Lots of questions.

There are a variety of sellers of drum finish material and each of them have their own followers and supporters. I might list three and then someone might have three more that they say are better.

Use my links page

It is safe to say if they are on my links page they are friends of the web site and or we share links.

Yes, the covering has changed and this topic has been discussed on different forums etc.. So there are others with much more expertise in this area as to how much or which exact finishes have changed.

I created this for a friend that also is a forum member. Click Here

There currently are two or three different methods and that is also a huge debate. The taped method and the glue method.

Both sides will argue until your blue in the face, so do some research and each has its benefits.

Yes, with stained or painted drums you need to consider that option and I have heard of cutting the finish back and or sanding the drums down. I have never done either method.

The adhesive is a 3m product and can be found on web sites that sell the material.

Do your research and then ask more questions, you can always email me directly or PM me on the forum

David

Webmaster

This is an older thread, but it's new to me!

I am in the same situation as you are. I am trying to recreate a Rogers kit that I owned 30 years ago.

You had asked about gluing or tape. One of the differences between the Asian kits that came into the US market in the late 70's and the established US drum makers were that the imports had taped wrap, and the US makers used glue.

It's also one of the reasons those early Asian imports were crap, not to mention the Asian Mahogony shells, versus Keller, or a couple others US made shells.

Things have changed though. The adhesives available now can't be compared to what was around in 1977. To give you a wierd example, you ever watch carpet layers do their thing? You notice those tack strips they put down around the perimeter of the area to be carpeted? If you ever want to carpet a basement with a concrete floor, they glue those strips to the floor now.

Pretty strong stuff, eh?

I have been researching this for almost a year now, and not once have I encountered anyone that has glued their wrap to the shells, and there is a reason for it.

The contact cement that you would use has to be applied to both the shell and the wrap. It has to cure for a period of time before you apply the wrap, and it's also very important to apply the glue evenly. For you and me, considering we are dealing with a rounded surface, that last part is almost an impossibility.

Rogers, Gretch, Slingerland, and Ludwig had machines that would do that. We don't.

But with the adhesives that are being used today, a taped wrap will work just as effectively as the glue jobs back in the day.

Now as for the wraps themselves, I was looking for a specific finish. I wanted what Rogers called "Red Onyx," and I located two companies on the net that sell it. I can't verify one of the sites, but the other company's wrap even came from the same supplier that provided Rogers their wrap.

I have since purchased it, and when I compare the new wrap with pictures of my old kit, the finishes are indistinguishable. You can't tell them apart.

Good Luck!

Thank you for the replies.

I have a quote coming from Slingerland for their wraps through their dealer in my area. Wraps are not as expensive as I imagined. My concern now is whether the new black pearl matches the old black pearl from the 1950's era. Of course, it may not make any difference.

I was considering having the set lacqured but the cost, and I was given a low bid by a professional sprayer who does car restores, was more than the wrap will be.

This should probably go on the restore thread but another car restore guy here in Tucson who does T-birds and Corvettes said collectors of cars are more interested in the appearance rather than whether the car is taken back in time to match the original vehicle...so much so he changes the color scheme on the car, inside and out, from the scheme on the id tag. Bottom line is the car value for these collectors is more in appearance than in restoration authenticity. Does anyone have any thoughts about this in regard to drums?

Thank you again for your input.

As far as the debate between appearance or authenticity, I've always thought compromise is nice. I am beginning to restore old MIJ kits. I am trying to find drums that are in fairly good shape with covering that is in great shape. If I buy a kit and the bass drum legs or rail mount is in bad shape or missing I can enjoy a good hunt trying to find original parts to replace them, or just buy brand new replacements. But, some kits I've bought are in bad shape in every way except for the shells. This, for me, is an opportunity to build a kit I've always wanted to build.

It's interesting you mentioned old cars. I have found a kit that the wrap is just shot. The lugs are good, but the tom mount is shot. The rims are good, but the bass drum hoops are not. In this case I'm going to have the shells painted by an auto body sprayer in the old Ford Robin Egg Blue (which is actually tropical turquoise), and having the bass drum mounts painted off white or cream. I love the old rail mounts, but this is an opportunity for me to try out one of those new Gibralter rail mounts. They look great! Thank God somebody makes these!

Bottom Line...original and authentic is great, but so is practicality and function....oh, and appearance!

Sorry to disagree, but full contact gluing the wrap is still the best way to go. Takes a bit more patience (and maybe practice with some scrap), but much better job in the long run. Taped wrap can bubble if left in the sun for long due to uneven expansion away from the taped joints. Notice a set in a shop that has been in the window too long.

Lot of small shops and do-it-yourself drummers use the glue method with success and not the fancy equipment the big boys have. Get a good roller from a countertop store helps.

If you still don't want to do it at home, search for a local shop or drummaker and work with him to learn how to do it, starting with the bass drum since it is the largest and hardest to line up. I have a local one that charges $35/hr and does a great job.

Good luck and lets see some pictures when you are done.

My two cents worth.

The majority of the wraps you get now are not the same as the original, particularly on the pearls though it varies from brand to brand - a combination of environmental constraints, health issues etc in the materials they use now.

Talk to an expert on your specific brand for comparisons.

I got a vintage blue pearl that in the picture looked identical to what I was looking for (and someone actually told me was close to identical) but when I got it, it was much bluer than the original 60's variants (still very nice but not exactly the same). The sparkles and glass glitters seem to be much closer to the originals but even there you have differences - champagne being one that I've heard several point out as different but, again, talk to a "brand" expert (Lord knows there are enough of them in here).

And, from what I gather (and I've been speaking to a lot of people), Donmar, who originally did pretty much all the drum wraps back in the day, are still the company who supply to most of the people mentioned in the VSD links.

I recently did a kit using a 3M like contact adhesive (on to a still lacquered shell) and it worked like a dream and I had no problems with heads fitting but again could well depend on the brand (mine was Camco Chanute/LA hybrid, which I suspect were always sized a bit small).

I had previously done a kit with a ready backed adhesive where I had to remove backing paper (I presume some kind of "tape") and that worked well too.

A strange upside to my recent foray is that I actually found a matching lacquered shell for my Chanutes and decided to gently take off the contact adhesived wrap and - guess what - it came off relatively (though not incredibly) easily leaving the original lacquer pretty much as it was (really nice) - and the wrap is for the most part re-usable (I think).

But my final comment would be if you want something that looks really close to the original go with the sparkle.

Cheers,

David

"Donmar, who originally did pretty much all the drum wraps back in the day,"

I hate having to correct my own posts - clearly this should have read "Delmar"........

D