I forgot to mention in the sort of barrel tip category that Vic Firth makes (I guess still currently in production) some "E sticks" in their American Classic line that are specifically designed for electronic drums. I tried them on the acoustic jazz kit and they worked out fine with a very nice sound on cymbals. Zildjian makes some "Anti vibe" sticks with a rubber piece in the center of the butt end to act as a sort of shock absorber. The tips are small and round. I guess the market was for rubber pad heads on electronic drums but I use both on mesh head Roland V drums. Just another possibility. When you buy your stick bag go ahead and get one larger than your present collection of sticks. I predict you will grow into it in no time at all.

I have reduced down to 7a's after 50 odd years of playing with heavier rock sticks, I reckon these days miked up I have a better technique and am much more comfortable with 7a's. I do carry some 5b nylon tips to gigs but rarely feel the need to use them. Vic Firth really have their act together with the matching and packaging of pairs. I no longer not find myself constantly swapping sticks from hand to hand for comfortable balance. With Firth sticks , they are weighted and tonally matched to perfection. (Every drummer should watch the Firth production videos on YouTube) .

Earlier this week I was visiting a long established music store in Sydney, I was bemused to see that some dropkick sales person had broken down the substantial stock of firth sticks from their matched pairs, in order to fit them into the display/selection racks... sort of messed up the matching process..

However at now around 25 bucks Au per pair , I may be looking for something more affordable sometime soon

Cheers

John

So I checked out Bopworks, and I like their sticks and how they produce them old school. Pretty unique.

There sticks are pretty small for the most part, like 7a small. They say in there FAQ that basically they don't produce big sticks because jazz players didn't use them. But my Vic Firth BR sticks are pretty huge. So who is correct, Bopworks or Vic Firth? Did Buddy Rich use such big sticks?Hmmmm

Well, buddy played with a big band, not a jazz trio in a club. If you watch him play, you also notice is a friggin animal on the kit, and the larger diameter was probably just to withstand his abuse (like SRV playing 13’s!) and same with the tip- small wood tops go soft and loose definition about three songs in for me. I have never really used them other than trying something that didn’t come with nylon tips.

After decades and hundreds of different types of sticks, I have settled on my “perfect” stick, and they promptly changed it. Actually ProMark was bought, and my (5A Shira Kashi Oak nylon tip) stick was completely destroyed. They changed to a faster taper and on such a stiff wood, it kills the stick. With Hickory, it’s probably ok but hickory is lighter.

So, as suggested earlier, I bought up about 25 pair of the “old” ones from three music stores. Since they wear like iron, I’m set into old age I think.

But back to how I got there- I always was looking for a longer stick. I play traditional (as if there was some other way to hold sticks?) and my left hand was always creeping out to the very end of the stick. I went as far as a 1A in my prog rock days trying to find the right stick. But it’s hard to get clean ghost notes with a marching stick (not really) in your hand.

The next stop was the 727, then 727 oak. That was like a phone pole so I wanted a bit thinner diameter and ended up with that sweet 5A. The old standby stick sizes seem to endure because they work. Artist sticks are great but they move companies and then your favorite stick is no more.

Spend quality time on the pad, narrow down to a few options and see what is the most comfortable for the longest time. Besides my typical drum corps warm ups (sixteenths with moving accents, mixing alternated sixteenths with paradiddles, Swiss army triplets, flam triplets, six stroke ruffs), I’ve been working lately a lot on sterile clean open strokes, as well as triple stroke rolls, which tend to be slower for me to keep them clean and well timed. Big clunky logs don’t work for “finesse” stuff. If you like ghost notes (who doesn’t?) you need a responsive stick. You’ll know it when you find it.

PS nylon tips sound the same forever. I HATE mushy tips.

The Firth building process is interesting. I've been meaning to watch that video. I'm not sure I have the skill level to notice the balance of a pair of sticks, but I'm working on it!

At this point, I think I like the heavier stick because it gives me a nice rebound with less effort while I have to work harder with the 7a's. As my technique improves, that might change.

Thanks for your response.

Yes, I sure have noticed that BR is an animal on the kit! So I guess he likely would have used an artillery tube-like size stick!

My biggest problem with this size stick is not the big diameter at 590, but the length, which is a long 16-5/16"! It's tough for me to get past the hi-hats with traditional grip to roll on the tom! (yeah... embarrassing) But other than that, it feels pretty darn good.

I am sure I will continue my quest and as another poster said, " get a bigger stick bag", because I'll likely fill it up!

I use and endorse Pro- Mark sticks and have been with them for decades now. The sticks are very consistent, never warp, and hardly ever break. I have broken one stick in the last five years! I just wear them out and discard them when they get chewed up.

My models of choice are, Carl Palmers and Rock Knockers. I'm a bit odd; I use the Palmer stick in my right hand, and the Rock Knocker in my left, to get a solid butt end hit, but to retain a thick end to grip. Works great.

Try experimenting with the height of your hats, once you have optimized the footboard position:

Place your right foot on your bass pedal board, paying attention to the natural angle (side to side) of your foot. Don’t worry about your body angle relative to the bass drum- you will not be at the same angle. Adjust your seat height so your upper leg is sloping slightly downhill toward the bass and your back is straight. Then set your left foot naturally. THAT is where your hi hat footboard needs to be- location and angle.

Once that is set, adjust the height of the hi hat cymbals. I usually end up with the hats on the same plane as my rack tom(s). You rotate but don’t change height much to move around the kit. If you set them too low, you will crack your left thumb with your right stick so take the time to really get things perfect. So many drummers set up in such a way as to make things harder than they need to be. Pay attention to ergonomics and you can play longer with less fatigue.

I can't tell you how many times I caught crap here from the younger crowd here for saying my sticks don't last and get chewed, divots on the heads, gear that walks away,....They tell me how if I knew how to play correctly like them,...I wouldn't have those issues. I don't know what to tell them, They claim to be well trained, fine tuned, educated experts.

Well, I’m playing my little bop kit, but even with that, I’m using stupid-heavy 900 series Yamaha hardware. Nothing moves. Other than the discs in my back lugging them of course.

I set all my drums such that I can easily play rim shots on everything. I don’t generally, but this way I know my stick to head angle is as flat as possible. I probably only look half as cool as I could but I don’t care at this point!