My testament to nail polish on stick tips

stasz

Platinum Member
A little while back we had a thread about strengthening wooden stick tips to keep them from chipping. One solution that made sense to me was coating the tips with nail polish, so I tried it out. I took several pairs of sticks I was using and coated their tips with nail polish. I wasn't very scientific or anything, no "control" non-coated stick or anything but I've been very pleased with the results.

I got these sticks earlier this year and coated them when I bought them, two coats of polish. The pair of sticks with the blue tips are still being used and are in pretty good condition. At this point I would have expected some chips in the tips but there are 0. The tips are as smooth as when I bought them. Like everyone says I'm not a very hard hitter most of the time, but that's not to say I don't give these sticks a beating. The lone stick shown was bought a little earlier and has seen more use and has finally snapped (I think from playing a lot of rimshots) but there are also 0 chips in this tip. I've never before snapped a stick that didn't have any chips in the tip. Sometimes I even retire sticks before they snap simply because the tips are too chipped to sound good.

Now everyone is a little different and you may not find the same results with different sticks, playing styles, cymbals, drumheads or hair color, but in my experience, coating wooden stick tips with nail polish is a great idea. Now every pair I pick up gets the salon treatment.

P.S. I also have not had any problems with the coating affecting my drum kit i.e. marks, gumming up cymbals etc.

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Hey man thanks for doing all that, it benefits all of us here. Question, did the nail polish change the sound on the cymbal at all?
 
Hey man thanks for doing all that, it benefits all of us here. Question, did the nail polish change the sound on the cymbal at all?

I knew I forgot something. I didn't notice any change in sound on my cymbals from the coating, although YMMV I wouldn't worry about it.
 
I knew I forgot something. I didn't notice any change in sound on my cymbals from the coating, although YMMV I wouldn't worry about it.

I was going to say - I would be more worried about marking my cymbals? Did you see any marks or anything like that on yours? I use Meinl Byzance Jazz cymbals with a traditional finish, and I'd be worried about marking them.

But thanks for doing that! Might give it a go!
 
I could be wrong, but isnt there clear nail polish? If so that would be a good way to get around marking up your cymbals
 
I was going to say - I would be more worried about marking my cymbals? Did you see any marks or anything like that on yours? I use Meinl Byzance Jazz cymbals with a traditional finish, and I'd be worried about marking them.

But thanks for doing that! Might give it a go!

I didn't notice any marks on my cymbals from the coating. I have both traditional and brilliant finish cymbals and neither were marked up by the polish.

I could be wrong, but isnt there clear nail polish? If so that would be a good way to get around marking up your cymbals

My sister didn't have any clear, but I bought some clear nail polish (making sure to explain it was for my drumsticks) and used it on some of the pairs. You can see the snapped stick's tip is coated with clear nail polish.
 
I didn't notice any marks on my cymbals from the coating. I have both traditional and brilliant finish cymbals and neither were marked up by the polish.



My sister didn't have any clear, but I bought some clear nail polish (making sure to explain it was for my drumsticks) and used it on some of the pairs. You can see the snapped stick's tip is coated with clear nail polish.
 
I
A little while back we had a thread about strengthening wooden stick tips to keep them from chipping. One solution that made sense to me was coating the tips with nail polish, so I tried it out. I took several pairs of sticks I was using and coated their tips with nail polish. I wasn't very scientific or anything, no "control" non-coated stick or anything but I've been very pleased with the results.

I got these sticks earlier this year and coated them when I bought them, two coats of polish. The pair of sticks with the blue tips are still being used and are in pretty good condition. At this point I would have expected some chips in the tips but there are 0. The tips are as smooth as when I bought them. Like everyone says I'm not a very hard hitter most of the time, but that's not to say I don't give these sticks a beating. The lone stick shown was bought a little earlier and has seen more use and has finally snapped (I think from playing a lot of rimshots) but there are also 0 chips in this tip. I've never before snapped a stick that didn't have any chips in the tip. Sometimes I even retire sticks before they snap simply because the tips are too chipped to sound good.

Now everyone is a little different and you may not find the same results with different sticks, playing styles, cymbals, drumheads or hair color, but in my experience, coating wooden stick tips with nail polish is a great idea. Now every pair I pick up gets the salon treatment.

P.S. I also have not had any problems with the coating affecting my drum kit i.e. marks, gumming up cymbals etc.

IMG_0201.jpg


IMG_0204.jpg


IMG_0206.jpg


IMG_0207-1.jpg


IMG_0208-1.jpg


IMG_0210-1.jpg
I turn sticks for local drummers, have used the nail polish on tips, have also dipped them in clear epoxy, and have also had really good luck soaking the tips over night in epoxy wood hardener by minwax (wipe the finish off of the tip with some lacquer thinner to bare the wood if you use the wood hardener). But, you’re right it definitely extends the life of the tip.
 
Do you guys go through A LOT of sticks? I feel, like I'd rather go through sticks more often than possible denting, warping a cymbal. But I get it. It gets to be a hassle if you break sticks a lot.
 
Coating the tips in nail polish was exactly what guys did back in the 50's. That's, in fact, how Joe Calato came up with the invention of the nylon tip.
His wife got sick of him using up all her good polish, lol. Hear him tell the story 100 times.
 
I

I turn sticks for local drummers, have used the nail polish on tips, have also dipped them in clear epoxy, and have also had really good luck soaking the tips over night in epoxy wood hardener by minwax (wipe the finish off of the tip with some lacquer thinner to bare the wood if you use the wood hardener). But, you’re right it definitely extends the life of the tip.
Does the epoxy wood hardener work better than the nail polish?

Thanks,

Jeff
 
Man all the blue nail polish is gone except in crevice-how long did it last? Did it flake off? Did you sand them some with fine grit so nail polish could penetrate some and attach better-a real fine grit. I wonder if you soaked them in liquid graphene then sealed them would it make them super hard?
 
I am SO thinking about covering one pair’s tips with hot pink. I wonder what the pastor would say?
 
I used to do this when I did a non nylon tip wave. Inevitably, I find my way back to nylon tips and the same stick after experimenting with others. [Regal Tip Jazz]
 
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