Ludwigs up and running

   Couldn't wait any longer, so Saturday, I put all the hardware on and set them up in the living room. They look a little strange, what with the single heads and the toms not quite matching in color, not to mention the mahogany bass drum. But they're my orphans and each piece has it's own personality and character, kinda like my kids.

   Sunday morning I took off the heads and re-did the bearing edges. I'm trying two-ply clear Remos I had, but they need to be tuned pretty tight to get the wrinkles out. Maybe some single ply with rings at the edges would work. So I tuned them up and fooled around for awhile. Phoebe liked the bass drum right away, nice doo sound with just some funky old heads I had with a felt strip on the batter head. Very cool drum, heavier than the 20 inch slingy, more weight and punch in the sound. I wanted to play funk and jazz. The mounted tom is choked by it's attachment to the B.D. It should be on a snare stand. Too bad because it looks good up there. Maybe I can pad out the holder some how. The 16 floor tom has a big sound, kind of tinny, but ok. I'll probably get used to the single head sound after awhile. Here's some photos.

   

La Familia

From a Kent floor tom

Slingy 12 tom sans wrap with Japanese lugs

reddish stain on mahogany, watch out ,those lugs are sharp!

same as the first pic, leather gaskets, Kent lugs.

Vaughncraft birdseye maple shell. Crazy overtones, vintage ludwig nob hoops.

Funk it up in every way, cheapo CB 13 tom shell, generic throw, Kent lugs.

Kent ft shell with re-rings, Pearl hardware.

Dude, get a tripod. Painted in acrylics.

First, " successful" stave build, maple with 60's Slingerland lugs. 3/4" thick!

1920's Ludwig and Ludwig NOB hardware, re-finished.

Fake it Monkey Part 2, Acrolite with diecast batter hoop.

Ah, learning to fade stain on Ludwig concert tom, maple with paint removed.

16 floor tom the same, you gotta see the french polish in the flesh, love it.

Greatest Yard Sale Find award goes to 1962 Pioneer, NOB, all original in case with stand. Painted white, hiding this beautiful maple veneer. Loves brushes.

70's Pearl 14" tom shell cut down. Modern Pearl student snare hardware, ten lugs, tuned up, plays ska.

"Azurite" fantasy painted finish with spar varnish over, leather gaskets, white and blue speckled inside with fancy hex head machine screws etc.

7 x 14 Keller shell, 8 ply, nodal point lug placement, Dunnett throw.

Gold leaf fish swimming in a blue green maple sea.

13" snare from Pearl tom shell, taye style throw which I really like.

French polish on 1967 Ludwig 20" bass. I found vestiges of champagne sparkle wrap under the two layers of paint. A friend of a friend had a set of Ludwigs, with that wrap, in high school. I'm getting closer.

Wonder if Sam's drummer played one of these. 22" Slingerland in white marine pearl.

Here are some snares and the projects I'm working on.

Freaks

    I've decided that the world needs to know about my obsession with creating drum freaks (custom drums made from mixed sources). Who knows, maybe this will help with World Peace.
   Currently I've got a Ludwig set in the pipeline with a Slingerland bass drum not far behind. The Ludwigs were given to me by my buddy Max. He got them years ago for mowing someone's lawn. They were painted black at the time. He improved them by spray painting bright yellow. I took off all the hardware and stripped the shells. The toms, 12 and 16 concert style, are maple/poplar/maple from the early 70's, while the 20 inch bass drum is mahogany/poplar/mahogany from 1967. I've stained the toms a yellow to orange to green fade. Over this I'm french polishing which gives a wonderful texture with depth and warm sheen. The bass drum I left natural mahogany with french polish. Anthony at Village Drum sold me a couple of old wood hoops which got stripped and stained orange. Don't know what I'll do with the grooves in the hoops yet, maybe veneer or wrap. I could paint a design in the grooves. I like adding leather gaskets under the lugs, apologies to the purists. The hardware is a mixed bag of Ludwig lugs, Gretsch t-rods and claws and import tom leg supports.
   For ten bucks, I bought a 22 inch 70's Slingerland bass drum with WMP wrap shell. Used to belong to the Providence school system. The wrap is in good enough shape to use. I've got some Japanese copys of Slingerland lugs which fit the hole pattern and a chrome hoop with WMP inlay. Got to find some claws that will work with the old school t-rods I already have. A tom mount, some spurs and a second hoop will get it up and running. Heads are a problem because of the cost but I'll scrimp and save.

   In the band I'm in, Limbic System, I've been playing a kit finished in mahogany veneer(what was under the original wrap) comprised of 1968 Slingerland 20 inch bass drum and a 12 inch mounted tom with a 70's 15 inch converted Ludwig snare that's now a floor tom. Anthony had a 60's Japanese set with lugs that look like they were copied from vintage Sonor lugs, with sharp ends, very 50's car like style. They look fantastic on this set with chrome hoops on the toms and natural maple hoops on the bass drum. I made a mahogany dutchman patch to cover up the area on the bass drum where the tom mount was. My current favorite snare is 5 x 14 maple 2ply with ash re-rings, made from an old Kent floor tom, that I cut down for several shells. I love maple, fairly easy to work and always interesting grain and color. Kent seemed to use some funky stock for their shells which is one reason they didn't stay very round. With the addition of re-rings, I've been able to get them more round. Anyway, I stained this one with a yellow/orange analine stain with double ended Kent lugs and leather gaskets, piccolo strainer and triple flanged hoops topped with Remo Ambassadors. Great sounding snare but a can't really lean into too much, good for smaller clubs, tuned just up from a nice doo sound.