IMHO some drums where the wrap is in such bad shape should be brought back to life and need to be redone but that is the owners decision. One of the more prominent VD collectors and drum refurbishers Joey "Boom" has done a fantastic job preserving the drums in their "aged state" and they look fantastic. Some collectors like them in their "natural aged state" and others don't mind them refurbished. It really depends on what you plan on doing with the drum. If your going to continue to play it then go for it so it really shines. If your going to flip it then maybe put it for sale and offer to either restore or sell as it is. If you redo it you would need to disclose that it has been refurbished.

There's absolutely nothing visually unattractive about your drum; looks appropriately worn and used. However, it's yours, and you should do what you wish.

I suggest, before you go full-strip, to give Howard's Restor-A-Finish/Feed'n'Wax combo a try. This product is used for tables that may have water rings and slight marring etc, but doesn't warrant a full bare-wood restoration. I used it on a set of M-stamp Singerlands a couple of years ago,with excellent results. Those drums had been left near a window untouched for years, so certain panels were sun-drenched, yet the others were aged appropriately. The Howard's product slightly melds the old finish in with the new. I simply wiped it in; it suggests you can can apply with fine steel wool to even out nicks like your shell is showing. I got it at Lowes.

.... found some before, during, and after photos.

I'm more of the feeling that unless I am immortal, I am merely the custodian of anything I own. They are only original once so unless something is really far gone, I try to do as little as is necessary to preserve and make a drum usable and presentable.

You have only shown us a couple of close ups. How about some pictures that show the whole drum? Any blemish is going to look like crap close up. Seeing the whole drum put's it all in context. If the rest of the drum looks like that I would say a complete disassembly, polishing of the metal parts and good cleaning of the shell and perhaps a coat of Johnson's paste wax would be probably all I would do.

http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/showthread.php?t=65670

Here is a link to my original post about this drum - there are more pictures on that thread.

Thanks for your tips and advice.

If it were mine I would detail it nicely but the leave the finish as is.

Mike

I wouldn't attempt to stain it. You'll only make it look slightly better at a distance, but up close, it won't look the same and will stand out even more. We all get a few scars here and there through life's battles....old drums have scars, too.

2 cents

Ok - thanks for the advice.

I am in Cambodia at present and it can be hard getting various lotions and potions (it has only had a bit of furniture polish). I am heading back to Scotland in a month or so and should be able to track down some of the wax's you recommend.

New heads and (maybe) snare wires should complete it nicely.

That drum is what would be called a "survivor". It is in great shape for its age, shows scars from its life, and has all of its original parts.

In the collector car world, in the not so distant past, a car in such condition would have been immediately stripped down to bare metal and restored to better than new condition. Not that long ago, people finally wised up and realized that an original car in "survivor" condition was much more interesting and valuable than something that was so perfect that it would spend all of its life on a trailer.

I would clean and detail that drum and leave it as is.