KARLSBALLS
Member
Hello all, I have a custom snare that has a small crack in the outer veneer. There is no lacquer on the outside just stained. Any advice on how to repair this crack? Thank you!
The Drum Modification Thread
- Thread starter NUTHA JASON
- Start date
gdmoore28
Gold Member
I'll bet that the mounting/placement problem is originating in that tom holder design, isn't it? Just judging from your picture, it seems that there is a lot of metal surrounding those ball mounts and restricting the movement a bit. Are you having problems getting the toms to angle downward enough?
GeeDeeEmm
KARLSBALLS
Member
I reassembled it after many coats of Howard’s feed and wax to the inside and out. Here is the finished product~~
this is 7”x12” possible Montineri snare, but not confirmed as I bought it off a widow on eBay many many years ago.
johnjssmith
Junior Member
Hi everyone, I'm looking for some guidance on metal snares!
Basically, I like the brushed metal look on snare shells more than shiny black nickel on, say, Black Beauties, so I'm contemplating some brushing with fine grit sandpaper on the external surface of a beaded NOB snare.
I imagine the sound would be virtually unchanged, or possibly a tiny bit more on the dry side, which wouldn't be a problem at all, but I'm not sure whether sanding the external brass coating will remove enough material to reveal the brass underneath, which I would definitely rather avoid.
Do you know whether brushing a nickel finish with sandpaper would be feasible, is there any important thing I should be thinking about... ?
Basically, I like the brushed metal look on snare shells more than shiny black nickel on, say, Black Beauties, so I'm contemplating some brushing with fine grit sandpaper on the external surface of a beaded NOB snare.
I imagine the sound would be virtually unchanged, or possibly a tiny bit more on the dry side, which wouldn't be a problem at all, but I'm not sure whether sanding the external brass coating will remove enough material to reveal the brass underneath, which I would definitely rather avoid.
Do you know whether brushing a nickel finish with sandpaper would be feasible, is there any important thing I should be thinking about... ?
gdmoore28
Gold Member
Sandpaper is probably going to be far too aggressive. Try various grits of Scotch Bright pads instead, starting with a fine grit first. #0000 steel wool would be another consideration, but it's messy and less consistent than Scotch Bright. Go slow and cautious until you get a feel for what you are doing.
GeeDeeEmm
You could try some of the rougher grades of steel wool. '0000' grade works fine for cleaning up chrome, but any grade other than that ('000', '00' or '0') will definitely "haze" the surface a bit.
Wetsand that dude with like some 800 grit (or finer) finishing sandpaper. Should be fine enough to lightly scratch the surface without deep scratching the nickel.
If you could put the shell on a motorized turntable, it would be easier to make straight lines with than trying to sand and turn the drum by hand.
roncadillac
Platinum Member
I would lightly sand blast it. Auto body shops may do it for a small fee or if you have a friend/family member who has a garage, ask them.
gdmoore28
Gold Member
Good idea, but I'd have them use bead blasting or shell media. Sand, even fine sand, will eat FAST.
GeeDeeEmm
All of the above. with the full mount there is the ball movement, the vertical movement, and the rotation on the L rod. With the small mount, the mount is too close to the ball to move the tom sufficiently for 3 dimensional movement.
Caseyobrien3
New Member
Hey all, looking to modify my snare drum. It’s a mapex cherry bomb 13”. The lugs look really bland (and now two models old). I love the tone but I want new mapex lugs to make it look good but also match because I’m a perfectionist. I can find Ludwig style tube lugs for a steep price on reverb and drum factory direct but no mapex lugs. Does anybody have any tips on where to find a larger selection of lugs that don’t cost $12 each? I’m open to other styles besides these but I don’t want distinctly brand specific on my mapex drum (i.e. dw circular lugs on my mapex drum wouldn’t fly). Attached are the lug styles I’m looking for.
Thanks for your help!
Thanks for your help!
Old Dog new Cans
Senior Member
Tube lugs are simply pricey. Unless you get cheap Chinese knock-offs on Ebay. I don't think I've seen anyone online with lugs similar to the ones below. I do a lot of searching, I do a decent amount of drum refurbishing.
Maybe finding a damaged Mapex drum with all the hardware you need???
I wish I could help more.
Caseyobrien3
New Member
Thank you! After a quick eBay search, I found a mapex floor tom marked as nonfunctional for only $30. It has the lugs I want but they’re painted black. How difficult would it be to strip the paint and chrome them? Also, will I run into any tension differences because the lugs are on a floor tom not a snare? I’m pretty sure they’re the same but just want to double check.
By painted black do you mean someone painted chrome lugs black, or it's the black factory plating on the lug? That's going to make a huge difference in how easy it is to remove.
roncadillac
Platinum Member
I was going to say the same thing. Previous owner painted themselves (probably spray paint), pretty easy actually. Factory painted/powder coated/etc, don't even bother.
Caseyobrien3
New Member
It’s factory. That’s really unfortunate. You’re sure paint thinners and chemicals don’t work?
roncadillac
Platinum Member
It's not impossible but very difficult. I honestly don't know much about the specifics beyond it's going to be difficult to remove the visual color without marring the surface.
Yes. That stuff is going to be hard coated somehow (baked, powder coated). Maybe a seriously aggressive wire wheel on a bench grinder could get it off. You aren't gonna dissolve it. Its gonna require force.
Larry
"Uncle Larry"
I modded Yolanda and her little sister Yolandette to have tom trees. They were both virgin BD's originally.
I was very lucky that the Mapex tom tree assembly I used, which uses the top 4 lugs of the bass drum as the support for the tom tree, had the same hole spacing as the Guru lugs, so it's totally reversible.
Except the Mapex tom tree thing was made for a 22 x 18 and I had a 22 x 16 bass drum. I had to use my local welder and get the support rods that go between the lugs shortened and re-welded. I did that because I prefer a tom tree to a VBD for ease of setup. After that, in summer 2017, Yolanda became my gig set.
I was very lucky that the Mapex tom tree assembly I used, which uses the top 4 lugs of the bass drum as the support for the tom tree, had the same hole spacing as the Guru lugs, so it's totally reversible.
Except the Mapex tom tree thing was made for a 22 x 18 and I had a 22 x 16 bass drum. I had to use my local welder and get the support rods that go between the lugs shortened and re-welded. I did that because I prefer a tom tree to a VBD for ease of setup. After that, in summer 2017, Yolanda became my gig set.
I'm gonna call the two kits together the Yo-Yo's. It's like seeing an image of twin super models.