gig bag

akasticks

Junior Member
hey guys, i am wanting to put a gig bag/survival kit together. i am including things like washers, felts, drum pedal springs, basically anything that can break or go wrong during or right before a show. I would love to hear from you experinced giggers what i should put in there. Thanks!!!
 
Drum keys (essential, and you can never seem to find one when you most need it....carry several)
Spare snare head
Snare ties (or plastic strips)
Allen (hex) keys
Spare beater (prob. not essential, but I used to carry one anyway)
Gaffer tape
Moongel or other dampening (even if you usually play wide open, it doesn't hurt to carry it as a 'quick fix' if neccessary)
Even things like texta's or permanant markers (sharpies) come in handy

There'll be plenty more, but that's not a bad start!!
 
Drum keys (essential, and you can never seem to find one when you most need it....carry several)
Spare snare head
Snare ties (or plastic strips)
Allen (hex) keys
Spare beater (prob. not essential, but I used to carry one anyway)
Gaffer tape
Moongel or other dampening (even if you usually play wide open, it doesn't hurt to carry it as a 'quick fix' if neccessary)
Even things like texta's or permanant markers (sharpies) come in handy

There'll be plenty more, but that's not a bad start!!

Good suggestions. I wouldn't bother with felts as they never break and if they wear out, you can replace them at home. I would add some wing and hex nuts, especially for pedals. They tend to fall out and are hard to find. A drum set could have a dozen different sizes of nuts but they are small and easy to carry.

I do carry a few Band-Aids. You don't want to injure your hands at a gig but if you do, they're easy to carry and come in handy.

I have a half-dozen drum keys velcroed onto stands on my set, as well as a small flashlight velcroed to a stand. I do keep an extra hihat clutch as they get a lot of stress and only fail at gigs. It is easy to stash an extra head of any size in a drum bag or case (assuming you use bags or cases).
 
I like to carry a few sheets of 8 x 11 clear plastic laminating sheets. You know, the kind you laminate documents with? Then, if your bass drum head rips mid set, you can peel off the backing, quick slap a sheet or 2 over the rip and it will get you through the set. I like DMC's idea of the flashlight too. Also cards w/ your contact info, pen and pad of paper to write down whatever, gum, drumkeys, whistles, kazoo's, ear plugs, and hand grenades. JK about the kazoo.
 
I like to carry a few sheets of 8 x 11 clear plastic laminating sheets. You know, the kind you laminate documents with? Then, if your bass drum head rips mid set, you can peel off the backing, quick slap a sheet or 2 over the rip and it will get you through the set.

Whoa, that is one of the best tips I ever heard. Even if you have a spare head, by the time you fish it out, remove the old, install the new and get it decently tuned, that could take 10 minutes, too long unless you happen to be between sets. But slapping a laminating sheet would take under a minute and will at least allow you to resume playing.

It would be interesting to stress-test one of these sheets and see how long you could get away with playing it on a broken drum head.
 
I was playing at my home once when my BD head ripped. My laziness inspired me to try one of these plastic laminating sheets, since I had one laying around at the time. Now I don't bury the beater ever, I always rebound it, and this sheet lasted a week before tearing. I only used one sheet. If you're a beater burier I'd use 2 sheets. A must have item for every gigging drummer.
 
These are some very good suggestions that i never thought of !! I bought a backpack with a million pockets on it to put stuff in, I am definatley getting some laminating sheets, lol.
 
I do carry a few Band-Aids. You don't want to injure your hands at a gig but if you do, they're easy to carry and come in handy.

as well as a small flashlight velcroed to a stand. I do keep an extra hihat clutch as they get a lot of stress and only fail at gigs. It is easy to stash an extra head of any size in a drum bag or case (assuming you use bags or cases).

Good calls on the clutch, bandaids and flashlight. I keep forgetting to add the flashlight to my bag and keep having to steal my guitar players sometimes.

As for pedal springs, it is good to have these, but I find they may take time to replace depending on the pedal. I bought a Ludwig speed king to try out a while ago and always carry that now as a backup. It folds down into a pretty compact size. That or some other cheapo pedal would always be a good thing to have. Rather than fussing with fixing a pedal failure, I'd rather just slap on the backup to get through the show if necessary. There's alot more that could go wrong with a pedal besides just the spring breaking.
 
yea, extra pedal, extra snare, extra hh clutch, extra drummer in the trunk in case you're too drunkey wunkey
 
i would say that you shouls buy some sabian head repair pieces. they are a mylar sticker. also bring a gold fish to hide in your floor tom because "even the best drummer gets hungry"~ Keith Moon
 
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