Synching an Axis double pedal...help!

Jmack13

Junior Member
Okay, so I bought an Axis longboard double about 2 months ago, the pedal is pretty cool but for the life of me I can't seem to synch the primary pedal and the slave pedal. No matter what I do, the primary pedal always has more tension then the slave pedal. I've adjusted the spring tension, the footboard height, the beater angle, the little thingy on the side of the bushing that adjusts the footboard (not sure what it's called) and I still can't get the tensions right, the slave footboard is pretty loose compared to the primary pedal. I had this problem to some degree with my Iron Cobra but not like this. Can anyone help? I know it's one of those things about patience with gear but I'm starting to wonder if:
A. There is any way to adjust it to match even remotely evenly
B. I'm too anal and need to live with it, or
C. I have terrible luck with drum gear.

Any help or advice would be SUPER appreciated.
Thanks everyone,
-Jason
 
Okay, so I bought an Axis longboard double about 2 months ago, the pedal is pretty cool but for the life of me I can't seem to synch the primary pedal and the slave pedal. No matter what I do, the primary pedal always has more tension then the slave pedal. I've adjusted the spring tension, the footboard height, the beater angle, the little thingy on the side of the bushing that adjusts the footboard (not sure what it's called) and I still can't get the tensions right, the slave footboard is pretty loose compared to the primary pedal. I had this problem to some degree with my Iron Cobra but not like this. Can anyone help? I know it's one of those things about patience with gear but I'm starting to wonder if:
A. There is any way to adjust it to match even remotely evenly
B. I'm too anal and need to live with it, or
C. I have terrible luck with drum gear.

Any help or advice would be SUPER appreciated.
Thanks everyone,
-Jason

You say you have adjusted the tensions of the pedals? Have you done the test where you push both beaters into the head and then release at the same time and then adjust accordingly? A big mistake a lot of double pedal players make is tuning the tension on both pedals the same.

To get my old Iron Cobra to swing both together my primary pedal was set about medium tension but due to the weight from the connector bar, the tension of the slave pedal needed to be set quite tight to get it to bounce back evenly with the primary.

If this isn't working then i don't know what could be causing it. Especially since i don't own Axis. But if you haven't done already then adjust the spring tensions differently from each other not the same.
 
Haha...no it's not the difference between my left and right. I mean there's obviously a difference but not big enough to be causing the problems I am having.
I have tried the age old test and the primary beater keeps swinging for ten-fifteen seconds after the slave beater stops. Maybe I will just have to increase the tension on the slave pedal to make up for the difference and just live with it. I want to say that I have tried that before to a degree and it felt very strange, could be wrong though.

I've had this problem with 3 sets of pedals over the last 7 years of playing double bass and I'm wondering, does everybody have this problem and I'm just a completely inane percussionist who can't figure it out? I mean, how many hours to you have spend sitting on the floor by your bass drum adjusting pedal tensions? Like I said, maybe I'm just totally unlucky with gear...
 
Haha...no it's not the difference between my left and right. I mean there's obviously a difference but not big enough to be causing the problems I am having.
I have tried the age old test and the primary beater keeps swinging for ten-fifteen seconds after the slave beater stops. Maybe I will just have to increase the tension on the slave pedal to make up for the difference and just live with it. I want to say that I have tried that before to a degree and it felt very strange, could be wrong though.

I've had this problem with 3 sets of pedals over the last 7 years of playing double bass and I'm wondering, does everybody have this problem and I'm just a completely inane percussionist who can't figure it out? I mean, how many hours to you have spend sitting on the floor by your bass drum adjusting pedal tensions? Like I said, maybe I'm just totally unlucky with gear...

At the end of the day marra, there is no right or wrong way, even if it feels right but isn't technically correct, what does it matter? As long as it works for you who gives a monkeys?
 
This might have been said already....but if you really want to know what the left pedal should feel like, you can try this.

Set your primary pedal the way you like it (right?). Play the right pedal with your left foot, meaning literally shift your body position to play it. Not that you need to...but if YOU want to accustom your left foot to what your right foot knows as correct. than this would be the way.

It's awkward and I've never done it myself, but I imagine that would be the way to train your left foot to know what the left pedal should be adjusted to.

No matter how much you think you have them (*left and right pedals respectively) set the same, you wont. It really is a matter of get it close...and the fine tune your playing.

Just an idea. Again, never did it like that myself...but you could try it.
 
Maybe I will just have to increase the tension on the slave pedal to make up for the difference and just live with it. I want to say that I have tried that before to a degree and it felt very strange, could be wrong though.

So, your slave foot 'is' weaker than your main. In that case you should increase tension, its how you'll build strength. Max the spring out, then work down from there.
 
have you got your pedals handy? can you record a video of you simply 'pressing' down with your hand, i.e. tapping each pedal board down with each hand in quarters/8ths @ 100?

maybe it is just your left foot that is weak, maybe it isn't. without seeing the pedals i can't really say... i use axis longboards as my main pedals and the left pedal has always been fine. infact the left pedal is actually better than the right pedal. how peculiar.
 
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