I'm at a loss. I can't tune a drum to save my life.

So I have a huge problem. I have a Sonor Force 1007 kit from 2009-10 that I purchased used from my Local drum shop for a good price. For the past five years I have never been able to to tune it. I have seen all the YouTube tutorials, but there are certain things I just can't grasp.

Problem #1: My lugs are unevenly stiff. Is this a regular occurrence on most kits? Or is it from lack of proper care, and aging? I cannot finger tighten my lugs properly because they become unbearably stiff before the head of the rod contacts the hoop.

Problem #2: When I have the heads set and I'm tuning each tension rod tuning one rod changes the entire set of the other rods always keeping the tones/pitch uneven. How do I fix this? Is it possible my hoops are bent?

Problem #3: What is the definiton and how do you "Finger tighten" the lugs on a drumset? I have heard multiple definitions and multiple ways, but I can never seem to do it properly either way.

Please help me!

Problem #1: My lugs are unevenly stiff. Is this a regular occurrence on most kits? Or is it from lack of proper care, and aging? I cannot finger tighten my lugs properly because they become unbearably stiff before the head of the rod contacts the hoop.

You could have cross threaded lug inserts and lug bolts .

Not all bolts fit all ligs and vice versa.

So forcing a lug into a mismatched insert can result in a cross thread making it difficult to adjust and tune.
If that's the case,you then got to get lugs and inserts with the same thread specs.
 
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The problem with this method is my lugs are stiff and all have varying degrees of tension.

Assuming your drums are the problem...

Try replacing the bolts/screws on one drum. It sounds like they're bent, which is why they won't turn properly and you're getting unpredictable results when you turn them. If replacing them on one drum works, replace the rest.

Make sure your bearing edges are okay. If not, you need new drums or you need to find someone who can cut new bearing edges.

Even if your heads look good, if they've been tensioned unevenly for a long time they could be toast. Replace the heads on one drum and see if that makes a difference.

Take the heads off before tuning the drums. Start from scratch.

Assuming you're the problem...

Wear earplugs when you tune, so you're not distracted by all the little details and can focus on the fundamental tone.

Buy a tension watch, drum dial, or similar product. I can't tune worth beans, but I set the heads with a tension watch and I get better results than most drummers can get by ear. If nothing else, it gets you about 90% of the way to a well tuned kit, and then you need to do the rest by ear.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/drums-percussion/tama-tw100-tension-watch
 
I don't have anything to add except that this has been a helpful tutorial for me because I don't know how to tune drums, either!!!
 
It helps to understand what makes a good tuning...a good tuning.

One thing I can say that would illustrate what I'm trying to describe... is the metal hoop of a badly tuned head... it's not parallel to the bearing edge...all 360 degrees around. It's cocked somewhere.

If there was a way to magnetically adjust the tension so that it's totally even around all 360 degrees of the head...that's the best case scenario. (assuming a perfect drum)

You have to duplicate that with keys. The outer metal hoop of the drumhead has to be as even as possible in relation to the bearing edge...all at 360 degrees around the drum. The all 360 degrees around the drum part is the mother. Using 2 keys opposite one another makes it much easier to feel for even-ness.

And that's just for each head. Then you have the relationship between the batter head and the reso head, and that's where the real fine tuning happens. Yea, it's not an easy thing. It takes much time spent just messing around with heads and keys.

Or learn how to use a tune bot. I prefer doing a drum by feel, so I don't have to rely on a gizmo. Tuning is an art, and is a large part of your sound.

Think about how much time guitarists spend on their tone.

It's a long process to find your sound. Make it fun. Enjoy learning how to tune a really hard instrument to tune.

If I were smart I'd start a business like a mobile drum tuning service/instruction
 
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ss, but can you tune a fish?
 
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