Drum Refinish

Liaztraht

Silver Member
What's up drummerwold family? Long time no see. Been busy with life/work/music.

Deciding to jump back in here with a little project. And it will be slow to update.

So I just scored a free drum set! Nothing special, just a Ludwig accent combo. But hey it was free! Friend was trying to get it out of storage, so I snagged it up. The wrap is in rough shape, bubbling and peeling, but that's fine. I wanted it to refinish and use for those shady gigs.

It also had some cymbals with it. Some garbage Pulse cymbals, and a single 70's Zildjian A highat bottom. A good match for the 60's/70's top I have whose bottom went missing (stolen).

I don't know how the shells look under the wrap yet, but if the interior and bearing edges are anything to go by, they look in decent shape with a little black fuzz mold on the kick. Nothing major, just between the edge and the heads. No rust or pitting on the chrome that I can see. They are caked in dust, so time will tell.

Not sure of the year, but the kick has gull wing style spurs. Not through shell or modern ratchet/gear style.


Now that the intro is out of the way... I don't know what color to finish it yet. If the wood is good, I'm thinking a light amber, if there is a bunch of heartwood, then either mahogany/walnut or another dark brown or red finish. If its real bad, then probably a rattle can satin white pearl finish. Similar to Pearl's decade maple option.

I am open to finish suggestions. I probably won't wrap it unless I can find something cool at a fabric store. I am also open to suggestions for little modifications or tips for restoration.


And of course a mandatory pic is included.
 

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Accent Combos are usually 9 ply poplar. I have one that is a boomerang kit (I clean it up, give it away, it comes back 1-2 years later, repeat).

If you're going to spruce it up:

1: Bumwrap drum company. Get a cheap wrap. The wood isn't worth finishing.
2: Get some wood hoops for the BD.
3: Check to see if the snare has a bed. Mine didn't. It takes ~15 mins with a file to make one.
 
Accent Combos are usually 9 ply poplar. I have one that is a boomerang kit (I clean it up, give it away, it comes back 1-2 years later, repeat).

If you're going to spruce it up:

1: Bumwrap drum company. Get a cheap wrap. The wood isn't worth finishing.
2: Get some wood hoops for the BD.
3: Check to see if the snare has a bed. Mine didn't. It takes ~15 mins with a file to make one.

I was trying to avoid real wrap honestly. Not worth the cost IMO. Though I do need to check their prices.

I will definitely check some wood hoops out.

No bed? Dang! I will for sure make sure it gets one if needed.

Thanks!

As for the wood, I've read poplar or luan depending on the year. Though there is no history on cheap kits. There is a big gap between the late 90's and recent catalogues for info. And this one fits in that gap. I should be able to figure it out once the wrap is off, but it probably is poplar. I'm not looking to make the grain pop. Just a simple color. I have also toyed with the idea of duck cloth with a clear lacquer over it.
 
On the bright side, the Accent Combo is a completely functional ~$100-used kit. While it's not a lot to look at, it gets all the important bits right and is sonically capable.
 
Rat Rod it........!!!!!!!,....!!

You mean flat green and let it rust?

I've been digging through finish ideas in my spare time today. But won't make the call till the wrap is off.
 
Funny your thinking about this. I recently just stained my old Ludwig Accent kit, starting with the snare. I just finished staining the bass drum yesterday. It turned out great. I bought wood stain and minwax polyurethane. After a coat of stain, and 3 coats of Minwax poly., I was done and put the drum back together. I would definitely go this route. It saves money and looks great.

drum.png
 
Funny your thinking about this. I recently just stained my old Ludwig Accent kit, starting with the snare. I just finished staining the bass drum yesterday. It turned out great. I bought wood stain and minwax polyurethane. After a coat of stain, and 3 coats of Minwax poly., I was done and put the drum back together. I would definitely go this route. It saves money and looks great.

View attachment 78704

Nice color choice! Which poly did you use? I was considering a wipe on poly.
On a previous kit I used their polyshade with good results. Though I applied it thinly with a rag instead of brush.

I'm going to try and renove the wrap on at least one drum before work today.
 
So first shell done. Unwrapped the kick. Definatly not poplar. Lost a bit of wood near the back of the shell. Depending on if I can blend the edges or not will determine the finish option. The wood looks clear, but I do have 4 more to go


Edit:
12 inch rack tom looks like poplar... Well poo. Unmatched grain and species. Solid color it will be.

Also, looks like 2 separate veneer plys were used on the outer ply. Easy fill, just a pain in the butt.
 

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Had time to unwrap 3. The third was the floor tom. Outer ply is the same as the kick. But one of the lugs is busted internally. The threaded hole was snapped clean off. Another is in the process of breaking.

Hope is not lost. I was only going to use one rack tom, but now to decide which one to take doner parts from... Don't yet know what the 13 has in store under the wrap. But I wouldn't mind a 13 as the rack. But... For heads I only have 12/16... Decisions decisions...
 
Well. Did the 13 after work. It matches the kick and floor, but the veneer is split around the middle. So light finishes are out of the question. Might be able to fill it with stainable filler and go dark.
 
Another update:

Finally decided on the finish. I will be using a sparkle vinyl fabric as others have done.

Before ordering, I am attempting to jb weld the two broken lugs. Its a pain because the threaded cylinders are so tiny. This way I can get the full 5 piece going.

If not, I've decided to use the 12 as the doner for parts and do a 13/16 tom setup. If that's how it goes, I will probably dowel off the tom mounts on the kick and rack for a cleaner look, and either throw the rack on a snare stand or get an inexpensive suspension mount.

So far its coming together quicker than I thought, but still at least a couple weeks out.
 
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