I am definitely looking at leaving a gap between the wrap and the bearing edge. It would be fantastic if you could measure the gap of the bare shell.

I did not order the wrap pre-cut, I have 3 full sheets coming to me. I ordered it through Len Howe at ClassicDrums.com who said that would be enough wrap to do the kit. I believe he ordered it direct from Delmar in the US. With that in mind I will be cutting the wrap myself, I have played with making templates out of thick crafting paper so I know I get the right size, this will then mean I'm not handling the wrap too much as I'm aware its rather brittle.

OK here are a few things to keep in mind. I'm not sure how you are planning to cut the wrap, but I have had decent luck with a straight edge and a good sharp utility knife. It will take patience, and time (many cuts slowly working through) As for your measuring. I just use a piece of ribbon, wrapped and overlapped the amount you want, then measure that. It's simple but effective. For the edge, here are some plusses for both ways. If you wrap over the edges then cut back, you will give yourself a margin of error while wrapping. Being off the slightest bit from the beginning of wrapping could end up with the wrap walking just slightly one way or the other. Cleaning the edge back on glass glitter isn't nearly as difficult as people let on. If you decide to go this way, I can give you some more pointers for that. If you cut your wrap to fit (inside the bearing edges) I will suggest the following. Measure and mark your start point with a square, and then only apply adhesive to the first couple inches. Stick your start, and test wrap it tightly around. That way you can pull it back and move it slightly as needed. Remember that the slightest move to your start point will adjust the end greatly. Then apply the adhesive to the rest and wrap the drum. If you precut the wrap to fit you will be done when you finish wrapping. As for drilling, Just press your drum shell tight against a scrap piece of wood, and drill out from the inside. It shouldn't be a problem. I will say this, you will want to double check before you wrap, that your heads will fit over the wrap, no matter how you finish the edge, you really don't want the wrap to restrict the head, as you will only ever be able to tighten the head to the depth of the wrap, and if it is looser, you will most likely see the shell some. Shoot more questions out here if you want. there is plenty more to it, but it gets a bit long winded to explain all of it.

Thanks, Ryan

I needed to cut wrap, and I happened to have a neighbor that had a brake for bending aluminum sheets, lots of construction guys have these. The brake is like ten feet long or longer. It had the perfect surface and straight edge to cut long pieces with. Worked for me.

Well thank you all for your help. I'm feeling a bit more confident about doing it myself, I am extremely careful in everything I do, and have a scrap bit of wrap what I've stripped that I will try on an old starter snare a friend gave me. This will give me an idea of what it will be like.

The wrap has arrived and it is beautiful! I hear storing it flat is best so its currently resting.

I am leaning toward cutting the wrap and then fitting it that way as opposed to fixing it and cutting it back on the shell. The bearing edges are in remarkably good condition not a little dirty so I would like to avoid having to get them recut. I am worried about the thickness and it affecting the heads. Can this be solved by sanding and blending the edge in?

Once you have the wrap cut to fit, you can do a dry run and see if the head will fit. One way to help a head fit would be to notch it at the bearing edges so the wrap butts at the seam near the edges. Don't sweat it until you test it, then go from there.

When you say notch it at the bearing edge, what do you mean? Please forgive my ignorance.

Any advice on what glue/contact adhesive is best to use?

Sorry for the slow reply, This picture is not my work, I stole it off of the internet. It allows you to make a less oversized wrap at the bearing edge, and still have the durability of the overlap on the rest of the drum. I have done it before, and I waited until last to cut that piece out of the wrap.

Thanks, Ryan

Sorry for my even slower reply! Been on holiday and still haven't started work on the kit. Thanks for the info, I'll be sure to post some pics as I go!

Just giving you my two cents here. As Kona suggested, I also highly recommend leaving 1/2" of wrap off both sides of the shell. It's going to be a player's grade kit anyway, and you really don't want to spend valuable time messing with the oversized Gretsch shells and tight-fitting heads.

Here's a photo of my re-wrapped shells.

I also had 1/2" of wrap removed from a factory Round Badge snare drum by Jack Lawton. So much easier to deal with and no more prying off heads.