Custom Drums... whats the deal

drthemez

Senior Member
Ok, i hope i dont start controversy or anything, but i have been tossing around the idea of getting myself a custom kit. I got a quote for a 3piece from DW that was over 3 grand (12,15,22) and i started thinking.... what is making these things so darn expensive. I mean the ability to get any size and shell type is obviously a bonus but if i was just looking for a maple kit, or birch kit, i could go get a gretsch renown or a starclassic or something for half the price. To me the finish options arent any big deal either as a lot of companies are coming out with impressive finishes on their higher end drums. Maybe the craftsmanship is really THAT much better? i dont know.

So basically im trying to get some opinions on going one way or the other from people with experience with custom drums.
 
depends on the drum maker. depends what kind of sound you want. stave kits can be very nice. personally I would never buy a DW.
 
I think this is a great point and I'd like to hear from others who have pursued this route on custom sets like the OP is talking about.

Could it be that people just really like the idea of a drumset that is totally theirs?

At some point in my life if my financial situation allows for it, I'd love to build a custom set from DW or something wild from SJC or something. But for now, a high end consumer set is fantastic. With all the manufacturers and finishes out there, how could there be nothing that interests people?

Not slamming custom kit buyers here, just proposing rhetorical questions.
 
I think this is a great point and I'd like to hear from others who have pursued this route on custom sets like the OP is talking about.

Could it be that people just really like the idea of a drumset that is totally theirs?

At some point in my life if my financial situation allows for it, I'd love to build a custom set from DW or something wild from SJC or something. But for now, a high end consumer set is fantastic. With all the manufacturers and finishes out there, how could there be nothing that interests people?

Not slamming custom kit buyers here, just proposing rhetorical questions.

This is exactly my thought... it seems like whatever sizes, finishes, shells etc i can find just by looking through each brands high end drums... which are usually 1000-1500 dollars, compared to 3 or 4 grand.

I see custom drums being practical for those who like really non traditional sizes like 26-28" bass drums, or those who want hybrid shells or whatever.... but then again you can even find different hybrids (like my epic x-over which is walnut) from ludwig and mapex (saturn). I mean dont get me wrong for some reason im compelled to a custom kit but i find myself really wonderin WHY and is it worth the extra dough haha....
 
A lot of the price comes from the fact that the company cannot start building your kit until you order it. This means they have to keep materials in stock and build from their stock. They also have to be able to build anything, so the stock has to be large. This means paying overhead charges. The longer you have to wait for your custom kit to be built, the more your money goes toward paying the company to hold on to it for you.

Also, custom drum kits are more labor intensive for the most part and employ more work done by hand. Rather than rolling drums off a process line, they are made one at a time. All of this brings up the price.

You also have to look at the demand, which is high for custom kits (we all want them, mostly). Simultaneously, the supply is relatively small when compared to cookie cutter sets. This also brings up the price.

Its up to you to decide if the product is worth the price. Most drummers want them, but only some are willing to pay for them. Because the number of kits sold is relatively low, custom drum companies have to gain a larger profit on each kit they sell. They are occupying a market of low volume and high return. Custom kits are a luxury item in the drumming world.
 
Quote....This means they have to keep materials in stock and build from their stock.

I'm not sure if this part is true or not..since it seems most custom companies always quote months to build a set, they could easily wait for the order and down payment, or deposit to buy the necessary supplies for your set from their source. If they had all of it sitting around it would seem to me that this would shorten the wait time.
 
For some reason it's hard for me to consider making drums a custom artform. Even when DW does it, it's plies of wood inserted into a machine and bent round into a shell. Not that much different from how the how end consumer drums are made. It's not like someone hand-making a violin. And once the custom drum is made, it's drilled the same for the lugs (by machine) and it's still assembled by hand by somebody. Maybe if you eliminated the machines from the process and the entire process is done by hand you could consider it custom, but you can't take the machines out of it.
 
Go to Tayedrums.com and look at their Taye originals. They have 100's of configurations to choose from. Pretty much any size drum and combination you can think of. Too many "custom" companies limit what you can have or what they make.
 
Quote....This means they have to keep materials in stock and build from their stock.

I'm not sure if this part is true or not..since it seems most custom companies always quote months to build a set, they could easily wait for the order and down payment, or deposit to buy the necessary supplies for your set from their source. If they had all of it sitting around it would seem to me that this would shorten the wait time.

I agree that not all materials need to be on hand before you make your order. These are only my ideas on how this works. But I think that custom drum companies want to shorten their lead time as much as possible meaning that much of their more universal materials such as lugs are already in stock. Basically, you are paying for the time and effort that comes from each drum being built post order. Rather than building a bunch of kits that they think people will want the build a kit after they know what you want. This means lead times and $$$.
 
For some reason it's hard for me to consider making drums a custom artform. Even when DW does it, it's plies of wood inserted into a machine and bent round into a shell. Not that much different from how the how end consumer drums are made. It's not like someone hand-making a violin. And once the custom drum is made, it's drilled the same for the lugs (by machine) and it's still assembled by hand by somebody. Maybe if you eliminated the machines from the process and the entire process is done by hand you could consider it custom, but you can't take the machines out of it.

I think the appeal of a custom kit is that you can get anything you want, like the Taye Originals. Its the fact that the company wants to be able to give you any configuration and finish you want that changes the process by which the drums are made. This change of process along with the increased desirability of the drums is what drives up the price. IMO
 
grunter is right, most custom build companies, drums or not, do not keep a huge stock of supplies on hand since they do not know whats going to be ordered at any given time it is not cost effective to order something to have it sit around just waiting for somebody who wants it. they will keep a small stock of things they know get ordered frequently, lug bolts, most popular lugs, rims, but they won't keep huge stock piles of wood plies laying around for the "just in case" crowd. and actually the fact they don't ads to the cost, buying in bulk vs. buying by the piece. not to mention the overhead in paying for a facility to house things that could be there for a year before that one guy comes and orders it.

my guess would be dw keeps a very small stock of supplies and order on a semi weekly basis to keep those costs down as much as possible . most of the cost of their drums probably comes in labor having very good craftsman building to order, those guys don't come cheap. then you account for the waste, that gets payed for by you as well, not to mention all the shipping of the supplies that you pay for that never shows up on an invoice, their not eating that cost either. pretty much everything, your paying for and is added into the quote. you go to keller and price out the shells and all the hardware to build it yourself you'll be less then dw for sure but then add in what a craftsman usually makes per hour and i bet your not going to be far off if your not already over.


where's that dude from c & c drums when you need questions answered....
 
A lot of the price comes from the fact that the company cannot start building your kit until you order it. This means they have to keep materials in stock and build from their stock. They also have to be able to build anything, so the stock has to be large. This means paying overhead charges. The longer you have to wait for your custom kit to be built, the more your money goes toward paying the company to hold on to it for you.
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Not actually true.

DW doesn't build the shells until they have an order. They don't even keep that much raw wood on hand. There is virtually zero inventory on hand for custom orders (other than lugs).

Everyone else that buys shells from Keller or wherever doesn't place an order until they know what the customer wants. No custom builder has that much space to store 101 drum shells. And even if they did, they can buy long tubes in every common diameter, and just down to the requested depth. So that isn't much to storage.

What makes custom expensive over non-custom is that each kit is indeed made to order, instead of made in batches. It's always cheaper to make any item in a large batch than it is to make one at a time.

And for colors, it's always cheaper to buy a massive vat of whatever color to make a batch of drums than it is for a custom manufacture to buy just enough of whatever color to make the order at hand.

If it's worth it to you depends on what you want, or don't want.

I have a DW kit, it's in a near one-of-a-kind color (as far as I know) so I love it for that. But I got mine 2nd hand off of ebay, so I didn't have to pay through the nose for it.
The downside is, there is no way to every buy an add on for it unless I have it custom made and send them a tom back to color match.
 
Custom drums can be divided into 3 catagories IMO.

1/ Mass market manufacturers who offer a custom size/finish service. To be honest, I choke at the premiums that are charged, but I'm not surprised. I run manufacturing operations, so I'm fully on board with the costs incurred when interrupting production flow/inserting a special into the system. Unless they operate a dedicated custom division within their facility, the stop/start costs are high. In most cases (Sonor SQ2 being an exception), you get the size & finish you want, but the basic product is stock.

2/ So called "boutique" custom shops (i.e. Spaun). They use shells made by others (e.g. Keller) then work the drum up from there. Here, you typically get a bit more choice. Some (not Spaun) will offer different bearing edges & lugs. All offer a choice of hoops, tom mounts, etc. The value is in the choice, quality of build, attention to detail, & service.

3/ Custom shops that build their own shells. Here, you usually get ultimate choice, & a true bespoke kit. They offer the opportunity to truly craft a specific sound. To me, these represent the very best in drum building. Most surprisingly, they can often be cheaper than either the custom facility of a mass market manufacturer and the "boutique" builders. This is usually down to their small size/lower overheads.

I have a Spaun custom series maple kit. It's superbly made. No complaints. I'd happily put it up against any DW & expect it to sound better than most, IMO. I'm currently having a very unique kit built by Dean @ Guru Drumworks http://www.gurudrumworks.co.uk/ This project is leading edge stuff, & made by a true wood artisan. We are collaborating on a design build that's way off the accepted path. You only get that level of willingness to experiment from a true enthusiast. Although the cost will be high, compared to the prices DW charge, it's exceptional value for money considering the huge amount of development time & work involved.

A UK company such as Highwood drums make beautiful true custom (catagory 3) drums at very realistic prices. Of course, there are others. Do your homework, & you'll find that custom drums don't necessarily have to be crazy expensive, & the can represent superb value for money for those seeking something very specific.

I often ask the question the other way around. How come some of the mass market kits cost so much compared to stunning custom kits? The answer is usually a combination of brand recognition & overheads.
 
Andy: what would be the ballpark USD cost of a Guru maple bop set 18/14/12, do you think? I've contacted Highwood before, but they never wrote back.
 
Not actually true.

I have a DW kit, it's in a near one-of-a-kind color (as far as I know) so I love it for that. But I got mine 2nd hand off of ebay, so I didn't have to pay through the nose for it.
The downside is, there is no way to every buy an add on for it unless I have it custom made and send them a tom back to color match.

Don't know that I would commission the DW engineers to construct a custom kit at this time. I do agree, cost is a huge determinant.

However, nothing better than owning a "CUSTOM BUILT" kit. Which is why I chose to grab one off the shelf of a BestBuy retail store at 40% off. Now, it's not an exotic origination, but damn thing sounds nice. Bragging rights included after I paid the sales clerk.
 
I got a quote for a 3piece from DW that was over 3 grand (12,15,22) and i started thinking.... what is making these things so darn expensive.
As long as people are willing to pay it, they will charge it. Go price the Yamaha PHX. DW isn't that "out of line" with some of the "other" high-end kits. I have a "list" of 10 DW kits that sold on eBay, ranging in price from $999 to $3K. So "used" is an option, that could quite well save you $1K.​
PDP would be "another option", made by DW, just a little more on the generic/affordable side.​
So basically im trying to get some opinions on going one way or the other from people with experience with custom drums.
Personally, I have no need/reason/desire to play/own a $3K kit. My Ludwigs (26, 13, 16, 18 cost me $1100. My Yamaha Recording Customs (22, 12, 13, 14) cost me $995. Two perfectly good kits, for under $2100.​
A wise man once said "women and like elephants ... they're nice to look at, but I wouldn't wanna own one". That's pretty much my attitude with DW/custom drums.​
 
Personally, I'm a little afraid to own something that is considered custom and one-of-a-kind, just in the off-chance that I will be somewhere and musically, there just won't be anything I can do to make something good. We've all been there; the band just isn't grooving and nobody is diggin' it, and it's really nobody's fault. And when nothing grooves, everybody in the room is looking at the drummer anyway. I just like to avoid that.

On the other hand, if the band is smokin' and I'm playing that old vintage 1960's Kent drumset from Japan....you get the idea.

I did a gig with a 7-string bass player once, the instrument was custom, and so beautiful....everything he played just said, look at me I suck!
 
Andy: what would be the ballpark USD cost of a Guru maple bop set 18/14/12, do you think? .
I'll fire your question to Dean, & of course, it's very specification dependant. Dean typically offers single ply steambent & stave shells. I read an artical on Music Radar featuring one of Dean's vintage style mahogany stave kits, 13" tom, 14" & 16" floor toms, & 22" kick with steambent hoops. That was £2,249 (so about $3k), so I'm taking a real guess at around $2,400 for your sizes. Anyhow, see what Dean comes back with. I know he's super busy with work. That tells you something. Dean builds every kit personally.
 
everything he played just said, look at me I suck!
Oh crap, you got me thinking now! You could just be right. I take huge pleasure in getting my sound spot on, but I'm a way off what you'd call an impressive player. Am I just drawing attention to my failings by default? I was having a good morning, until now! Thanks Bo.
 
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