Most are Ludalloy (low grade aluminum).

Actually it is a high grade of aluminum, not aircraft grade, but still high quality. The pitting and flaking has more to due with the conditions the drum was subjected to over its life than the quality of the chrome plating job or the quality of the aluminum.

Thanks, this snare has a hand etched 244 serial number, it is not stamped - do you think it never had one and someone etched it in after?

LOL! Right. It's definitely not aircraft grade.

I never suggested the pitting had anything to do with the grade of aluminum.

Have to see it to be sure....but, yeah, that's likely the story.

Is it possible it once was in a schools' inventory? That might explain the hand etching. That's the ticket, yeah, school boy drum, yeah..

Hi,

Not a metallurgist, so happy to be corrected. It is my understanding that while you CAN prepare aluminum for chrome plating; the Ludalloy shells were not adequately prepared for the chrome plating. The sort of pitting and flaking that you see on Ludalloy snares is a common feature for aluminum surfaces that have not been sufficiently prepped (cleaned of aluminum oxides as I understand it).

Because the problem is the underlying surface and the aluminum oxides inherent in the substrate, the acne came from within.

I know there are a few unblemished Ludalloys out there, and expect that some Ludalloy was better prepped.

Patrick

That's exactly correct, Patrick.

I recently heard that very same thing second hand from a Ludwig family member. The cleaning process before plating included an acid wash, and he suspected that a certain lack of control during that procedure led to the flaking problem down the road.