reinforcement rings..?

eamckine

Member
can anyone help me with information regarding reinforcement rings?i'm thinking of putting them on my bass drum (10 ply with 5ply reinforcement)..and floor toms. what are the pros and cons of reinforcement rings? how many ply should drum shells be if you're using 5 or 6 ply reinforcment rings?
 
Are you adding them onto a kit yourself, or are you ordering a custom kit with this option? Truth be told, reinforcing rings aren't needed with the drum manufacturing techniques of this day and age, but if you like the way that they interrupt the natural vibrations of the shell (like overdrive on a guitar), then go for it, I guess.

If the latter, go with the manufacturer's suggestion. If you're doing it yourself, why not go the Ludwig route and put a solid .25" strip of wood on? Sounded good then, sounds good now...
 
To expand a little, They were originally placed in drums to do just what the name implies, reinforce the shells. With todays modern production techniques they are no longer needed for reenforcement reasons. They do tend to change the sound of a shell, it is not necessarily a bad change, it tends to make the shell a little more focused. I have them in my DW kits because I like the way they sound.

I also think we need a little more info, is this a do it yourself project or are you trying to decide on a custom kit's options?
 
This is a little vague. Are you adding reinforcement rings to the inside of these shells? Are you building this kit? Is this an existing kit, if so what makes you think it needs reinforcement rings.
Many questions.
 
i'm thinking of putting them on my bass drum (10 ply with 5ply reinforcement)..and floor toms. what are the pros and cons of reinforcement rings?
A 10 ply shell certainly won't need reinforcement rings. Ludwig, Rogers, etc.(all the "old school" drums) that had and/or made famous the reinforcement ring were thin shelled drums. Luddies, 3 ply....Rogers, 5 ply. They also tended to have more rounded bearing edges. What you get is a warm sounding drum. 1976 for Ludwig, 1978 for Rogers...enter the 6 and 8 ply shells, respectively. Straight shelled. Sharper bearing edges. More projection. Attack. No real pros or cons, more just "what do you want your drums to sound like"?
 
i'm ordering the shells from keller shells drum company. i am having them created at resurrection drums down in hollywood, florida (my boy cam'). i've heard good and bad concerning reinforcement rings. i do want to get them but wanted some info about them. after hearing your views i'm leaning towards thinner shells (5 or 6ply) and then adding the 5ply reinforcement rings..(maple shells, reinforcement rings, tube lugs, die cast/triple flange hoops)..you guys are the experts i need ya'll help. thanks again.rings with die cast hoops would choke the drum too much, is this true?
 
i'm ordering the shells from keller shells drum company. i am having them created at resurrection drums down in hollywood, florida (my boy cam'). i've heard good and bad concerning reinforcement rings. i do want to get them but wanted some info about them. after hearing your views i'm leaning towards thinner shells (5 or 6ply) and then adding the 5ply reinforcement rings..(maple shells, reinforcement rings, tube lugs, die cast/triple flange hoops)..you guys are the experts i need ya'll help. thanks again.rings with die cast hoops would choke the drum too much, is this true?

Reet!

Shell Material; two main Types; Maple and Birch. Maple is higher pitched and has more crack to it and used mainly live. Birch is a softer wood and therfore has more punch and body to it and are more often used in the Studio.

Re-inforcement Rings; you won't really need these on shells that are thicker than 6ply and even then with methods of Construction now they're pretty much defunct in that respect. However, the Rings will create a more Focused sound to the Drum.

Shell Thickness; the thinner the Shell the lower the fundamental Pitch of the Drum will be so therefore they work better for lower Tunings, also thinner shells will need thinner Drumheads (Remo Ambassadors for example) and more importantly if you whack on a thick Double-Ply Head such as a Remo Emeperor you're gonna have to Crank it more to get it to open up properly and then you'll risk stressing the Shell too much and even risk cracking it so that's never a good idea.

Tube Lugs?; can't help you there but I do know the more Lugs you have the more precisley you can tune the Drum, because the tension will be more evenly distributed.

Hoops; Die-Cast are very Rigid and will thefore hold the tuning of the Drum better, they also have a deadening effect on the Drum. Triple-Flanged are alot more fleixble and allow the Drum to Breathe more. If you take a Die-Cast and a Flanged, suspend them and hit each with a Stick the Die-Cast will just make a Dull noise where as the Die-Cast will ring out with an actual Pitch which is quite Musical.

Hope that helps,

Kev
 
what about just 10ply maple shells all around without reinforcement rings..with tube lugs and die cast hoops.? thank you for the input. you're really helping me in my decision making. but that info you gave previously was great man. thanks..
 
A thick shell with reinforcement rings, to my knowledge, hasn't been done. I wonder how it would change the sound.
 
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