I've read somewhere that a clutch of 3 rivets in a triangle pattern about an 1 1/2-2 inches off the edge is good enough. Too many rivets may cause a wash.

I measured my factory rivets on a 70's 22 inch Sizzle and they are around 1 5/8- 1 3/4 from the edge. My 24 inch has them about 2 inches. On these cymbals, they have about six to eight rivet holes each.

i drilled my first one recently with a hand held drill. measured some other factory sizzle cymbals that i had and used that as a guide. i usually place my rivets at 10,12,2 and 6 oclock. so, i drilled the 4 holes as such. used a flat board under the cymbal after marking it for support. took a nail and gave it a decent smack with a hammer. drilled in that spot. used a real small bit initially and then drilled up to the size that i wanted. mine was a 22 avedis medium weight. i couldnt ba happier with the results. looks factory. dont drill too fast to generate excess heat either.

mike

Thanks for your input gents! My big issue right now is trying to decide if I want to install 4 rivets or 6. Decisions, decisions.

You might consider a dental floss sizzler prior to drilling. Tie a loop in some dental floss on one end and slip over the mount. Tie whatever you want on the other end so it hangs down and dances on the top of the cymbal. Adjust distance from edge of cymbal inward for different effect.

Over the years, I've put in many rivets on my cymbals and as a favor to others. First, why do you want the rivets? There is a mistaken thought by many that adding rivets to a mediocre cymbals will make it sound better. It won't. It might even make it sound worse. So before you begin, identify your reason for doing so.

Next, the number of rivets. This is a bone of contention. Back in the day, most riveted cymbals seemed to have 6 or 8 rivets around the circumference, around 2 inches from the edge . Most often rivets were added at the local music store or done at home.

Today, the more common approach is for 1, 2 or 3 rivets located on the opposite edge of the cymbal from the sweet spot. Since the effect of rivets is due to the the size and material of the rivet and the characteristics of the cymbal, I always suggest starting with 1 rivet and adding more as needed. Depending on the cymbal and the sound you're looking for, one rivet might be enough. Six or 8 rivets might well be needed for the sound you're looking for, but in my experience too many rivets can overwhelm a good cymbal.

I would NEVER add rivets to a valuable vintage cymbal, however, you're '70s A is not in that category, IMHO.

I would not begin drilling until you have the rivets available. You don't want to drill holes too large or too small. I prefer the sound of copper rivets myself, but some people use brass and others use a white metal which I guess is either aluminum or steel. I personally have always used copper or brass.

When I install 3 rivets, I put them in a straight line angled in slightly so that each is a bit further in from the edge then the one before it. The first rivet is usually close to 2 inches from the edge. The last rivet is less than 3 inches from the edge and the rivets are around an inch apart from its neighbor.

Drill from the rear of the cymbal. Put a wood block under the cymbal at the place you intend to drill so that the bit will enter it after the hole is complete. The hole should be slightly wider than the rivet. You want a tiny bit of side to side movement, but nothing extreme. You don't want the hole too tight or else it could effect the sustain. You want the rivet to bounce up and down, not just side to side. Drill at very slow RPMs using honing oil or machine oil to keep friction heat down. Remember, you can always make a hole bigger, you can never make it smaller. Good luckl

good info bos.

the 22 i drilled had a small edge crack that had been dremmeled which took the pressure off for me. i have a 50's avedis 20 that is 1710 grams that i am dying to sizzle up. havent gotten the nerve yet and might not.

what do you guys think of the camco sizzlers?

mike

I have always loved that sizzle sound. Used correctly in the right way.

The last two years I have been playing a lot of jazz gigs and I was useing a brass metal chain like you use on a light pull wraped around the cymbal holder top so each end was just above the edge of the cymbal. Actually sounded ok. THis past year I bought a vintage 60's 18" A Zildjian cymbal from a member here that was factory drilled for six rivets. I installed six Zildjian cymbal rivets in it and it sounds great. You can't beat that sound when useing brushes on the down beat of a Chorus or verse in a nice jazz ballad.

I love mine.

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Sizzles are great with brushes, but for most, brush playing is a lost art. I've had a number of cymbals with six rivets over the years and even a couple that had 8 when I acquired them. My concern with using a lot of rivets is that the sustain can partially mask the natural decay of the cymbals With a really good cymbal, I want the sustain to be additive, not overwhelming. Since many of the cymbals my son and I own are thin and trashy jazz cymbals, we generally use 1 or 2 rivets just to add a subtle sustain for ballads,when playing behind acoustic jazz soloists, and of course when playing brushes.

I drilled my heavy 18" ride recently for 3 rivets and am very happy.

I used the dental floss method to find the sweet spot for rivet location first, and to decide if I loved the sound.

Then out came the hand drill. A little clean up with some emery cloth to knock off/down any ridges and in went the rivets.

I love it.

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