Thanks for the kind words JC: warms the heart

Tube lugs...would....match straight up......on the other drums

Really nice job!

Hey thanks for saying. It's a kick to hear an old drum again after who knows how long it's just sat. It could have easily ended up on the scrap heap.

Here is how I recieved the shell. Because of the 'jazzette' size it really grabbed my interest- because I love bebop size and shallow bass drums. The inside has a lovely reddish ageing which I haven't touched and it has the date of manufacture stamped inside it.

There was a small delam which I repaired and some moisture stains which sanded out, as well as some dints and scores that appeared to have come from an earlier job of removing the blue enamel which was wasn't completed. I managed to get the finish to a nice stage which shows up the aged natural honey colour of the maple

I contemplated at length on the best way to restore it, whether to return it to a marching drum, to it's exact specifications, which would be nice but I also wanted to be able to use it. The idea of drilling for the old imperial lugs crossed my mind, but I'm very glad I didn't and luckily came across a stand alone set of single tension Ludwig and Ludwig bass drum hardware. It is much much better to have the lugs sitting in the original drilled holes and the hardware works perfectly even with the shallower depth drum.

The other bonus was the hoop mount legs which I got locally miraculously, here in Australia. They're right out of the 36 Ludwig catalog. The rubber ends were replacements that had largely perished but I was able to find some new rubber ends that very closely resemble the look and dimensions of the originals and they work really well, no slippage at all even when I was dropping some big bombs on it Elvin style during a massive solo today.

There are two little holes in it for the key holder. So I guess it would be cool to find the key holder and key.

I hadn't used a single tension setup before and thought it might rattle, but it doesn't at all. It tunes really well, I can hear the aged woody tone and for further bonus it is very light weight wise.

So yeah; very happy with the drum at the moment

Great Old drum... nice work.. So if you are thinking of a clear finish, try rubbing a section with a slightly damp cloth.. that will give you a fair indication of how lacquer or a clear oil will bring out the grain..

Cheers

John