Mom and Pop Drum shops

rogue_drummer

Gold Member
Just curious, can anyone recommend stand-alone drum shops, aka "mom and pop" drum shops that are NOT owned by a chain?

A few of my drumming buddies in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas area were discussing the pure lack of quality drum shops in our area. Sure we have the Guitar Centers, the Mr. E's, and the like who employ kids that may know some things about guitars and drums, but are always looking to make THE SALE instead of being interested in what you really want and need as a musician for that next gig or long term hardware.

And all except GC have limited space with maybe a few kits set up and maybe a stand with a few types of drum sticks, no publications, no DVDs, literature, etc.

It seems everytime I walk into our local GC, there is always new personnel manning the drum counters and a lot of the times they have to go man the guitar or PA counters because those departments are short handed. It's a revolving door.

What I'd like to find are drum shops independently owned and operated by owners whose sole purpose in life seems to be drums and drumming. The experienced people who eat, breathe, and drink drums and drumming.

It doesn't matter to me where in the country (USA, Canada, UK) they are located, I just would like to find them.

As a long-term project, this idea has been tossed around about opening up a drum shop dedicated to drums and drumming, lessons, repairing, restoring, etc.

The area boasts Texas Christian University, Texas Wesleyan Univeristy, Southern Methodist University, University of Texas at Arlingon, University of North Texas, plus a bunch of school districts and local orchestras, so this idea might actually fly if done right.

Thanks a bunch!
 
in my town (Orlando, Fla.) the ma and pa drum shop is Drums 2 Go. their web site is:

www.drums2go.com

i take lessons there, and i buy all my drum stuff there. they are the best! they've never steered me wrong.
 
Drum center of portsmouth, NH is excellent. The owner Shane is a hell of a guy and he had his 1st anniversary a few months back and gave away about $5k worth of really nice stuff.

http://drumcenternh.com/
 
Don't know what's in your neck of the woods, but I am glad to see you are seeking out a priavte owed shop... When I live on the east coast I would only shop at Buffalo Drum Outlet, and here in LA I give all my biz to Pro Drum on Vine.
 
We used to have Idaho Percussion, which was just drums, but it closed in 2006. We have a few independent music stores and the one with the best selection by far is Dorsey Music in Boise. Their selection of drums and percussion is as good as any stand-alone and the drum department manager is a gigging local drummer and has been there at least 10 years.

Bentley's in Fresno, California, has to be the best stand-alone drump shop I've ever seen.
 
In the Los Angeles area, Pro Drum is the place.
 
Sadly, here in Arizona, there are no nice drum shops. Milano's in Mesa may be the finest there is left. Milano's is a great shop, but its investment in its drum department has shrunk considerably over the years and they cater to the same clientele as GC does.

Bizarre Guitar and Drum used to be a decent shop to check out lots of drums but now they are a guitar shop with the drum stashed off to the side all stacked up and unavailable to check out.

The Batterie used to be pretty pimp in Scottsdale, but they closed their doors years ago.

I think I am going to go talk to the guys at Bizarre today, and see how I might be able to help them fix up their shit... They are called Bizarre Guitar and Drums on their sign and business license, but they don't even have any drummers in their employ!
 
We used to have Idaho Percussion, which was just drums, but it closed in 2006. We have a few independent music stores and the one with the best selection by far is Dorsey Music in Boise. Their selection of drums and percussion is as good as any stand-alone and the drum department manager is a gigging local drummer and has been there at least 10 years.

Bentley's in Fresno, California, has to be the best stand-alone drump shop I've ever seen.

Yeah, too bad about IP. I bought my first kit there. The guys there were super-friendly and as small as it was, they had a lot of stuff in stock.

I disagree about Dorsey's, though. The drum dept. is a complete mess...I won't even bother looking for sticks in there, anymore. Piles of sticks and heads out of their boxes, strewn about.

Last time I went in there I bought a pair of Pro Mark oak sticks. The kid up front tried to charge me $16.99 for them and gave me serious attitude when I questioned it! They're about $8 at GC...and everywhere else on the planet.

I went there first when I considered my first "pro" drum kit. They came in almost $1500 higher than anyone else I had talked to, including other small shops outside of Idaho. I like John, he's a real nice guy...but I don't like him *that* much.
 
Lone Star Percussion comes to mind. They are in north Dallas around LBJ and US 75. They used to be mail order only but the last time I was there they had a showroom with lots of kits set up. I bought a double BD pedal there after trying out several. I have a set of concert toms with an odd sized drum for witch they were able to get me a head when everyone else said it was impossible. I'm 200 miles away or I would shop there more often.
 
We have one here in Memphis that sells a lot of drums and that is all they do ...

And a small one in my local suburb, where I aquired my SONORs ...

Most of them ship also.
 
I think I am going to go talk to the guys at Bizarre today, and see how I might be able to help them fix up their shit... They are called Bizarre Guitar and Drums on their sign and business license, but they don't even have any drummers in their employ!

Gonna go work there Kev?

I wish we had more mom and pop shops here in Phoenix, sadly this city is just too big and people would rather go to the local GC instead of supporting a small business. There is one on Bell and the 51, can't remember what its called... Anyway I wanted to find a sweet used kit but the salesman there pulled the car dealer routing on me and it turned me off of the place. Customer service matters to me.
 
Dale's Drum Shop near Harrisburg PA is a fine example of a fantastic stand alone drum shop.

Huge selection, knowledgeable courteous and professional staff.

http://www.dalesdrumshop.com/

+1 on Dales.
I got all my stuff there, and theyre 3000 miles away.
Theyre prices are very good and their stuff ships in 7 days.
even with shipping cost, I pay less than with the Big guys.
Check out their Video. Go to "About Us" on their site and theyll play a kick a_ _ little Jam for ya too.
 
Jeff Ryder's Drum Shop in San Antonio and Austin, TX... Their website isn't all that great, but don't let that fool you; his stores are amazing. Jeff is a genuine guy who really cares about his craft and business. I don't shop anywhere else. Plus he has great relationships with the major custom drum companies.

http://www.jeffryderdrumshop.com/

http://www.yelp.com/biz/jeff-ryders-drum-shop-austin

I've never been to that one, but I've heard about it. Tommy's Drum Shop is another good one in Austin. If I lived in Austin, and not 40 miles away I'd only shop at these places. I really don't know why anyone would go to a GC or other large chain store if they had a good drum shop in their city. The prices are usually as good, the selection is way better, the service/knowledge is definitely better, and you don't have a bunch of punks bangin away on everything. And, I don't consider a drum shop mom and pop, since they specialize in drums and don't have the typical issues of the mom and pop general music stores like rediculous prices, poor selection, and little knowledge of drums, which is the reason those places are dying. A drum shop at least can compete with GC, because they can get better products and endorsements, allowing them to offer the lower prices, and good selection being an exclusive drum retailer.
 
I've never been to that one, but I've heard about it. Tommy's Drum Shop is another good one in Austin. If I lived in Austin, and not 40 miles away I'd only shop at these places. I really don't know why anyone would go to a GC or other large chain store if they had a good drum shop in their city. The prices are usually as good, the selection is way better, the service/knowledge is definitely better, and you don't have a bunch of punks bangin away on everything. And, I don't consider a drum shop mom and pop, since they specialize in drums and don't have the typical issues of the mom and pop general music stores like rediculous prices, poor selection, and little knowledge of drums, which is the reason those places are dying. A drum shop at least can compete with GC, because they can get better products and endorsements, allowing them to offer the lower prices, and good selection being an exclusive drum retailer.

Yeah, Tommy's is also a great place for drummers. I actually used to do all of my purchases there exclusively until I went in to Jeff Ryder's shop. Jeff is almmost always there, and he is by far the most passionate and knowledgeable drum expert I've met.
 
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