Stick trouble

ClayLane

Junior Member
I have the problem of constantly breaking my sticks, i am using vater chad smith funkblasters. They are breaking from hitting rim shots which is tearing up the middle of the stick, does anyone else have this problem and have any solutions? would a wooden rimmed snare help?
 
I use Vic Firth 5B and Zildjian 5B hickory wood both, I do a lot of rim-shots and play snare rims but never had your type of problem. You might try another drumsticks make and review your rim-shots approach. I hope it helps!
 
i have tried the vic firth 5b's and the zildjian 5b's but neither seem to last half as long as the funk blasters, perhaps i need to not hit the drums so hard! thanks for the help
 
You guys have really gotta learn to search. There's tons of threads on this.

Sticks break mate, especially when you play continuous rimshots. As I said in yesterdays thread on 'breaking sticks'.......what did you expect was going to happen when you bash a piece of wood against a piece of metal? And I'll say it again in tomorrow's thread too. :)

Wooden hoops may reduce the problem. But you can always just buy new sticks too. I'm yet to meet a drummer who's sticks last forever. I think too many of you guys have unrealistic expectations from a piece of hickory.
 
i don't want a stick that last forever or anything but i cant afford to drum when i'm breaking a pair of £10 sticks every two days! just seeing if anyone has any solutions that i have overlooked
 
A wooden hoop probably won't help. You're likely to strip the threads on the inside of the lug closest to your rim shots, since a wooden hoop will flex more than die-cast.

The Vic Firth Extreme 5A is a good strong stick. If you're buying sticks in bulk, you might not be getting as high a quality of wood as if you went through individual pairs and picked out the heavier ones. I would not recommend 2Bs, you'll only break heads and cymbals if you swing them aggressively.

Breaking a stick a day is not common, but it will happen if you play loudly and regularly. You should be much more concerned about your technique, and the likelihood of doing physical damage to your hands, wrists, and elbows. If you break those, you cannot have them replaced! :/
 
It may be your technique too. I mean, I used to break sticks frequently on rimshots until I was finally taught how to relax my hands all the way and let the sticks bounce freely (it's as though they're doing almost all the work).

You guys have really gotta learn to search. There's tons of threads on this.

Sticks break mate, especially when you play continuous rimshots. As I said in yesterdays thread on 'breaking sticks'.......what did you expect was going to happen when you bash a piece of wood against a piece of metal? And I'll say it again in tomorrow's thread too. :)

Wooden hoops may reduce the problem. But you can always just buy new sticks too. I'm yet to meet a drummer who's sticks last forever. I think too many of you guys have unrealistic expectations from a piece of hickory.
Whoa, man. There's nothing wrong with someone preferring to make their own thread instead of just using an old one. Many people actually strongly prefer to start a discussion instead.

Besides, this thread is harmless and it is actually adding to this message board's usability (it's certainly not getting in the way, and it's certainly not detracting from this message board's usability). Not only that, but who are we to tell others to search instead of posting? Tons of threads on the subject or not, are people not free to start a discussion if they so choose? What if there are nuances to their question that are different from all others? What if he did search before posting?

Plus, ClayLane gets the added benefit of having a "live" discussion which means that there are chances for new ideas to be presented that may not have been presented in past threads.
 
Whoa, man. There's nothing wrong with someone preferring to make their own thread instead of just using an old one. Many people actually strongly prefer to start a discussion instead.

Besides, this thread is harmless and it is actually adding to this message board's usability (it's certainly not getting in the way, and it's certainly not detracting from this message board's usability). Not only that, but who are we to tell others to search instead of posting? Tons of threads on the subject or not, are people not free to start a discussion if they so choose? What if there are nuances to their question that are different from all others? What if he did search before posting?

Plus, ClayLane gets the added benefit of having a "live" discussion which means that there are chances for new ideas to be presented that may not have been presented in past threads.

Whoa indeed. Not sure how advising someone search for information hit a raw nerve with you mate, considering it's a suggestion made here daily. The suggestion to delve into the massive amount of info already presented on this board as he'll find all the answers he needs, is sound advice.

The other statement I was merely saying I think too many younger or newer players have unrealistic expecations of a peice of hickory. The sheer number of threads concerning breaking/chipping sticks attest to this......but if you never search, you'll never find them.

Anyways, don't read too much into it and certainly don't take it to heart. :)
 
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It may be your technique too. I mean, I used to break sticks frequently on rimshots until I was finally taught how to relax my hands all the way and let the sticks bounce freely (it's as though they're doing almost all the work).


Whoa, man. There's nothing wrong with someone preferring to make their own thread instead of just using an old one. Many people actually strongly prefer to start a discussion instead.

Besides, this thread is harmless and it is actually adding to this message board's usability (it's certainly not getting in the way, and it's certainly not detracting from this message board's usability). Not only that, but who are we to tell others to search instead of posting? Tons of threads on the subject or not, are people not free to start a discussion if they so choose? What if there are nuances to their question that are different from all others? What if he did search before posting?

Plus, ClayLane gets the added benefit of having a "live" discussion which means that there are chances for new ideas to be presented that may not have been presented in past threads.

From the Forum Rules for those who care not to read them:

If you are not familiar with the existing threads, please use the search function before starting a new one.
 
From the Forum Rules for those who care not to read them:

If you are not familiar with the existing threads, please use the search function before starting a new one.
It's just that I've never been on a message board where members were allowed to remind each other of the rules.

Besides, who says that he didn't search first?
 
It's just that I've never been on a message board where members were allowed to remind each other of the rules.

In my very humble opinion, one of the sell points of this forum is that it appears to have better "self -moderation" than many others. YMMV, but I like it......it shows that we can act like big boys and girls, without the need to be smacked by moderators on a regular basis.


Besides, who says that he didn't search first?

Possibly he did, although a quick search on 'Breaking Sticks' revealed this little gem: http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1684 (and a sticky too, no less). Add it to all the others and it's hard to miss.

Of course there's also the chance that he never searched at all and that's all I was trying to address.....but as you say, we don't know that.
 
I can't imagine getting 2 hours from a pair of sticks. They should make sticks with an aluminum core for hard hitters. I'd love to see a video of your playing, it might reveal things we can actually comment on. My first thought is, you're working too hard.
 
I too would say it's technique as far as breaking sticks as often as you say you are. Do you tend to crack cymbals too? If so, you are playing either too hard or need to improve your technique.

As far as beefier sticks, I use (and swear by) Ahead sticks. I used to use the joey jordison model because I liked the length/diameter the best -- the "rock" ones and tommy lee/lars ulrich ones are too fat and heavy for me. I now use Ahead "SwitchStix," which are basically the same as the JJ ones but have a mallet on the butt end. These are awesome for effects like cymbal rolls/crescendos, etc. I swear by them, and have quit buying wood sticks altogether.

The sticks are perfectly weighted and balanced, are always true, and have replaceable body sheaths so you can just switch them out if they get too chewed up and it's like a brand new stick. You can also change/replace the tips for different shapes or effects like mallet tips. (You can get a double-ended mallet by using the SwitchStix and a swapped out mallet tip as well)

The sticks are amazing, I'd highly recommend you give them a try at a local drum store. A lot of places don't carry them, but will if you ask them. I have bought them in-store and online, and you'll always end up paying around $35-38 a pair, so *they are* a tad pricey, but WELL WORTH IT imho...

Switchstix are 5A sized (to be precise, .540 Diameter, Medium Tapper, and are 16.35" long), are a little bit heavier than wood sticks, but always MUCH more uniform.


ANOTHER GEAR CHOICE would be a groove wedge for when you are doing rim clicks. They attach to the lugs and give a great loud click. It's 19plys of maple that you place in your ideal space. Won't chew up sticks like the die-cast hoops and gives a huge (and easy to get) rim click sound.

============
AHEAD SWITCHSTIX: http://www.interstatemusic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_900467970

GROOVE WEDGE: http://www.russmiller.com/productswedge.htm

Good luck!

-Smallstothemax
 
I can't imagine getting 2 hours from a pair of sticks. They should make sticks with an aluminum core for hard hitters. I'd love to see a video of your playing, it might reveal things we can actually comment on. My first thought is, you're working too hard.

They already make aluminum cored sticks...aheads.

I switched to promark 5Bs and have been very happy with them, i will order afew paird of aheads once i find a shop here capable of fufilling my request. (i ordered one of the "Spug" sets from a local shop here over 2 months ago now, along with a new beater for my iron cobra, and still no word or phone call)
 
I can't imagine getting 2 hours from a pair of sticks. They should make sticks with an aluminum core for hard hitters. I'd love to see a video of your playing, it might reveal things we can actually comment on. My first thought is, you're working too hard.

I remember some nights when I was out on the road playing to huge crowds breaking 1 to 2 pair of Vic Firth AC 2b's in a 50 min show. Used to buy em by the case. lol You get pumped up with big crowds so maybe you're attacking the Bell a little harder,wackin the crap out of the snare etc... I miss those nights! lol
 
I play the regular Vater "hand selected hickory" ones and they last an exceptionally long time. All I play basically are rimshots because i like the tangy crack they deliver. after a while, the stick begins to look like a gopher got to the middle of it but they last a HECK of a lot longer than any other brand i have tried. Really tough sticks. Cheap at Guitar Center too!

Oh, I play 5Bs.
 
Funk Blasters are pretty beefy, so if your sticks are breaking quickly from playing really hard, then I'd suggest either, living with it if "that's how you're gonna play, period", or, lightening up a bit.

"Loud" is only going to get so "loud" anyway. No matter what you do, or how thick cymbals are.

Better results will be had in every part of your drumming if you loosen up a bit.

You can sill "look like you're killing things" (if that's the image you need for your gig) even if you loosen things up.

My sticks usually get chewed up in the middle after a while from rim shots. They look like a beaver got to them sometimes. They get chewed up on the shoulder from cymbals too, but they last quite a while and I'm not playing "lightly".
I just use them til they break at rehearsals. New sticks start at a gig, and get used up from there. I play a custom model (5B diam) from CDX customdrumstix.com

Good luck!
 
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