drumdevil9
Platinum Member
A lot of us want to keep our gigging gear as light as possible because, you know, we have to carry it ourselves. I often get to the gig first which means I have to bring in my stuff by myself unlike the old days where it was a team effort out of a van. Although that sucked too but anyway...
Basically I wanted to get my gear as light as possible while still using a standard "real" drumkit. So no nesting, super shallow drums or overly small sizes. I also wanted my hardware bag to be easy to handle, not too heavy and still hold everything I needed in ONE bag. It's actually possible.
First the drums. I happen to own some pretty light drums. I have 2 Ludwig Club Date SE shell packs. These drums are light because they don't have a lot of heavy hardware attached to them. I also have a Catalina Club Jazz which is also light compared to USA Gretsch which are pretty heavy. My Brooklyn 18" weighs more than my Club Date 22". I still use the the Brooklyn but the Ludwigs are easier to handle so I use them more often.
But the hardware is usually the thing that is the biggest pain. In order to keep the bag light you have to keep hardware to a minimum and as light as possible. That's easier than ever with all the light options out there now. I also like to have the tom mounted on the bass drum and the floor tom on legs. This means cymbal stands and holders can be light duty 'cause they're not holding up drums as well. I have 2 DW Ultralight cymbal stands, an entry level Pearl hi-hat, no-name brand snare stand that's pretty light and a medium duty Gibraltar bike seat throne. My Ludwigs have a cymbal holder on the bass drum so I often just have that and 1 UL stand. But this will depend on if I'm using a second crash or not. Packing a second UL stand makes a negligable difference.
My bag is an inexpensive "Athletic Works" gym bag bought at Walmart for around $20. I used the first one I bought for years and I'm on my second one now. It has wheels on one end so I can pull it easily while carrying drums/cymbals with shoulder straps. It holds everything including all stands, holders, accessories and carpet and is surprisingly light. I can easily lift it to put in the trunk. I can drag it up stairs pretty easily too which is something I have to deal with. One reason why a cart is out of the question.
I can load in this kit in 2 trips from the car. That's not bad for a full-size 4-piece kit.
Would love to see how other people are dealing with weight hauling issues. Show me your clever solutions to the downside of this instrument that we love.
Basically I wanted to get my gear as light as possible while still using a standard "real" drumkit. So no nesting, super shallow drums or overly small sizes. I also wanted my hardware bag to be easy to handle, not too heavy and still hold everything I needed in ONE bag. It's actually possible.
First the drums. I happen to own some pretty light drums. I have 2 Ludwig Club Date SE shell packs. These drums are light because they don't have a lot of heavy hardware attached to them. I also have a Catalina Club Jazz which is also light compared to USA Gretsch which are pretty heavy. My Brooklyn 18" weighs more than my Club Date 22". I still use the the Brooklyn but the Ludwigs are easier to handle so I use them more often.
But the hardware is usually the thing that is the biggest pain. In order to keep the bag light you have to keep hardware to a minimum and as light as possible. That's easier than ever with all the light options out there now. I also like to have the tom mounted on the bass drum and the floor tom on legs. This means cymbal stands and holders can be light duty 'cause they're not holding up drums as well. I have 2 DW Ultralight cymbal stands, an entry level Pearl hi-hat, no-name brand snare stand that's pretty light and a medium duty Gibraltar bike seat throne. My Ludwigs have a cymbal holder on the bass drum so I often just have that and 1 UL stand. But this will depend on if I'm using a second crash or not. Packing a second UL stand makes a negligable difference.
My bag is an inexpensive "Athletic Works" gym bag bought at Walmart for around $20. I used the first one I bought for years and I'm on my second one now. It has wheels on one end so I can pull it easily while carrying drums/cymbals with shoulder straps. It holds everything including all stands, holders, accessories and carpet and is surprisingly light. I can easily lift it to put in the trunk. I can drag it up stairs pretty easily too which is something I have to deal with. One reason why a cart is out of the question.
I can load in this kit in 2 trips from the car. That's not bad for a full-size 4-piece kit.
Would love to see how other people are dealing with weight hauling issues. Show me your clever solutions to the downside of this instrument that we love.