You might try Scott's Liquid Gold. A really good wood restorer and moisturizer. It should also help with the odor.

Thanks for the input! A friend suggested Formby's Lemon Oil Treatment. What I don't know, however, is whether the application of either of these products would affect "the sound" of the drum. I would hope not.:(

murphys oil soap might also help you. it can be cut or diluted to your particular needs. its real mild and has a great odor. just be careful to not wipe that date stamp if there is one. they wipe right off unfortuneatly.

that sounds like a nice drum!

mike

You mite try some frebreeze after you clean it with other products,that will take out the smoke and musty smell. Or theres a spray you can buy at a auto parts store that is for bad oders like smoke. But its quite expensive.

my company buys that to remove oders form inside smei tractors.

You can also use denatured alcohol to clean it. It dries real fast and it would leave the wood as it was. Would you want to put any kind of wax or conditioner in a bare wood shell?

ALL: Appreciate the quick feedback! Can anyone address whether using any of the suggested products on the wooden shell would affect the actual sound of the drum in any way?

MLAYTON: There is a date stamp on the shell of June 9, 1959.

OldSchool!...

Some fine suggestions to be sure! I will tell you what I do, as I have encountered this VERY THING on some drums that I have purchased/restored...

If you want to remove the "smoke smell" and clean the interior ply at the same time without removing the date stamp, try an "Enzyme" based cleaner. I use "Kinght's Spray 9" which is probably a regional product, although I can't be sure. Another readily available cleaner that is along the same lines is good old "Fantastic" or even "409". Liberally spray the entire inner circumference of the shell... let it penetrate for about 30 seconds or so... and them wipe up the "sludge" with a paper towel or cloth of some kind. The inner ply should be free of the smoke smell, and cleaned at the same time, with no damage to anything on the inside. If you have concern for the date stamp, spray around it, and wipe that particular area gingerly. I have yet to lose a date stamp with this method/products. Also...

You asked if the "sound will change" by doing any of this... and the answer is... no. The only way you would be able to modify the sound would be by FILLING IN the inner ply with a material that would make it more "reflective", such as lacquer or polyurethane. These cleaning materials completely evaporate and leave nothing behind... thus ... the wood/drum is still as WFL/Ludwig initially sold it!

Tommyp

This post brings to mind something I have been wondering about. Someone here said, maybe it was you Tommy, that Buddy would always request a few extra coats of clear on his shells. Does that affect the rebound of the sticks or just the sound.

Lucky

An old trick I learned when I sold suits years ago, was to take a smoky smelling suit and hang it in a travel bag, then zip it closed with a dryer sheet inside. Next day, shazam! No more smoke smell!

Try tying your shells up in a trash bag with a few, leave them for a couple of days and see what happens. It might just do the trick and wont require any work or harm your finish. Walking