The Drum Modification Thread

This was said half in jest, but has me thinking... ;)


wraub said:
I'm thinking of painting a piccolo snare, does that count? :D
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someguy01 said:
USPS says I'll have my wrap samples today.
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The samples are nice quality and I've found a winner in the three. Finish change forthcoming. Maybe when I'm done I'll post a b/a pic.
 
Please post pics. :)

someguy01 said:
The samples are nice quality and I've found a winner in the three. Finish change forthcoming. Maybe when I'm done I'll post a b/a pic.
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Painting a steel snare drum- Should it help to damp the ring of the drum, or would it more likely dry it up too much and "kill" it?
 
wraub said:
Painting a steel snare drum- Should it help to damp the ring of the drum, or would it more likely dry it up too much and "kill" it?
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only if you put on a high solids paint or like 50 layers.
 
wraub said:
Painting a steel snare drum- Should it help to damp the ring of the drum, or would it more likely dry it up too much and "kill" it?
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I taped off the edges and spray painted the inside and outside of a Tama rockstar black chrome snare drum. It definitely tamed the ring but was still no where near 'dead'. It was noticably drier.
 
roncadillac said:
I taped off the edges and spray painted the inside and outside of a Tama rockstar black chrome snare drum. It definitely tamed the ring but was still no where near 'dead'. It was noticably drier.
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I would think that some of the dryness was a result of painting the interior of the shell, that would certainly effect rebounding sound waves.
 
someguy01 said:
I would think that some of the dryness was a result of painting the interior of the shell, that would certainly effect rebounding sound waves.
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I also used a matte metallic finish which emphasized your above point even further. At a different point a I bought a pork pie black matte steel snare drum which features a rough black matte powder coating on both the inside and outside of the shell. That drum was super super sweet. It had a nice depth of tone and 'presence' that steel drums have with an added warmth and dryness that they typically don't. Combined with thick 2.3mm hoops and the heavy duty pork pie hourglass lugs... It was as sensitive as it was aggressive. Great drum.
 
I was thinking of doing exactly this... The drum in question is a 13x3 steel piccolo, the pop is good but the ring is a little much for me. Drier would be good, I'd think.

I may do this. :)


roncadillac said:
I taped off the edges and spray painted the inside and outside of a Tama rockstar black chrome snare drum. It definitely tamed the ring but was still no where near 'dead'. It was noticably drier.
Click to expand...
 
wraub said:
I was thinking of doing exactly this... The drum in question is a 13x3 steel piccolo, the pop is good but the ring is a little much for me. Drier would be good, I'd think.

I may do this. :)
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Not to discourage a fun project but what about a change in heads? If you like a single ply coated try something like the UV1 as it's a bit darker then a g1 or amb, or try a g12 as it's a touch thicker. Another option is a ps3 or genera dry, they can be tuned pretty high and still have some life to them.

A less permanent solution is to cut strips of moleskin and fix them inside the shell to break up/absorb overtones.
 
It has an Ebony Weatherking batter on it atm and a stock reso... I know it may enjoy new heads, and some are likely to happen soon (need new BD heads, too), but I'm also kinda bored with the chrome...
Regardless, paint probably won't happen right away, I have a lot of other things I need to get done first.


roncadillac said:
Not to discourage a fun project but what about a change in heads? If you like a single ply coated try something like the UV1 as it's a bit darker then a g1 or amb, or try a g12 as it's a touch thicker. Another option is a ps3 or genera dry, they can be tuned pretty high and still have some life to them.

A less permanent solution is to cut strips of moleskin and fix them inside the shell to break up/absorb overtones.
Click to expand...
 
For anyone that has done resto work on a Premier kit: What size is the air vent and how did you go about removing/replacing it since it goes through the "P" on the badge?
I am looking to wrap my kit in the near future and this is the only thing that has me slightly perplexed. I could just wrap around it, but that would make me insane within a few weeks.
 
someguy01 said:
For anyone that has done resto work on a Premier kit: What size is the air vent and how did you go about removing/replacing it since it goes through the "P" on the badge?
I am looking to wrap my kit in the near future and this is the only thing that has me slightly perplexed. I could just wrap around it, but that would make me insane within a few weeks.
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No help with that, sorry. I'm sure someone will come along with some tips. All of my 'go-to' processes for stubborn air vent grommets would surely damage the surrounding badge.

Worst case scenario you could drill through the grommet with a bit of the same diameter, punch the hole through the new wrap, and glue the badge back on in the same spot.
 
someguy01 said:
For anyone that has done resto work on a Premier kit: What size is the air vent and how did you go about removing/replacing it since it goes through the "P" on the badge?
I am looking to wrap my kit in the near future and this is the only thing that has me slightly perplexed. I could just wrap around it, but that would make me insane within a few weeks.
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This might help in getting them out. I'm not sure of the size though.

 
someguy01 said:
For anyone that has done resto work on a Premier kit: What size is the air vent and how did you go about removing/replacing it since it goes through the "P" on the badge?
I am looking to wrap my kit in the near future and this is the only thing that has me slightly perplexed. I could just wrap around it, but that would make me insane within a few weeks.
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I think the method would work with that tool and bit, but I would do it from the inside. Any slippage and you ruin something
 
GruntersDad said:
I think the method would work with that tool and bit, but I would do it from the inside. Any slippage and you ruin something
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He does do it from the inside, and shows how to do it with a rasp also. It also covers 2 other type of vent holes. It was much more informative than I expected.
 
someguy01 said:
For anyone that has done resto work on a Premier kit: What size is the air vent and how did you go about removing/replacing it since it goes through the "P" on the badge?
I am looking to wrap my kit in the near future and this is the only thing that has me slightly perplexed. I could just wrap around it, but that would make me insane within a few weeks.
Click to expand...

Well, I could NOT find any vent/grommets ANYWHERE that were the same size. So, I drilled out the P just a hair. I bought 3/8" vents--the press in kind from drumfactorydirect.com And I also used this method.



Yes, I used a hammer inside my drum shells! Holy crap, I was just waiting for something to crack. I did a better job than the dude in the video.

Finally Finished: Vintage Premier '54 with mods

So, I will preface this thread by saying, this kit started as a classic 20/12/14, with a 14x4 piccolo. At the age of 9 or 10, my buddy talked his parents into adding another tom (a 13" yamaha stage custom). This modification happened around 1980, so let's leave it there, 40 years ago. . .Yes...
www.drummerworld.com
 
Old Dog new Cans said:
Well, I could NOT find any vent/grommets ANYWHERE that were the same size. So, I drilled out the P just a hair. I bought 3/8" vents--the press in kind from drumfactorydirect.com And I also used this method.



Yes, I used a hammer inside my drum shells! Holy crap, I was just waiting for something to crack. I did a better job than the dude in the video.

Finally Finished: Vintage Premier '54 with mods

So, I will preface this thread by saying, this kit started as a classic 20/12/14, with a 14x4 piccolo. At the age of 9 or 10, my buddy talked his parents into adding another tom (a 13" yamaha stage custom). This modification happened around 1980, so let's leave it there, 40 years ago. . .Yes...
www.drummerworld.com
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Thank you for this!
And thanks to the rest of you for all the other great tips!
 
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