Opinion - would you cover thermagloss maple?

Bo Eder

Bo Eder

Platinum Member
I'm in need of opinions (again). As you know I have those nice thermagloss Ludwigs, and some of the finish is aging and crackling, and the inner debate of covering them with red sparkle is beginning (again).

On the practical side, if done, the drums will be better sealed and protected from any kind of sun abuse - they'll probably last another 30-40 years too. On the impractical side, I wonder if the wrap will impeded the tone I have now? If done correctly, it shouldn't, but you never know until it's done. I have the sizes I like - I'm wondering if I should now go for the color I've always wanted.

If I were to do this, would I strip the thermagloss off or give it a light sanding before having the shells professionally recovered? Crazy idea?
 
I think I would poll the enormous group of gorgeous young ladies that probably surround when you play and make them happy first then worry about us/yourself.

Personally I cant vote for adding a wrap to any kit especially one as classic as yours. Is it really that bad? Seems like you gig with it and a couple finish issues might make it easier to be less worried about it.
 
Hey man, they're your drums. I say do what makes you happy. You just have to ask yourself if the want to do this will outweigh any regrets you might have. If they outweigh the possible regret, do it. Ludwig made billions of drums, the world can sacrifice one kit being non original.

Or you could just get a red sparkle kit.
 
I have an idea.

You have 2 kits, right? Retire the ludwig for now and take the smallest drum, and record it with a flat eq for comparison purposes later. Have the smallest drum covered. Don't sand the finish, just attach it with double sided tape so that it can be removed later if required. Record the drum with the same tuning in the same room with the same gear. Compare.

I think it's the only way if sound is a primary consideration. If looks are primary, just do it anyway. In any case, I wouldn't remove any of the original finish unless I was going to sand and reseal the shells themselves; using the double sided tape method, it's just not necessary.

Whatever you do, the drums will still be awesome! And I do love a glitter finish.
 
I would absolutely do that...only mine would be green sparkle.
Like Uncle Larry says, do what makes you happy. It's not like it's an outrageous idea, and if done right I don''t even think you'll impede their worth.
Go for it.

There were many detractors when I was thinking about cutting down my 22 x18 MCAN bass drum to a 22 x 14 - not one person thought I should ....but I did it anyway and I'm thrilled with the results. It went from a drum I hated to being my favorite bass drum.

Neal
 
I was under the impression that the Thermagloss was Ludwig's name for the natural finished maple drums. Of course I've never researched the subject. I love a natural finish on drums. If you're concerned about the finish you could get them sanded and refinished with laquer or polyurethane by a professional cabinetmaker. I'm not a woodworking expert, so others probably have different ideas. I just think the natural finish is much more appealing than a red sparkle. YMMV.
 
I would never cover a natural maple finish with a red sparkle.

Depending on how bad the finish is/was, I would look at all the angles though, even a wrap that I liked....loan me the drums for a year or two and I'll tell you how I feel about it then :)
 
the thermo gloss finish is very sought after with entire kits. That being said, as long as you don't glue the wrap I don't see any harm. Get the stuff from Jammin Sam. It's a bit thicker, and takes better to the tape method as a result. And, the 6 ply shells aren't affected by wrap at all sound wise. They're so thick, that it really doesn't matter what you put on the outside. My 6 ply kit has the wrap all bubbled, and hanging off in spots, yet they are still very resonant. My 16" floor tom is the most resonant one I've ever heard without having to use the floating feet, and this is with bubbled up wrap, and the seam coming up.
 
There is no way I can answer this. thermo gloss maple and red sparkle are my two favorite colors. :)


I have two CM kits.One is red sparkle and one cherry stained. I don't hear a big difference in tone.
 
With the wrap glued to the shell, you might only notice a slight change in resonance, but the actual "sound" isn't going to be that much different. Heads will do that anyway, so I don't see the big deal. The drums are larger, so I think any change would be minimal.

I have Red Sparkle, and I love it.
I went back and forth on colors for almost a year before I settled on RS.
I was at a gig, and had already got my stuff in order so I was sitting & reading in the seats. I looked up as a guy on stage pulled out a RS bass drum from a case and I said "that's it!"

That said, I saw the thread and went "Noooooo!!" haha! I love Thermogloss, but, I agree, it doesn't really have the impact of a color.

Good luck deciding!!
 
Wow, that's a tough one Bo. Those are two of my favorite Ludwig finishes. How do heads fit on them now? Just be careful that heads won't be too tight, if you decide to wrap them. If I was to vote on this, I would say no to wrap, but that's just me.
 
Do you really need to refinish them to feel comfortable gigging the drums? If the answer is definitely yes, then I'd say go for the wrap, because I doubt that would decrease value no more than refinishing the clear.

Not a collector, so I don't know, but that is what I would do.
 
I once had Mapex Saturn Pro drums that did not match: two were pink, and one was blue-green. They had lacquer finishes, so I just put Jammin' Sam's wrap over the original finish. The sound changed only the slightest bit, maybe a bit more focused sounding. I was never sorry at all about doing it. Peace and goodwill.
 
No.

The thought of covering up a nice wood grain finish makes me twitch.

Unless the shells were dinged up and and dented beyond repair, I wouldn't do it.
 
larryace said:
Hey man, they're your drums. I say do what makes you happy.
Click to expand...

+1. The 13 and 16 aren't factory finished, anyways. They were re-finished to match the Thermogloss 26 and 18 (I think I got that right). And 6 ply really doesn't have the "collectability" factor, of say, a 3 ply kit. No way would I wrap a Thermogloss 3 ply. But 6 ply .... good workhorse drums. Great sounding drums, but more wiggle room when it comes to modification.​
Now me, no, I wouldn't ...... but that's simply because I love the blonde drums. You do what you want.​
 
Bo Eder said:
I'm in need of opinions (again). As you know I have those nice thermagloss Ludwigs, and some of the finish is aging and crackling, and the inner debate of covering them with red sparkle is beginning (again).

On the practical side, if done, the drums will be better sealed and protected from any kind of sun abuse - they'll probably last another 30-40 years too. On the impractical side, I wonder if the wrap will impeded the tone I have now? If done correctly, it shouldn't, but you never know until it's done. I have the sizes I like - I'm wondering if I should now go for the color I've always wanted.

If I were to do this, would I strip the thermagloss off or give it a light sanding before having the shells professionally recovered? Crazy idea?
Click to expand...

I have re-covered over 100 different sets. I have a complete shop and all the fancy tools to go with it. I have not really been able to tell the difference between a laminated shell or a lacquered shell IMO. If you want to do red sparkle, I would also look at a red glass glitter. Stunning and takes to the lights much better than plain sparkle. Let me know if you want to go that route and I could recover them for you. I can send photos of other kits I have done in the past if you would like to see the quality of the work.
 
On 6 ply shells of that thickness, unless the wrap is especially thick, the difference will be fairly small. Expect a slightly more focussed sound/shorter voice. I'm not talking head sustain here, I'm talking about the bit that really matters. I must emphasise again - SLIGHT!

Personally, rather than rework a perfectly good kit, if you really want the red glitter aesthetic, I'd go buy one. It's about time you bought another kit anyhow ;)
 
keep it simple said:
On 6 ply shells of that thickness, unless the wrap is especially thick, the difference will be fairly small. Expect a slightly more focussed sound/shorter voice. I'm not talking head sustain here, I'm talking about the bit that really matters. I must emphasise again - SLIGHT!

Personally, rather than rework a perfectly good kit, if you really want the red glitter aesthetic, I'd go buy one. It's about time you bought another kit anyhow ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the instigation, Andy.
 
Now a red sparkle Ludwig kit on the rooftop of Apple in January 1969 woulda been ludicrous (though their Let It Be album label was a red apple, not green...)

Leave em as is and buy a red sparkle. Or get your red tamas back.
 
Being that they were refinished already,the collectable value is a ship that has already sailed.So no problem there.

If they were original,I would say not a chance that I would agree with recovering a vintage drum kit..To me that's sacrilage.The only exception to me would be orphans,or drums too beat up tp be functional.

Thermogloss maple is still one of the most desireable finishes by Ludwig and kits in that finish will bring higher resale value that a kit wrapped in red sparkle,although a green sparkle wrap will also bring higher resale vale.

Why?One word B O N H A M

If you've decided to rewrap,make sure it's a sparkle as oppose to a glass glitter wrap.Glass glitter wraps are much thicker and will more times than not,in a rewapp situation ,result in very tight fitting heads,if the'll fit at all.

There was a thread on another drum forum the other day about this very thing.The drums were factory wrapped Gretsch in glass glitter.

The op had a very hard time getting the heads off and the wrap had actually began to wrinkle and pull apart at the seams.

Remember,these are American made drums and will likely be a little oversized,so measure carefully.

Steve B
 
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