-cutting the bearing edges on my kit but first of all i can't do my self so i'll need to take it to some technician but what kind of? would any carpenter be able to do it?
 
I was wondering if there is some kind of Laquer, or some shiny transperent paint that i could paint my Pacific MX to make my emerald fade shine like no other.

I would like it cheap, but good quality.

Thanks

I will give you a little known tip--Use proffessional floor gloss- JOhnsons clear high gloss is good, its designed to be uV stable, wont shrink and will not coulour the wood..apply it to a freshly sanded drum after using no higher than 600 grit and damp wiping to remove the dust- after dry.
Use a lint free cloth and always go with the grain, apply in thin coats and leave an hour to dry between coats, no need to sand between coats as it will bond cleanly with the previous coat.BUt damp wipe and let dry to remove dust.
Apply upto 5 coats and when cured after around a day- it can be ssanded flat with 1200 grit using a backing pad..then buffed with a lambswool pad for an extreme high gloss pro finish!

Its way cheaper than guitar and drum specific stuff and I know about it, because I use it often on jobs when I strip and seal gym floors!

NOte- mask the drum to close all holes and bearing edges. Sand the joins in wood as wood glue build up there and will show up as a hard line later if you dont! Dont rush this entire process and you will have a great job!

Pucker perfect finish mate!
 
My first acoustic drumset, a Tama Rockstar kit. I went from this:

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to this:

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I apologize for the fuzziness, and the flash. It was taken literally minutes before I moved out of my old place.

And I was really really happy Tama glued heavily only on the seam of the wrap, except the bass drum hoops. Those were horrid to clean up.
 
I wanted to share my experience with my Gretsch Catalina Maple kit. There has been a enormous amount of discussion here about drum quality, and affordability. Often it seems that the the only way to achieve that pro=sound is to plink down BIG bucks on a pro kit or a custom job. This in itself is fine, especially if you can afford to do this or if you are a working drummer that needs this kind of imediate quality. Guys like me that aren't working all the time or just can't afford $5,000 for a kit are often resigned to buying the intermediate stuff, which in its own rite isn't bad, but never seems to quite measure up in the sound department. Well, here's what I did about it. I researched the differences between the the Gretsch Renown and the Catalina line and to my surprise found very little seperating the pro line from the intermediate line. Basically it involves labor and sealing. The Renown line's shells are finished with silver sealer ( a Gretsch thing that improves the sound through resonance and sealing the pores of the wood). Other than that, the Catalina series lacks - A. Finished interiors on the shells and B. good heads. Heres what I did. I dis- assembled all the drums and sanded the interiors with 300 grit paper so that they were baby skin smooth. Then I sealed the interiors with Teak oil, applying several coats until the interiors were sealed and had a nice low sheen. The sealer, although not the silver paint ,that Gretsch uses on the Renown line, accomplished the same thing. That being, smooth sealed resonant interiors, that improve the sound. I then added Evans G2 over G1'heads and tuned them up. The bass drum has a Emad batter and the stock reso and I am using the Evans Emad pillow for just a little muffling. The difference is phenominal !!!! to say the least!. I will put my Catalinas up against any high end Gretsch kit and I bet you wouldn't hear the difference. Pro kit with a little sweat equity..........not bad,eh? Let me know what you think and If you try this.
 


Just purchased this old KB/BB Supra snare drum from e-bay which was bought with the explicit intention of converting it into a super sensitive drum (already have a p70 SS strainer for it ready to go), but the shell is a disaster since according to posted pics and seller's own description most of the chrome plating has flaked off--is going to require a lot of work to prep for eventual wet sanding and buffing so wind up looking something like my '66 Acro snare.

Anyway, the pros of this purchase are that allegedly the rims are COB (want them for the '66 Ludwig 6.5" super sensitive if they indeed turn out to be chrome plated brass hoops), has a well preserved Keystone badge, and both basebat muffler's lever and white felt muffler appear to be in excellent shape too (could sell them in e-bay and make more than what originally paid for the drum but won't).

The one essential aspect for a successful outcome is knowing the size and placement pattern measurements of the center rod bushings' holes--same goes for the throw-off mechanism's mounting holes (am praying that the existing p83 strainer's and butt end plate's hole pattern match those of the the p70 so that the swap can be accomplished with the least amount of fuzzing and effort, but will drill new ones if the need arises)--something that am not privy to.
Can anyone here provide me with those direly needed measurements? Will immensely appreciate any help with this situation. Thanks!...

-elcid
 
You'll never guess what this is going to be...

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That's right! It's my previously trans amber (orange) starclassic performer kit wrapped all in camo fabric, including the seat!
 
I have a 90's Sonor Force 2001 kit in black wrap with faux-tube lugs. The kit still looks good except for some bubbling wrap on top of the bass drum, from playing long gigs in the sun, I think. Anyways I was thinking about removing the wrap and Marbleizing the outside of my kit. Anyone ever tried this?

I think I'm also going to finish the inside of my shells with a shellac or something, to brighten the sound up a bit. Inspired by Vibra-fibing.

I'll let you know how it goes if I ever get around to it, haha
 
Where can you send your snare away to get it rechromed. I have a old ludwig chrome snare and the chrome is peeling a bit. Can it be fixed? And where? Please help.

I have the same problem with a 5" Supra snare I recently bought off e-bay and which I want to convert into a Super Sensitive drum (have all the parts to do it with)...but rather than have the shell re-chromed am going to have it sandblasted and then progressively wet-sand until it resembles a shiny "raw" '60s Acro (Ludwig used the same aluminum shell on both...Supras and 6.5" deep Acros having 10-lugs rather than 8; have '66 and '69 KB Acros, one with a baseball bat and the other with the small round mufflers...both outfitted with 8 "bowtie" lugs).

Hope this helps...

-elcid
 
Well, I just made a boo boo with this drum set
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I put 1" tom lugs on the bass drum...tom lugs don't have the height for the tension rods to screw in straight if you use them on a bass drum....so I'm getting the 2" BASS DRUM lugs shipped to me as we speak. I plan on drilling another hole an inch below the lower lug hole for the 2 in lug....then i'll have an extra hole in the middle...I could just leave it and use them for my air vents all 20 of them!...but I think i'm going to try to stick LED lights in the holes and somehow use a trigger to light them up every time I kick it. I'll keep you posted....
 
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