Trying to encourage my daughter...

So, my youngest, Abi, who is seven, has shown a bit of interest in playing drums and from a few short goes at playing my much too big for her kit. So I decided to asseble a little "bitsa" kit for as little money as I could manage using some used shells and some bits and pieces I had lying around, such as hardware and my spare cymbals. The results are pretty special if i say so myself. Overall outlay was about £100 in total, which when you consider the "junior" kits out there (for junior, read rubbish) I think is pretty good value. The bass drum is a 16" Premier Royale floor tom, with a pearl jungle adaptor set, £21 from ebay. The high tom is a 10" Mapex M Birch tom, £26 from ebay. The "floor" tom is a 12" Premier Royale that matches the bass drum and that I paid nothing for- it was advertised locally on gumtree as a 10"- when I pointed out that the size was wrong in the ad, the chap just gave me the drum- it was pretty minging having said that! The snare is a 10x5 Yamaha Stage Custom, which flys off the same cymbal stand as the crash and 10" tom with a Yamaha tom mount. The hardware is my spare set, from my long departed Tama Rockstar, which I no longer use as I have a Pearl rack. The cymbals are 14" quickbeats, a 17" A custom Crash and a 20" K Custom ride- not bad for a starter kit.

The great thing about the kit is that it can grow with her-0 all it needs is a proper bass drum to become a full sized kit. It also means we can have a kit set up in the house for me to potter on from time to time.

So, here it is, complete with daughter, in all it's glorious cheapness!

Adorable. Those Premier drums are both identical to ones I have owned since the 80s.

Ah, Animal- the patron saint of drummers. Very nice for a starter kit!

i vote for "Dad of the Year" !!!

i have a 5 y.o. and got her a started drum set as well (at toys r us). its amazing how "nice-ish" the sound is for a uber-cheap kit vs. what was available when i was younger. all basswood, but good sound. even used the BD when i was double booked on new years eve.

The 16" bass sounds incredible. It has an evans hydraulic as the batter and a remo pinstripe in front, with the Animal logo, and an evans bd pillow in the drum. The toms sound good and the little snare really cracks. Its a lovely thing to play too!

Funny - at first glance I thought it was a 24" bass drum. Always good to see girls play drums - good work, Ian! Great to be so encouraged - my dad was happy when I was making jewellery, not too thrilled for me to be bashing away along with Machine Head

Anon La Ply said:

Funny - at first glance I thought it was a 24" bass drum. Always good to see girls play drums - good work, Ian! Great to be so encouraged - my dad was happy when I was making jewellery, not too thrilled for me to be bashing away along with Machine Head

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It's all relative and the photo angle helps make it look bigger! Put a small thing next to more small things and it doesn't look so small any more! (always works with the ladeez- sorry Grea....)

I had her playing paradiddles last night! She prefers to play them between the toms rather than on the snare. Just like her dad! I'm so proud!