this is a natural stain not painted, I just stained some slingerland shells, you'll need to sand all the stain off and start with bare exposed wood, get a nice brown mahogany stain your set!

I meant stain haha sorry. I've never sanded stain off I guess. I won't have to take off too much will I? And what grit do you finish off with, like 320? You recommend any brand/color of stain?

Yeah I knew that's what you meant, I use an electric orbital sander, and I start with 120 grit sand paper and go down to 600 grit, but 320 should suffice. you have to remove a fair bit of wood, but the sander will make this a much easier and quicker process than by hand sanding.

Oh man. If you do that, it will kill the appeal of that kit, in my opinion. That is a sweet looking kit. Have you used any of the scratch hiding products? Some of that can be taken care of with a good polish and some scratch wax. Dang, I hate to see a beautiful kit get ruined. Do what you will, I guess. It's your property. Have you thought about selling it or trading it to someone who would appreciate it? Curious.

If you go to a real woodworking place not a big box home center, they'll have crayons in 100 colors to match the stain and hide small scratches. It's always better to leave them as stock as possible.

Some of the scratches are all pretty deep so I don't think there is any hope in hiding them. I'm not thinking of selling them anytime soon. But I don't want to hurt the value of them. I wouldn't think it would hurt it too much if done right? I'd like to play this kit in public sometime but it's so beat up I don't even want to. I'm pretty confident I can do it right. I am pretty picky, I spent 3 months sanding my car down to get it perfect before I painted it haha.

"selling it or trading it to someone who would appreciate it?"

Really? I bought this kit beat up, I learned how to play drums on this kit alone. No one will ever appreciate it more than me.

anyone ever use this product?

Formby's® Conditioning Furniture Refinisher

Formby's® Conditioning Furniture Refinisher is specially formulated to gently dissolve old varnish, lacquer and shellac without chemicals that may harm wood. It renews the wood's natural beauty without the need for sanding and scraping. The rich wood patina of antiques and furniture is enhanced while leaving the wood conditioned. Built-in conditioners rich in natural oils penetrate deep into the wood to protect it against drying and cracking. Simply wipe it on and wipe away the old finish. Then a light buffing is all that's needed to prepare the surface for an application of protective finish.

I didn't mention value. Since you did, it will plummet if you strip and sand.

Generally speaking, if you sell or trade to someone who would appreciate it, you would not be in the set of potentials. No one inferred that you don't appreciate the kit. Just that, if you sell/trade it, try to make sure it's to someone who would give it the love.

No need for a defensive posture. I'm not attacking. I'm just bummed that the kit will be ruined ... in my opinion.

plummet from what to what? How much you thinking?