Well this is working very nicely indeed. No immediate issues with applying an oil-based product to the wrap. Pic shows 3 coats. High gloss and hard as nails so far. I promise to report back if it starts flaking off :)

I wouldn't be too enthusiastic about doing this with multiple larger shells, [though it's certainly possible], but it's bringing this snare "in line" with little effort. I feel I could leave it as is but one more coat is going to really nail it.

Mitch

How in the world did yo ever think of this idea? Interesting procedure, great results.

My thoughts, too! I really applaud your work on this, but wonder how you would even think of this process. Please share with us!

-Mark

Thanks guys! During my approx. 3 year MIJ phase, I used Minwax a lot on the interiors of shells. Couldn't help noticing it puts an amber tint on things....plus it says it does that right on the can. :) So, I thought, why not use that to age newer wrap? The drums are now a perfect match. I ended up putting 4 coats on.

Next task is to apply the same process to the [new from precision] BD hoops and inlay. The inlay is of course the same stuff that's on the snare, and I used a satin finish on the hoops, but compared to the original hoop that came with, they are not glossy enough. The Minwax will solve both issues. It will also "glue" down the inlay, which is attached only at the ends. Since even a light sanding of the hoops will reveal some bare wood along the edges, I'm going to skip the sanding and just brush the Minwax on there. I have zero concern it won't adhere - this is an amazing product. I plan on coating the hoop and inlay first, and then with a narrow brush only adding 3 more coats to the inlay - the hoop doesn't need multiple coats.

The final task will be to erase some major snare rash from the rack tom shell. One very thin coat will disappear the rash, as it is only visible because the top shine is missing. I'll post both jobs in this thread so, more to come.....

Mitch

I'm gonna go ahead and just say - GENIUS! - Looks great, and I'd have never thought about doing that.

Thanks Jay. Last night it suddenly occurred to me where I got this idea - from a stain on the bass drum. It was a long streak that ran down the side of the kick, beginning right underneath where the bass-drum-mounted cymbal would sit. It looked like ginger ale or coca cola. Nothing would remove it and I mean nothing, until I shaved it off with a scraping razor. Came off in almost one long strip, extremely thin/fragile, and very combustible [had to test that lol]. Now I remember thinking at the time that whatever it was, it added ginger ale-ing to the wrap under it, so......

Here's a couple pics of the snare rash on the tom. I realize that putting a thin coat or any coat on the shell is wrong; I will touch up only the affected areas using a Q-tip. Results to come...

The BD hoops are in the process of being aged right now, but there's not much to show - a couple of hoops hanging off a boom stand over a radiant heater, pretty straight-forward.

Mitch

Nice job!

Would painting the exterior of the shell have helped to darken it up at all?

How close are the new lug holes to the original ones?

Mitch really great job on this! What miniwax product did you use?

Thanks CLP. That's an interesting idea. Back when I wrapped an MIJ kit in Vintage White Pearl from Precision, it definitely played - I tried black and then white paint on the shell under the wrap. Not sure why I tried black lol, but white was the way to go and you could see the difference. This fact influenced me to use contact cement that did not dry blue, as some water-based cement does. With the SS wrap, I just held the swatch up to the window and put my finger behind it - not visible. So I think with this SS wrap the colour/tone on the shell is moot.

Funny you should mention the lug holes on the snare shell - as I received it, someone had at one time shifted all the holes one inch over. Why, I'll never know, and cannot think of a single good reason. The only thing this person did not shift was the badge hole, so one could conclude they wanted the badge in a slightly different location on the shell relative to everything else....but then why not simply shift the badge hole??!!

So this is what I meant by "already compromised". Once I had cut the shell down to 13", the location of the snare beds dictated the placement of the tension casings. I got real lucky there as I was *not* paying attention to snare beds when I made the cut, but they were intact after cutting, whew! To be fair to myself the beds are so shallow I didn't think Pioneers even had em...

Mitch