1967 Ludwig Super Sensitive Restoration

[Rotarded]

This drum came to me after 52 years of playing, years of pitting, and subsequently being abused by a wire wheel. I got it very very cheaply.

I had it stripped by a chrome shop, Then hand sanded and polished myself, and sent it back to the chrome shop.

I just got it back. Pretty happy with the results!

[grantro]

Looks like a new old snare drum!! Great restoration!!

Cheers

[kdg]

Beautiful. Just beautiful. That was a lot of work, but the result is a drum that will continue to play for years to come.

[jimorlando]

Beautiful restoration. I never had anything rechromed.

[JimmySticks]

Wow, looks awesome!

It's not easy finding a chrome shop these days. They were pretty much regulated out-of-business years ago due to environmental concerns. This shop did a great job, especially considering this was likely there first drum job.

[DRUMR69]

nice job.
Just wondering, you went that far as stripping it clean, why not just buff the aluminum to a chrome like shine?
I am just wondering if it is going to pit all over again.
Would hate to see that.
Wayne

[Rotarded]

Originally Posted by DRUMR69

nice job.
Just wondering, you went that far as stripping it clean, why not just buff the aluminum to a chrome like shine?
I am just wondering if it is going to pit all over again.
Would hate to see that.
Wayne

I spend a lot of time trying to buff it to mirror shine, and it looked great....until it was next to a chrome Supra.....

[Mr.Toast]

I just got back a re-chromed 1965 Supra. It was a longer process than expected, but the wait turned out to be well worth it. I sent it to a local shop (Abel Metals in Cleveland) that had never done a drum shell, the owner quoted me $100 which seemed more than reasonable. Unfortunately before my part got in the tank there were contamination issues that led to several months of filtering, resin bed replacement etc. I would call every couple of weeks to check on things. When I did, I could tell the shop owner (Bob) was at his wits end and had probably fielded many phone calls from irate customers. I felt bad for his situation and let him know my part was not at all a high priority. My patience and flexibility paid off when he sent me the shell back and only charged me $60. His tank issues are under control now and I would recommend his shop to anyone.

[Purdie Shuffle]

Drummer 69 has it right!

All you need to do to restore any pitted Ludwig metal shell is to have it stripped of all chrome, then polish and clear-coat the aluminum. The drum will never pit again. No need to spend money and time on the re-chrominance of the shell. You can’t tell the difference between a chrome finish and highly polished aluminum. The only real difference is that one is cheaper to do than the other.

John

[slingerfan]

Great restorative efforts Rotarded and Mr. Toast.