Guru Steambent English Cherry Snare

I'm the proud new owner of a Guru 7x14 English cherry steambent solid ply drum. Andy shared a pic of this drum when the In-Tense Series snares were launched around the time of the London Drum Show so it should be familiar to the DW gang here. As I already own a Guru padauk stave In-Tense series drum, I went into this acquisition with total confidence, knowing how well these drums are built, and more importantly, how well Andy from Guru takes care of his clients.

Prior to shipping this out to me, Andy spent several hours tuning up the drum, checking that it was in round, within height variation tolerances around the shell, etc. Edges were re-flattened, the outer edge radius was given just a slight touchup recut, and the drum was finished with fine wool and double waxed. Edges were laser checked, as were hole alignments, and the lugs were lubricated and reattached to the shell. The following pictures were taken in Andy's workshop (the shell workshop is separate) during that tune-up session. Who does that by the way? The drum was almost certainly in near perfect condition to begin with but Andy and Dean at Guru go above and beyond to ensure their clients are completely satisfied. They really are committed to building the best instruments possible. They've earned a client for life, well, at least my drumming life. Believe the craftsmanship is evident when viewing these pics. Enjoy the pics and I'll comment on the sound in the coming days when I have a bit more experience with the drum. Let's just say that this shell resonates like no other that I've run across before, and I have some killer drums in my collection. Just gorgeous visually and sonically.

...and just a few more:

Just beautiful. Your drum re-rings are a lot thicker than mine. I have a 5.75 depth ash drum. My ring is maybe 1/4 of an inch thicker than the rest of the shell, if that. Your cherry drum has a re-ring that looks like a vintage Ludwig re-ring, pretty thick. Looking forward to hearing why that is from Andy. (Andy is that my shell shown in the background of that pic in post #2?)

I love the In-Tense lugs. The connecting rod makes the lug look both vintage and new at the same time.

Gorgeous drum, it should have a completely different voice than your stave drum.

I have a 2nd snare arriving in about a month, a 7" depth ash drum. Really looking forward to playing that.

I never got a compliment from a musician about my maple snare that I love so much, but if someone hears my Guru for the first time, they comment on it. It's freaky. That's never happened before. It's proof to me.

I'm really curious to hear your observations between the stave and steambent after you've settled in with them for a while. They are exquisite instruments.

Congratulations man, play it in good health. It's stunning.

Beautiful snare drum! I might just have to see if I can get one someday.

steadypocket said:

Let's just say that this shell resonates like no other that I've run across before, and I have some killer drums in my collection. Just gorgeous visually and sonically.

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Thanks Rich, & we look forward to your thoughts on how the drum performs in the coming days We were impressed with the shipping time too, especially given the current weather conditions on the East coast states. 3 days door to door transatlantic is a great service.

larryace said:

Just beautiful. Your drum re-rings are a lot thicker than mine. I have a 5.75 depth ash drum. My ring is maybe 1/4 of an inch thicker than the rest of the shell, if that. Your cherry drum has a re-ring that looks like a vintage Ludwig re-ring, pretty thick. Looking forward to hearing why that is from Andy. (Andy is that my shell shown in the background of that pic in post #2?)

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The rerings on this drum are a bit thicker than standard for In-Tense English ash. This was to capitalise on the high overtones produced by a cherry shell, but we also vary rering thickness according to drum depth. English cherry is a one off (for now), as we've standardised on English ash. That's not to say we won't use cherry again though. It's a distinctive voice that we like very much.

For those who don't know, the rerings on In-Tense shells are machined into the shell. With our special process, we bend at over double usual steam bent thickness (read = very difficult) then machine out all the compressed wood from the inside of the main resonant portion of the shell. This leaves only the tensioned wood, & that increases ease of excitement considerably. The rerings have an equal balance of compressed & tensioned wood to maintain shell stability.

No Larry, that's one of a few prototype shells that we use for testing. Yours is still curing in our environmental chamber.

harvestdrum said:

Beautiful snare drum! I might just have to see if I can get one someday.

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Thank you

DAMN!!!!! that belongs in front of the kit.

so that's what that laser is for. very cool seeing the edge as well as hole alignment with that. steady you should print those pics for a book to keep with that snare.

I still think its just a wrap finish though, the steel wool is just in the photo because andy was cleaning up the lunch pans from making caeks!!!

Gorgeous drum, incredible craftsmanship. Of course, it's going to sound incredible, too.

Word has it that Andy also uses that laser for collection purposes when a customer doesn't pay their bill on time. Think the scene from A Clockwork Orange, except when they hold his eyes open, it's not a film they're shining in his eyes....

Beautiful drum!...what does a snare like this cost..also, are single flanged hoops an option...

The Old Hyde said:

so that's what that laser is for. very cool seeing the edge as well as hole alignment with that. steady you should print those pics for a book to keep with that snare.

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You know, Andy/Guru, this is not a bad idea Hyde just had. What if you took the pictures you always seem to take of the drum being made and enclosed them with the drum as a well-printed booklet or similar? Reinforces the idea of this being a truly custom-made, artisan instrument. I would keep mine on the coffee table for guests to look at.

I would usually say I'll take a nickel of royalties for every time you use this idea, but I think I'd have to go halves with Hyde...

alparrott said:

You know, Andy/Guru, this is not a bad idea Hyde just had.
...

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I have to show this to my wife, finally some proof!!!

8Mile said:

Gorgeous drum, incredible craftsmanship. Of course, it's going to sound incredible, too.

Word has it that Andy also uses that laser for collection purposes when a customer doesn't pay their bill on time. Think the scene from A Clockwork Orange, except when they hold his eyes open, it's not a film they're shining in his eyes....

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I was thinking more along the lines of "Goldfinger":

"Do you expect me to drum?"

"No Mr Pocket, I expect you to fry!"

alparrott said:

You know, Andy/Guru, this is not a bad idea Hyde just had. What if you took the pictures you always seem to take of the drum being made and enclosed them with the drum as a well-printed booklet or similar? Reinforces the idea of this being a truly custom-made, artisan instrument. I would keep mine on the coffee table for guests to look at.

I would usually say I'll take a nickel of royalties for every time you use this idea, but I think I'd have to go halves with Hyde...

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+2.............I think it's a great idea

Gorgeous snare steadypocket..................................I'm not jealous..........I'm not jealous..........I'm not jealous..........I'm not jealous..........

Congrats

Beautiful. Next time I'm in Frederick/New Market, sons house, I'll stop by and give it a tap.

The Old Hyde said:

so that's what that laser is for. very cool seeing the edge as well as hole alignment with that. steady you should print those pics for a book to keep with that snare.

I still think its just a wrap finish though,

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We use laser only to check basic alignment functions. Once we know everything is square & flat, then all other measurements & marking are easy. We do use laser in a few novel ways, but I can't show that detail - sorry.

As for a wrap - never seen one with that level of natural beauty & depth, & I suppose we wrapped the inside of the shell too eh! Who would do that - oh, wait ------------

scorch whammin said:

Beautiful drum!...what does a snare like this cost..also, are single flanged hoops an option...

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Prices start at £840 ($1,400 USD) including Protection Racket AAA rigid case.

Single flange hoops are available, but we would generally advise against, as mini claws or "nodes" add mass. We offer 2.3mm triple flange, S hoops, die cast, & segmented solid ovangkol. Other than those hoop variations, we don't offer custom options, as we're not a custom drum company.

alparrott said:

You know, Andy/Guru, this is not a bad idea Hyde just had. What if you took the pictures you always seem to take of the drum being made and enclosed them with the drum as a well-printed booklet or similar?

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Could be an option. We'll look into that

The finished snare looks almost simple. I guess its the clean lines of it I don't know. how many hours to make that andy ( if its proprietary no problem)?

Q. andy, does English cherry wood have a lot of pitch pockets in it? Ive used usa( ahem, the best) cherry in furniture before and its a nice characteristic of the wood, just some people don't prefer little holes here and there.

The Old Hyde said:

The finished snare looks almost simple. I guess its the clean lines of it I don't know. how many hours to make that andy ( if its proprietary no problem)?

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There's an average of about 20 hours labour in an In-Tense snare drum, spread over 8 - 10 weeks. More for a segmented. Add another 12 hours for a pair of ovangkol hoops if made in batches.

The simple lines are part accidental, part deliberate. Form follows function. Function being number one priority, by a huge margin. That's the "accidental" bit. The aesthetics, in design terms, are then considered with minimal deviation from the functional form. Aesthetic adjustment is the deliberate bit.

The Old Hyde said:

Q. andy, does English cherry wood have a lot of pitch pockets in it? Ive used usa( ahem, the best) cherry in furniture before and its a nice characteristic of the wood, just some people don't prefer little holes here and there.

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Depends on the cut & board used. In our drums, no. We shoot for absolute consistency. If it looks great, then that's a bonus.

Love the wood grain. Very nice job.

Roadydad said:

Love the wood grain. Very nice job.

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Thank you Of course, every board is different, but the soft flowing lines and subtle colour changes of English cherry make for a very pleasing look. It has a silky feel to it as well.

Does anyone have tips for getting drool out of a keyboard?

I have found that the best way, after the fact is to bury the keyboard in Kitty Litter. As a precautionary move, in the future, close your lips tightly or wear a bib when viewing the thinly veiled Guru threads.

Also, I have taken the above photo and sent it to Bum Wrap Drum Company to make me some wraps, and I will be offering the "same" snare on eBay. Look for the brand, Knockoff.