70s Ludwig Acrolite Overhaul

I know there are plenty of Acrolite threads, but I wanted to make my own because I'm proud of it.

This was my first snare drum I got back in 1989. (Complete with the UFO case, snare stand, and rubber pad) It was used, my best guess is it's from the mid-70s. Anyone know for sure? (It had the shorter P85 with 12 holes, if that helps.)

I bought new Gibraltar 2.3mm rims top and bottom, PureSound Custom Series 20 strand wires, new Ludwig P85 throw off, and Ambassador coated head/Ambassador snare side...and now it sounds crisp af. WHAT A DIFFERENCE!

Before it sounded raw with heavy overtones from the warped 1.6mm rims. It was difficult to tune or get a nice tone. The stock snares were terrible. The old P85 was functional but did not hold the snare tension permanently.

The Gibraltar steel 2.3mm hoops do not have the best fit and finish, the chrome is not the best quality. I'm still happy with them though considering they were only about $16 each.

The P32 butt plate has stripped screws, but I did not replace it because it was still functional enough.

Only thing left to do is get straps for the snares. My old P85 wasn't compatible with straps which is the main reason I got a new one. I'll probably just get some grosgrain ribbon from Walmart. Maybe 5/8"? That seems to be what the cool kids are using if they don't have the official stuff.

I'll probably be shelving my DW Edge 13x7 for a while, which is saying something because I love that drum. This Acrolite sounds that good. It's perfect for the blues (acoustic guitar and upright bass) gigs, and jazz combo gigs I've been doing lately. I'll probably use it for my church gigs as well.

I played this snare for years and it never sounded anything like this! Young me never thought it was possible to get replacement parts for it. I'm blown away with how sensitive and snappy it is now. Very close to a Supraphonic, I'd say!











The old parts.

Can't have enough Acrolite threads! It's the yard sale 80s steel frame road bike of the drum world!

I recently rehabbed an old, beat-up Acro that I'd neglected for years cause I inherited it from a band I was in and thought it was just a "student drum"... only after going to forums like this did I realize the drum's potential so I dug it out and fixed it up.... and learned a lot about this drum!

The rounded corners on the badge means it's late 70s; the original B&O badge had pointed corners which would get snagged on things, and led to enough complaints for Ludwig to start rounding them off. According to this timeline, they started doing that in 1979 although it's still kind of vague. My Acro is a 1976 and still has a pointy badge, so no earlier than that, at least.

Mustion said:

Can't have enough Acrolite threads! It's the yard sale 80s steel frame road bike of the drum world!

I recently rehabbed an old, beat-up Acro that I'd neglected for years cause I inherited it from a band I was in and thought it was just a "student drum"... only after going to forums like this did I realize the drum's potential so I dug it out and fixed it up.... and learned a lot about this drum!

The rounded corners on the badge means it's late 70s; the original B&O badge had pointed corners which would get snagged on things, and led to enough complaints for Ludwig to start rounding them off. According to this timeline, they started doing that in 1979 although it's still kind of vague. My Acro is a 1976 and still has a pointy badge, so no earlier than that, at least.

Click to expand...

Me too! For years I thought of it as a student drum, especially because it didn't sound so good. It wasn't until maybe 10 years ago that I started seeing posts here about how great Acrolites are. (I was a looongtime lurker at Drummerworld before I ever made an account here)

Thanks to you guys I was able to see the full potential of this snare, and I dug it out of the attic. So glad I did!