Color? Well? gee let me think on that. But as far as prepping the shells go,,,

Fill in the big deep gouges with a a good wood filler. Use a block sander with some 100 or 120 grit on it to plane out the filler with the shell. Here is link to what I like to use.

http://www.eclecticproducts.com/waterbased.htm

Then take the wood filler and a wide putty knife and go over the entire shell with a light coat. Let dry then sand with 150. Do it again and again untill you have filled in all of the grain. Do not depend on primer to fill in the grain, it wont work. Do all the sanding by hand. I have some contact cement in a spray can and I like to cut the sand paper sheet into 4ths then cut each one of the four in half and spray the contact cement on it and fold in half. You end up with a peice about 2.5" x 3" with sand paper on both sides. It fits your hand good and you can grip it and it wont open up.

Once the shell is all filled in and smooth, sand it with 180, then 220. That will make a nice base for your paint job. You do want to sand the primer with 320 before final top coat. You painting buddies will know, they might even want to go all the way up to like 600 grit.

It takes some patience to get a smooth looking paint job on wood, especially mahogany.

Here is one I did,

http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/showthread.php?t=28681&highlight=purple+pearls

Hope this helps.

Jeff C

A painted shell will sound better than a coated shell, as coating doesn´t resonate very well - the only drawback really is that the kit will be more vulnerable to scratches and dings than a coated one.

Should you later decide to wrap the kit, the paint won´t hinder you from doing that.

I think that your own suggestion of an off-white sounds classic and tasty - and they will look good under both natural and coloured lights.

Oh - don´t forget to stuff something in all holes - you don´t want paint running to the inside.

Go ahead!

Regards

Jon

About the disclaimer,...

...Removeing the wrap so you can do a couple snares would be nice cuz guy`s are out there want`n original wrap for them !!

Thanks for the tips! Sounds like I have a LOT of sanding in my future. I am hoping the mahogany is pretty smooth (the areas that are already exposed seem pretty nice). How do I coat the entire shell with wood filler without getting it in all the holes, etc? Should I plug them from the inside?

I will definitely try to get the wrap off in complete pieces so it can be used for other projects.

So aesthetically, if I decide to go with the off white, and leave the hoops black, what should I use for an inlay? Just plain white? Silver sparkle? WMP?

Decisions, decisions.

I am also planning on plugging up the large hole in the bass drum (it had a modern tree mount installed and the original consolette was removed). Is there any way to do that using only a filler, or will I need to get a plug made?

Plug all holes with wood. Filler is a crap fix especially for large holes.

For plugging holes, I use a soft filler - the stuff you use for repairing small cracks in walls. "Polyfilla".

I apply it sparingly from the outside, with a spatula, just enough to create a plug in the hole. After having settles - 5 minutes, maybe - any surplus filler can be removed with a damp, not wet, cloth.

If your Ludwigs are painted on the inside, it will be easier to apply the filler from there - as it is easier to wipe off surplus filler on the painted surface.

As the filler is soft, it is easy to drill out again when the painting is done.

For the large hole from the tom mount, use a piece of ply - and stick it in place with filler, again it will be easy removable.

Jon

How do I coat the entire shell with wood filler without getting it in all the holes, etc? Should I plug them from the inside?

YOu just have to go around them, but you will get some in the holes by accident. I just take a pencile and stick it in the hole and twist it to remove the filler while its still soft. Have a damp rag handy to wipe it off the inside of the shell, and the pencile. If you do buy this Famowood filler, make sure it is water based. The sovent base is a pain because it sets too fast when working with it and it dries up in the can over time. Water base will dry up over time also but all you need is water to thin it up again. And you can use water to thin it as you are working with it. I have a small tub of water next to me when Im doing this, that way when the filler starts to get stiff,(the stuff on the shell and knife) I just "dip" the knife in the water and go over the "stiff areas" to smooth it out.

I put masking tape over the holes on the inside for painting.

Jeff C