these tube lug Trowas are Concert snares.Many concert drums did not have mufflers. there is too much chance of some orchestral instrument setting up a harmonic vibration and setting such gizmos afire; at the same time Trowa had offset lug drums with profiled hoops and mufflers, based on the same shell. the concert hardware were based on designs of their collaborator , Dresdner Apparatebau, a world class Konzert Trommel mfg. the shells are , European beech, 360mm , the Dresdner standard and will accept heads for the similarily sized pre-1964 Trixons. wires are preloaded coils and are tightened by further extension of the throwoff arm. this will be a very nice drum, when finished.

Such a wealth of information :D. I am really curious whether there is some place (web/book/catalogs) where information like this can be found.

I am still in the process of cleaning, though. I don't have super much time to spend on it, and I don't rush when working on it.

The thick layer of brownish dirt (possibly nicotine, I think) and dust comes of without too much difficulty, except there are some hard to reach spots which drive me nuts :P.

The hardest things to clean right now are the rusted parts, which are not coated (interior strainer mechanism, mainly). And some things are harder to clean, because they are attached by rivets, so I can't detach them to get underneath :P.

You can tell this is the first time I need to do this kind of work on a drum, hehe baby crawl2

Also, I noticed the upper hoop is a little out of round (there's a "flat" spot). But I can handle it. I think someone might have dropped the snare on the ground.

Thanks everyone for all the info :D.

BTW, I have no idea where to get new snarewires like these coils.

the snares were(are) long coil springs about the same diameter as a retractable ball point pen spring but much longer. i will look at what i have and do some measuring and tension testing. i would think, that such a spring wouild be available, used in an industrial application and could be had by the dozen or so quite cheaply. i will get back to you on this.

Oh, my dear TROWA's friends!!

It seems to me that became a moment when I'm ready now to open a one of my greatest secrets - it's specially for you...

During more than 30 years I use the springs from automotive crankshaft's sealings. No more better for snares. You can to select most effective of these numerous kinds of engine's sealing parts to get your favorite snare's sound.

Now you all know this... :)

Good luck in restoration!!

George.

Thanks. I can test the stiffness of the ones that came with it. Assuming they are linear springs. Shouldn't be too hard. Thank you, Physics classes :P.

Yay, secrets ^^... This looks very useful. Thank you, sir.

Haha, I can already picture their faces in the car shop when I ask which crankshaft sealing would be best to use on a snaredrum :D...

BTW, I found a company that sells all kind of springs. All kinds of different dimensions and strengths and whatnot. Should do the trick.

that is such a good idea, George. i knew there was something in the back of my mind that would suffice. i am assuming that you mean the springs that are around the lip of an oil seal? i have found a few originals, though, and the end clips, that they mount on. i have clips for 10 strand but i think these are not for the parallel drop snare. they have holes for the snare cord. it seems the original springs came in at least 3 lengths 120 mm, 130 mm and 140 mm including the end loops and came in both brass and steel. the 120 mm stretches well across the 360mm head of the Trowa so, i guess that the other lengths were for larger drums.

it also just ocurred to me , that since Dresdner Apparatebau is still in business and has a restoration department, that they would possibly be a supplier of genuine parts. The Trowa, Konzert Trommel has a high degree of similarity to a Dresdner-----they probably were a state mandated cooperation and probably had somewhat overlapping parts. Dresdner Apparatebau have never varied from their focus on being the very best available----- a world standard in concert snaredrums, whereas the Trowa, borrowing from Dresdner design was probably pitched at a student market. school bands and orchestras etc.

Big yes, dear Phil - it's fully correct. :)

That's automotive springs you can find in variety kinds - different dia and wire's thickness, uncoated or brassed steel, or even brass made.

When in 1976 I was happy to find my "M-Kristall Schwarz-Silber" TROWA set, there was a bad condition both of snare's springs end's clips. Then I made them by myself from stainless steel plates: imagine a narrow plate with 10 holes and a little middle hook (my strainer is identical as discussed - leveral type).

Also I had another one TROWA snare with later eccentrical strainer - I made the similar clips construction but with a 4 mm screws: I cut its head, sawed the end along and riveted it to analogical narrow plate. Some years later I was in great sadness - this snare was stolen from "Autoplant's Culture's Palace" after the concert... :(

That was very offensively because this "Aquasparkle" snare was 13" size - I nevermore meet the similar one

If you stretch the 130 - 160 mm sealing spring then it will be exellent to 14" snare.

Firstly you have to cut the conical top from one end of every spring.

Two loops of every end of spring you must to unbend and then they easy mounted in new clips plate's holes as your homekeys on ring.

Yes, great respect and thanks to nice German musicians Michael Denner and Cornelius Altmann who with support of famous old Saxonian drumbuilder Franz Hanke had to reborn a world glory of this legendary company name

Not whole agree with you, Phil.

TROWA in their best era also had in line a high quality profy-level sets which were exported to many countries - not only to the East. For example, some of French and Italian symphony orchestras still use them and supporting in good condition. And it's very pleasure... :)

i didn't explain properly. i fully agree that Trowa drums are mostly professional grade. my comment was specific to the orchestra snare in the thread. it does seem that it is an economy version of a Dresdner-----with 6 tuning rods and non-tunable snares. it bears a lot of similarities to a Dresdner,the hoops,the lugs but a Dresdner would have 8 lugs at least and individually tuneable wires,as well as the terrific throwoff, that they use.

Phil.