Hi Jeff. Maybe? I'll see where I am on these and let you know if that's ok? Thanks buddy.

Question. I was taking a close look at the bearing edges with a mag glass tonight. Just going over them I saw a stamped letter "F" in each re ring on the 13" tom shell. The 16" does not have it. I still need to check the bass. These are 3 ply Jasper shells with 3 ply re rings. Anyone ever see this? Both F's are in the same spot in each ring. What the heck is it? I've seen where some workers would initial the labels. This label has a "S or 5" upper left corner. Did any of them stamp the shells too?

The F stamp was by the guy who built the shell. the Initials on the tag were from the person who assembled the drum.

Oh ok thanks Dan! Good to know.

1 hard to find Rogers swivo tom mount.....check! Note the shorter vertical pattern. Another one off the list! Mikes eagle eye spotted this one at the CT show.

Way to go Mike!

Glad you got it Glenn.

This update is not very exciting and it's probably boring to most. But it's needed and important part of this restoration so here goes..........

Going into this project I knew I'd have to deal with the fragile BnB brass lugs. Most crack in time due to constant spring pressure over the years. I was lucky to score some nice uncracked originals. But the latest batch all had small cracks that had to be repaired. TommyK on the Rogers and DFO forums came up with a brilliant fix. His have been repaired and under tension for 5 years. So I feel it's a good solid fix. I was going to try something different but this was pretty simple and effective. So I went with it. It involves using a steel epoxy putty and JB weld. He used Propoxy 20. I could not find it locally so I went with JB Welds "SteelStik" which is the same basic steel reinforced epoxy putty. A in stock item at the Home Depot. It works very well. I did a test lug that was badly cracked to get the feel for the repair process. And how much putty to stuff in each end. If I goofed it was ok. But turned out very nice and it's now a good lug to use. You need to make a tool to create a footprint for the insert in the putty inside the lug. 1 insert, a bolt and nut and something to make a little handle to hold is needed. Pretty simple.

First lugs are taken apart (springs, inserts and felts removed) and I use needle nose plyers to compress the springs to remove them. You can further crack the lugs removing the springs if your not careful. Been there and did that!

Next I taped the outside of the lugs with blue painters tape. I cut the insert holes with a Xacto knife.

Then I cut the putty into small pieces. It's a 2 part deal you kneed with your fingers to activate and mix the 2 parts. Wear gloves!!

Insert the putty into each end and shape and form with your fingers. Again wear gloves. Then use the tool to create the insert footprint and to press excess putty through the lug hole. Takes a little time to shape but pretty easy. Then take a bolt and chase the lug screw holes to remove any excess putty. And also to be sure the screws will clear and not be blocked when you assemble them to the shell.

I let the putty sit and cure a bit them I go back with JB weld and reinforce the tab areas. Use the xacto knife to clean up any excess mess. They will dry overnight and I'll assemble them tomorrow. I can use a file or dremel to remove any material if needed. But I was careful to be neat so hope cleanup is minor.

That's pretty much it. Boring I know but needed to repair them. Here's a few pics....

That is a very cool repair! I still wouldn't over-tension them though. Tune the kit to LPP, (Lowest Possible Pitch) it'll sound killer and your repaired lugs will hold up.

Nice repair job on those lugs.

John

Thanks John it's a pretty good fix. Once that putty and JB weld sets it is like a rock. Good stuff. Yep I like low tuning so it should fit right in. I just finished the JB weld part on 7 lugs. Had to chase drips it a bit till it cured. But came out nice.

It's been a while since the last update. And some new things to report. First a belated thank you to MikeC. A few months ago I saw some Rogers snares on the GC site that were in Manchester. I asked Mike if he's seen them. And how they looked. Well Mike took the time to stop by in person and inspect both drums and send me the details! What a nice guy and one of the many great members here. I had planned on trying to grab one but a few other things developed. But I wanted to give him a huge thank you for taking his time to check things out for me!! Your a true Gentleman Mike!

Well next is a pretty ok milestone for me. For the first time since I've had these shells (few years) they are now with all B&B lugs!! Bass has tom mount, spur mounts, all with collets. Still needs hoops, claws and T rods. Small tom is pretty much complete except for original T rods. Floor tom has all lugs but still needs legs, leg brackets and T rods. Still a long way to go but starting to look like something. Here's a few pics. Sorry the basement is dark and not the best place for pics. Too cold outside for pics. LOL. I have 2 more things to update which will follow this.