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Showing posts with label drum restoration. Show all posts

6.05.2014

Restoring Vintage Drums - How To Silence Buzzing Lug Springs

While restoring a 1964 Slingerland drum kit I ran into a problem I had never experienced before… Buzzing lug springs. When we purchased the kit it had all of the original drum heads. Judging by the amount of filth on said drums, I feel certain that the heads had not been removed in several decades if ever.

The simple act of removing the tension rods caused the springs to start buzzing inside the lugs. Unfortunately, we didn't realized this problem until new heads had been installed/tuned and my boy started playing. The buzzing was horrible.

Once again, the fellas at Fork's offered a solution.

Begin by carefully removing the screws that hold the lug in place. You will want to do this one lug at a time. Be especially careful not to mixup the top and bottom screws as they are self threading and will only go back into their original location.

Here is the inside of the lug and the pesky little spring that was making so much noise.

The easiest way to stop the buzzing is to use felt. The felt should be cut into squares that are the same length as the spring and wide enough to encircle it entirely.

My best tidbit of advice is this: Cut enough squares of felt to wrap all of the springs on one side of the drum before you get started. Once you have used up all of the felt squares you will know that it is time to flip the drum over and repeat the process on the other side of the drum.

In my experience it is easy to lose count and before you know it you are removing lugs that have already been wrapped. It doesn't seem like a big deal but old drum hardware can be temperamental, especially when it hasn't been removed in fifty years. You don't want to accidentally sheer off a screw and end up having to replace an entire lug.

Wrap each spring in felt as shown in the picture above.

Then place the spring back into the lug with the felt seam-side-down. This will ensure that the felt will never unwrap itself from the spring no matter how hard your kid pounds on his drums.

Finally, reattach the lug to the drum, again making sure that you put the screws back into the proper location. Repeat until you have wrapped every spring in felt.

5.29.2014

Restoring Vintage Drums - Removing Excessive Rust From Tension Rods and Washers

I hope you enjoyed last week's post on the basics of restoring vintage drums. As promised, today I am going to share Sam Bacco's secret for removing excessive rust from tension rods and washers. Here goes...

This pile of tension rods and washers were removed from the same 1964 Slingerland kit that you saw in the previous post. Pretty rusty, eh?

Despite a good scrubbing with the #0000 steel wool, much of the rust remained. I knew it was time to give Sam's tried and true trick a try. Here's what you need...

A large can of WD-40 and an old, clean jar. Squirt a sizable amount of the WD-40 into the jar and toss in all of the rusty tension rods and washers. Allow them to soak for a few days. You will want to shake the jar every so often to stir things up.

Some of the pieces were so rusty that I decided to let them hang out in the jar for an entire week.

Remove the rods and washers from the jar, give them a quick wash in a little soapy water (dish soap works great for this application) and then dry them thoroughly. Then give them a good scrubbing with the #0000 steel wool.

You will be amazed by the results. As you can see, the once rust-covered tension rods and washers look almost as good as new.

Check back next week to see one final tip for restoring vintage drums: How to silence the buzzing from lug springs.

5.22.2014

Restoring Vintage Drums - The Basics

One of the many benefits of living in Nashville is the abundance of used music gear. The hubby and I love a good bargain and have been able to pick up a couple of cool vintage drum kits on the cheap. There is only one drawback… Drums that have been stashed in an attic or garage for fifty years aren't always in the best shape.

Ask any Nashville drummer and they will tell you that the place to go for drum restoration is Fork's Drum Closet. Not only is Sam Bacco a world-class percussionist, his drum restorations are unparalleled. Unfortunately, the price of Mr. Bacco's restorations is not in the Ha family budget, but he and the wonderful guys at Fork's have been kind enough to give us a few pointers. Today, I would like to pass these tricks along to you.

The kit we will be working on is a 1964 Slingerland with gorgeous mahogany shells. Let's get started…

Step one is to remove the lugs, washers, metal rims, wood hoops and drum heads. I like to work on one drum at a time so I don't accidentally mix up any parts.

If you are lucky enough to find a vintage kit with the original drum heads, don't throw them away. The heads can be washed with a soft cloth and soapy water and either placed back on the drums or stored in a safe place. Remember that drums with all their original parts are more valuable.

Drum shells with wood veneer like this Slingerland kit should be wiped down with a damp cloth to remove any grime and then polished with a gentle furniture polish. Shells with a lacquer finish can be cleaned with a soft cloth and soapy water. Just try to avoid wetting the inside of the drum.

Once the shells have been cleaned it is time to tackle the chrome hardware. Here's what you will need: #0000 steel wool, rubber gloves and toothpicks. Do not use anything other than #0000 steel wool or you will risk damaging the hardware.

Despite being wiped down, you can see that this lug is still covered in grime and a few tiny spots of rust.

Make sure you lay a cloth or old towel underneath the drum before getting started. The steel wool will splinter as you work and, not only is it messy, the shavings can potentially harm your work surface.

After putting on a trusty pair of rubber gloves, tear off a small piece of steel wool and use it to polish the chrome. The steel wool is soft enough to avoid scratching the chrome finish while still removing the rust and grime from any crevices. Use a soft cloth to gently brush off any steel wool shavings.

A word of caution… Try to avoid rubbing the shells with the steel wool as it will scratch the finish.

Check out the finished lug. I am always amazed by how some steel wool and a little elbow grease can restore the chrome hardware's shine.

While you are working you may find that some of the nooks and crevices are simply too small to be polished using your fingers alone. In those instances, I like to use a toothpick with a little steel wool wrapped around the end.

I chose the picture above specifically so that you can see what happens when you fail to remove rust from drum hardware. The rust has caused the chrome plating to flake off of this tom mount. There are two ways to handle this problem: Have the piece replated or remove every trace of the rust and use a dab of 3-In-One Oil to prevent further rusting.

Take a look at that shine! As you can see in the picture above, the slight pitting caused by the rust is still slightly visible under the bright lights. It is best to avoid allowing rust to form on the hardware in the first place.

Now for the easy part… polishing the rims. Make sure you give both sides of the rims a good rubdown with the steel wool and then wipe off any dust/shavings with a soft cloth.

Good as new!

The last and most tedious part of the restoration process is cleaning the tension rods, washers and bass drum claws. In my experience, these are the pieces that usually have the most rust. My advice is to take your time.

As you can see, the slight pitting remains but the shine has been restored.

Remember, when restoring a vintage kit, it may not be possible to return everything to it's original state. This bass drum tension rod lost a portion of it's chrome plating due to rust. The goal is to restore the shine and prevent further damage.

A little time and elbow grease is all it takes to restore a vintage drum kit to it's former glory. As you can see, it is well worth the effort.

Check back next week to learn Sam Bacco's secret for removing excessive rust from tension rods and washers.