Touring kit - wrap vs un-wrapped?

bojangleman

bojangleman

Platinum Member
alright guys. this prolly sounds stupid.

but, for a touring/gigging kit, what would be a better choice?

a non-wrapped kit with say a satin stain/gloss finish?
or
a wrapped kit?

now, these drums will be in all types of conditions. not like smoke and all that. but like extreme heat, and extreme cold.

now i know wraps warp. that's why I'm even considering the other.
wraps are supposed to kind've protect the drum also. but I'm not going to abuse them at all. they will be taken care of with all my might. only thing is the weather conditions.

they will be bagged the entire time I'm not playing them in the trailer. but the trailer isn't insulated and the bags aren't either.

what would you do?

Alex
 
Wraps are more forgiving and protect your investment. Get a shiny wrap that catches the light, and feel safer than with a lacquer finish.
 
my only worry was it will be in a trailer traveling and sitting.
and during the summer, it can get to 105 in Oklahoma, and down to 10 in the winter. lol

i just didnt know which way to go.

the gloss finish is less expensive, but if im going to get a kit, im going to do it right..

Alex
 
I wouldn't recommend extreme heat or cold for either finish. But for bumping around, the wrap will last longer. There are some great looking wraps out there today. what were you thinking about buying?
 
I think a high end kit with a wrap will be much tougher then a low end kit, The wrap is applied better. Either way you may get bubbling from heat.

I personally own multiple kit, I have both wrapped and lacquered. I use the wrapped kit for gigging for the reasons everybody is already saying.


I think if it were me I would go for a good mid level kit. You can get a great sounding all maple PDP or Gretsch Catalina kit for example. It will look and sound great and you wont freak out every time a sound-man bumps them. If you are touring with a 3-5 thousand dollar kit your stress level will be much higher.
 
bojangleman said:
my only worry was it will be in a trailer traveling and sitting.
and during the summer, it can get to 105 in Oklahoma, and down to 10 in the winter. lol

i just didnt know which way to go.
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I'd go with wraps - or if the budget allowed (how rarely it does), a non-wood drum like a Tempus or Trick. (I'd also include acrylics here but I don't know if they're as seemingly indestructible as the other two).

However - your extremes on temperature are a bit deceiving - they're not going to go from 10 degrees to 105 in one day; the rapid temperature changes are rough... sitting them in a trailer and letting them move with the weather as it naturally does isn't *great* but it's a far cry from a 95 degree shift (with the attendant changes in humidity that would also include). Most transit will allow some gradual warming/cooling of the drums; I'd just get them into the venue and not unbag for a bit if time allows to gradually warm up or cool down.
 
well, i said in the summer 105, and 10 in the winter. that's not deceiving. lol

and yeah, a Tempus or Trick is out of the picture.

i think i will go with a wrap. i really wanted a Silver Sparkle. lol. but i thought if i didnt need a wrap, i would go with just a gloss. but, wrap seems like the better choice.

Alex
 
bojangleman said:
well, i said in the summer 105, and 10 in the winter. that's not deceiving. lol

and yeah, a Tempus or Trick is out of the picture.

i think i will go with a wrap. i really wanted a Silver Sparkle. lol. but i thought if i didnt need a wrap, i would go with just a gloss. but, wrap seems like the better choice.

Alex
Click to expand...

Fiberglass and aluminum drums are impervious to any temperatures you throw at them. They also don't damage like laquer drums do. They also have much more power than maple drums.
 
bojangleman said:
of what im looking at.

the set im looking at is like $1650. or less.

and i think im just gonna go with wrap. looks and sounds like a better choice.

Alex
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Ok, for $1650 there are a ton of wrapped options. And like was mentioned: it's all fun and games until ONE thing slips, and your lacquer is gouged forever.
 
trkdrmr said:
it's all fun and games until ONE thing slips, and your lacquer is gouged forever.
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That reminds me. Last weekend, my band did a gig at a local bar. The stage was ridiculously small. After we were done, a second band came on. They got all their gear set up, and they were really crammed in on the small stage. The bass player took a short step back and tripped over something, and fell into the drum kit behind him. So, sometimes it can be your bandmates that slip.
 
Disco Stu said:
That reminds me. Last weekend, my band did a gig at a local bar. The stage was ridiculously small. After we were done, a second band came on. They got all their gear set up, and they were really crammed in on the small stage. The bass player took a short step back and tripped over something, and fell into the drum kit behind him. So, sometimes it can be your bandmates that slip.
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Yeah... and the sad part is, the drums always seem to be the epicenter of the destruction. It's like drums are a damage magnet. Somehow the kit pulls people into close orbit and they fall into it. Weird. How often does that happen to the keyboardist?
 
trkdrmr said:
Twice and triple the price of what? They are both roughly $3K for a 5-pc shellpack. They cost less than some DW's.

Look at the online prices and deduct 35%.
Click to expand...

These Blaemires won't end up costing me too much. Wrapped and unwrapped. ;-) Stay tuned.
 

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I have taken both wrapped and laq. kits on the road.

No matter what, you will have to re-tune everything at every show just because of the weather changes from state to state.
And no matter how well you treat your kit, little dings will happen. I always bring a red magic marker on the road to do touch-ups to the finish. It really works!!!

If a wrap is left in the heat too long it could start to separate from the shell. So for right now I stick to a gloss laq. I think they sound better anyway.
 
If you're planning to do a lot of touring/gigging you're better off saving your 1650 and putting it towards tempus or trick or some synthetic drum.

I have 4 shells on order from Tempus (2 rack a Floor and a bass drum) and when I visited his shop he demonstrated how absolutely indestructable the drums and finishes are. He took a drum stick and wacked it as hard as he could on the side of a bass drum, not even a mark. Then he took a stick and grinded it as hard as he could into the sparkle finish, not a mark on it. It's something to do with when he applies the finish...
And yeah temperature wont hurt fibreglass at all.

The thing is it would suck to invest 1650 for a touring kit and have the shells/finish get all mucked up after a few road trips. Tempus is costing me but I'm confident they will last 10x longer.
 
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