A few weeks ago, I realised that I wanted a 20" bass drum. Specifically, I wanted something 'vintage' and so I started looking on eBay and other sites to see what appeared. I was after a Premier or equivalent bass drum, probably from the 1960s, with re-rings.
I found a shell on eBay for £12, the hoops for £12 and the hardware for £12. I thought that it was definitely worth a punt and although the final cost (after buying heads and materials to re-finish) was higher than I perhaps wanted, I'm very proud of the final result.
I wanted something that would be a close match to my Tamburo Ash drums, which are almost and orange stain. The bass drum had lighter hoops against the stain so I also wanted to replicate that. The shell was originally a white marine pearl but the seller had removed the wrap because it was in very bad condition - leaving behind glue residue all over the shell. In the end I had to use very strong solvents to remove it!
The hoops were painted, so they were stripped and sanded. Everything received a very light French polish after staining - with the shell being stained twice more than the hoops. Re-assembly was a little tricky and the tension rods needed a lot of persuasion. Next time, I'll fully lubricate everything!
I'm very pleased with the final result. The shell is an old John Grey 'Broadway' from the early 60s (I think) and was the 'budget' range, with the only difference being the number of lugs. The full 'Broadway' kit had concert toms with the higher end 'Aristocrat' having double-headed toms. They're great drums. John Grey made some great kits and the chrome work was just phenomenally good - I haven't done any work on the chrome at all, not even a polish! It's a 3-ply, with 6-ply re-rings and rounded bearing edges (that needed some more rounding and wood filler!)
I found a shell on eBay for £12, the hoops for £12 and the hardware for £12. I thought that it was definitely worth a punt and although the final cost (after buying heads and materials to re-finish) was higher than I perhaps wanted, I'm very proud of the final result.
I wanted something that would be a close match to my Tamburo Ash drums, which are almost and orange stain. The bass drum had lighter hoops against the stain so I also wanted to replicate that. The shell was originally a white marine pearl but the seller had removed the wrap because it was in very bad condition - leaving behind glue residue all over the shell. In the end I had to use very strong solvents to remove it!
The hoops were painted, so they were stripped and sanded. Everything received a very light French polish after staining - with the shell being stained twice more than the hoops. Re-assembly was a little tricky and the tension rods needed a lot of persuasion. Next time, I'll fully lubricate everything!
I'm very pleased with the final result. The shell is an old John Grey 'Broadway' from the early 60s (I think) and was the 'budget' range, with the only difference being the number of lugs. The full 'Broadway' kit had concert toms with the higher end 'Aristocrat' having double-headed toms. They're great drums. John Grey made some great kits and the chrome work was just phenomenally good - I haven't done any work on the chrome at all, not even a polish! It's a 3-ply, with 6-ply re-rings and rounded bearing edges (that needed some more rounding and wood filler!)