Yamaha stands often have pull rods that will work, but you'd want to check in-store to make sure. I actually got a Gibraltar flat-base stand with a rod that was too thick, then got a local welder to attach a 1/4" steel rod from Home Depot to the bottom threaded section of the too-thick rod. Very inexpensive and works great, but you'll need to get something like a Gibraltar SC-4421 "Universal" clutch, as most other clutches are way too thick.

I'd highly recommend against widening the holes, you can definitely affect the re-sale value.

Congrats on the cymbals, they usually sound amazing!

Yes, don't make the hole bigger. There are plenty of good stands out there that will work for these.

I happen to think that slightly widening the holes of hi hats isn't a very big deal. Every single known Stradivarius violin has updates to made them playable in the modern age. As long as you don't go overboard, and just widen them enough to be playable, it's fine. In fact it might give the cymbals a longer life, since there won't be as much pressure on the holes, therefore less chance of cracking.

Regarding value, I haven't found it to make a bit of difference. Rides, on the other hand, I tend to try to keep the original small hole, since there are plenty of stands around with the small mount, and they do just fine.

If you feel like coming out to Jersey, I'll be glad to help you out.

Thanks,

Bill

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the helpful suggestions so far.

Bill, I actually am in Jersey. Where are you located? I'm in Bergen County. Also, funny enough, I just bought the 20" Paiste Giant Beat off of your site. Ha ha. Anticipate any 18" or 24" Giant Beat's? I see you had Danny Gottlieb's a while back, but didn't know about your site at the time. Also saw that Maxwell's had a 24" of his as well.

I am indecisive about widening vs. going with a vintage stand. Can you use say a vintage cup and clutch on a modern stand?

Ah ok! Thanks for your business!

The 24" GB I had was the same one from Maxwell's - I bought it from them. No other GBs at the moment I'm afraid, but I do have a set of preserial 602 15" Sound Edge hats (Zeppelin 1-4) if you're interested. Here's a vid (I used your 20" GB for this one!): [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yrq9zdUkNL4[/ame]

The problem with those tiny old K holes is that they won't even fit on the smallest of vintage hi hat stand cups. You have to use one of the really old stands with no cup, like an early WFL or Gretsch stand. Or else completely remove the cup and plastic sleeve from a Ludwig or Rogers stand. You also need an older style clutch, and even then there isn't much room for the cymbal to move. I'm talking about the early, tiny, 10 mm hole here, not the later Intermediate Stamp or New Stamp holes, which were still pretty small but can be used on a '60s Ludwig stand.

I'm right down the road in Clifton, you're welcome to come by any time!

-Bill

Bill,

Awesome. I actually have not received the hats yet. Should get tem today or tomorrow and I'll measure the holes. I believe they are IIIc's or IVa's.

Not sure what to do yet, but will have to wait to see when I get them. I would prefer to use them with a cup and regular clutch though.

If they're Type 3c or later there's a chance the holes will be 11 or 12mm, in which case you'll be fine with a '60s or '70s HH stand (Ludwig, Rogers, etc). Probably still too small for most later stands. I use a '60s Ludwig stand and it's great. There's still a chance they'll have the super tiny 10mm holes, but I'm going to bet on 11mm to 12mm.

-Bill

How big is the post on a vintage hi hat cup and on the threads of the clutch for a vintage hi-hat stand?

Most old clutches come in at just over 9mm. The thickest point of '60s and '70s plastic cup sleeves are right at 11mm.