BAD left-hand habit

[SomeBadDrummer]

Ah, but I'm used to working drums with no bounce (my e-kit) - it's controlling the bounce of a real drum that my left hand is struggling with.

Got it. Earlier in this thread @C.M. Jones mentioned your grip. This is the key, you have trained yourself to grip the sticks too tightly and simply need to loosen up. Try a few different sizes of sticks and experiment with where you hold them.
Being a rocker I hold sticks really close to the end most of the time, but if I am playing something requiring more finesse or softer I’ll choke up some.

But I also subconsciously am continuously adjusting my grips while playing, basically ‘rolling’ the sticks in each hand. Your grip should be so loose that you are doing the same thing. Almost to the point of dropping them. Relax.

 

[GetAgrippa]

You must be use to buying the stick in the head-hence the dribble-just like with an unported kick if you bury the beater. Still do as I suggest-do towel on drum and you should have no problem-then take off towel and "feel" the difference paying attention to your stroke. I bet you are burying the stick instead of natural rebound off head. I play a ported kick and bury the beater-cause I'm lazy. Now when I played at church the kick was not ported and I'd initially get dribble. I usually play heel up a good bit so I'd play heel down and make sure my beater came off the head. Once I got the feel I could go back to heel up just fine. It's becoming conscious of the changes and adapting. Whenever I play my kit I can play it blindfolded but put me on someone else's kit I have to watch myself I don't go for my set up and end up hitting air LOL. I'd practice just a single stroke with your left hand and then move to doubles and triplets. It will give your left hand independence too.

 

[Over50drumguy]

This was my method until I found a cheap set of mutes. The mutes do the same thing as cotton sheets- make you work harder for the same results... and when you remove the mutes/sheets everything is so much ‘easier’.

Sounds similar to swinging two or three bats before getting up the plate

 

[BillBachman]

Work on rebounding free strokes! There's good reason that that's step #1 on the drumworkout.com "Extreme Hands Makeover." Start by getting out of your own way and letting the stick flow.