How to drill bass drum with lacquer finish?

I hack up drums all the time. But on that kit, I'd use the Atlas stuff - old school or not.
In the future, someone's sure to go "Wow, look at that Ludwig set with the old fashioned Atlas mount stuff - remember those?"
But hey - they're your drums. Do what's gonna' make you feel right with them.

Half of that last reply was meant for you too. :)
 
Took the plunge and with the advice of folks on here, did a great job! Drilled pilot holes, then used the bigger bit on the inside first, then from the outside in. No real splintering and no cracking in the laquer.

Happy camper here! I think this completes my dream kit!
 

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Absolutely GRUNTERSDAD!

I planned to take more pics at each step, but I was concetrating most of the time and only took this one pic. LOL
 

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The perfect plan. Get the piece where you want it and tape that bad boy down. Nicely done.
 
couple questions,

I have a Ludwig Green Sparkle Wrap....do anything different?

Do you like the Ludwig Mount? Did you consider the DW?

Can you lay out a step by step process of how you did this? I am considering, but its a big decision.
 
couple questions,

I have a Ludwig Green Sparkle Wrap....do anything different?

Do you like the Ludwig Mount? Did you consider the DW?

Can you lay out a step by step process of how you did this? I am considering, but its a big decision.

I really just followed the advice already given here, but I'll spell it out a little better.

- I used painters tape on the outside of the shell to help prevent scratches
- Taped the gasket where I wanted it to be, then drilled two small pilot holes
- Next I used the correct sized bit and drilled from the inside out a small amount (not all the way through) to keep splintering to a minimum on the inside
- Then I drilled from the outside and that was basically it!

I don't think anything would be different with a wrap. Good luck!
 
couple questions,

I have a Ludwig Green Sparkle Wrap....do anything different?

Do you like the Ludwig Mount? Did you consider the DW?

Can you lay out a step by step process of how you did this? I am considering, but its a big decision.

The only other tip I can think of right now is to be sure to check every which way possible that you're installing it in the right spot. I've done this two other time and one time I did it too far forward. I basically tried to match the factory spot this time.

Oh yeah, the DW and Gibraltar mounts and stands are much nicer. But I wanted to keep it 100% Ludwig.
 
couple questions,

I have a Ludwig Green Sparkle Wrap....do anything different?

Do you like the Ludwig Mount? Did you consider the DW?

Can you lay out a step by step process of how you did this? I am considering, but its a big decision.
Roy from my post above.

I can tell you how I did my bass drum last week for the double tom holder. First, measure 4 times, place a mark and measure again. Second, I put blue painters tape, double thick, on the drum and put my marks on that. Second Put the tape on the inside as well to prevent any tear out of wood ply. Drill small pilot holes first, then make sure your tape on the inside is in the proper place. If the holes only need standard drill bits, nothing like hole saws, then now you can now drill the proper size for the bolts. Once the holes are drilled remove the tape. The blue tape should leave no residue. Mine didn't. Make sure any gaskets are placed on the drums outside then put the pieces together. Hand tighten to make sure they are perfectly lined up, then tighten with a tool. Carefully. Any other ???? please PM me. Measure measure measure. Oh one more thing. Do not force the drill thru the wood and make sure the bit is sharp. The photos show you the holes. Very clean because of the blue tape..
 
...The photos show you the holes. Very clean because of the blue tape..

I had EVERY intention of taking pics of all steps, but you know how it is when you get to doing something. I was totally focused and forgot about more pics. LOL

Thanks for your help (and everyone else's!)

As I said above, I have done this and screwed up before. But it was really just with the positioning. Speaking of that, I took a boom stand and "measured" a bunch of times to see where the cymbal would be if I installed the mount here or there. Finally landed on it and went for it.
 
Thought I'd share.......Just added a tom mount to my DW Collectors Broken Glass finish ply (not lacquer) and love it! Drilled and installed it myself. Used the reinforcement plate as a template with some blue painters tape to hold it down. USE SHARP/NEW DRILL BITS! (I know some of you must be cringing right now) I didn't want the heavy, bulky, P9900BD mount, so went with the DW Design Series/PDP Concept mount. Solid and sturdy, clean, makes set up easy, I can do 1 or 2 up, and I don't notice any difference in the sound of the kick.
 

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Nicely done. After measuring 15 times the drilling doesn't hurt so much. AS for the sound, if it sounds good to you, it sounds good.
 
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