John, you've made a ton of progress on these and it's only been a little over a week. 8 days today. Very nice touch on saving the plating on that hardware. Not easy to do and save. Hope the hands are holding up ok. By far one of the coolest drum kits and restoration thread I've seen on VDF. This one is a poster child for Nevins calendar project. From the rolling floor tom cradle to the cool little sizzle splash. It's all there!

I don't think he has hit Brain Surgeon yet.:D

Absolutely *stunning* what you're doing with those rods and claws. I wouldn't have thought it was even possible...

Mitch

Hey, John's a fun guy to hang out with but he ain't practicing on me!Mind Blowi

Purdie Shuffle

John,

Regarding cleaning that hardware up. Soak your parts in white vinegar overnight, nowhere near as tough, I've done all my rusted/slightly rusted parts in it, I was a bit skeptical at first but it sure does work. Makes buffing 10 times easier as well. Give it a go.

I just put all the B/D rods in a long plastic tub, made sure the vinegar covers them and put the lid on. 24 hours later take them out and you'll see a difference straight away even before you put them on the wheel.

Give them a wipe when you take them out of the vinegar and leave them to "air off" for about 10 15mins before buffing them up.

Let me know how you get on when you've done you first batch. I know you'll do it every time after you see the results.

Dave

> Purdie: What areas of work have you not entered??

LOL - Dan, I'm going to knock you over... When I was in my teens I was signed by a production company based in LA to be the on-call session drummer for their studio in New York (Elan Assoc./Bengor Studios) I became addicted to heroin and had to go into rehab at the tender age of 19. When I graduated from the Phoenix House program I went to work for the Addiction Services Agency in NYC doing very specialized 'crisis intervention counseling' and I eventually became the director of a a live-in therapeutic community with 15 staff members and 98 crazy teen-agers who were in for drug rehab. I went to three state prisons once a week each to conduct group therapy sessions for the inmates who were drug remands. I created and started the first food bank in NYC to feed the homeless back in 1975 (Project Return Foundation). After my two kids came along I needed to make more money to support us (human services work is demanding and gratifying but it doesn't pay well, it's all Federal and state funded agency work,) so I bounced around from job to job for a few years searching for my niche. I worked for 6 months with a cabinet maker and learned how to use tools and work with wood, I worked for a painting contractor for almost a year and learned how to prep and paint all kinds of surfaces using paints and stains, you name it. Then there was 6 mos. at New York City Community College in a machine tool technology course because I thought I was going to become a machinist????? I eventually went to printing school with a focus on the graphics end of the business. I apprenticed for three years, worked as a journeyman for another 22 years, and when the printing trade died in NY, I opened and operated a mom & pop style music store for 5 years. During that time I attended an Interfaith Seminary, became an ordained Interfaith minister and I also produced 6 half hour music instructional programs for NY Cable TV. During that same time I played drums in a SRV/Hendrix cover band. Mind you, all my life, I never stopped playing drums. I worked in bands on and off all my life. When the music store went under I went back to school at my alma mater Long Island University and took a two year course in computer graphics. I supported myself creating websites and maintaining them for other people. I also oil paint, I practiced Aikido back in the 70's and I used to play chess at the club level (Marshall Chess Club in NY) My hobby and my passion has always been drums, so here I am.

There's more, Dan. I didn't mention 15 years working with UFO abduction researcher, Budd Hopkins and his Intruders Foundation online. TV, radio, interviews, if you watch any of the UFO programming on TV once in awhile a program comes up that I participated in. I've been told repeatedly by some people I respect that I really need to write a book...

But yes, I have done 'some stuff' in my time.

John

I use apple cider vi*****. Leave it soak overnight. Wipe and rinse with water. It takesalot of the crude off. Try it. Dave has good advice.

Jerry - Dave, Thank you! I know about pre-soaking, I've used the Dawn dishsoap and water method for decades. I just figured that if I had to do the parts at the buffing station anyway, I'd just skip the soak part and clean the parts mechanically. So far (fingers and toes crossed,) it's working. I'm just trying to save a step. Keep a good thought for me that all the other hardware turns out equally well...

Again and as always, your input is very much appreciated.

John

I was kind of wondering that myself. Overnight soak in white vinegar takes the rust right off. I always keep a big bottle of that dollar store white vinegar. That stuff eats the rust off. Then buff them. Looks like they are cleaning up really nice. Do you have any chrome loss or are they nickel ?

Tim - every piece of hardware on this kit is nickel over brass! Even the small parts are heavy. So far, the nickel is holding up under the wheel, but like I mentioned earlier I'm only using the wheel to knock the encrusted rust and gunk off the parts. If I use too much pressure against the wheel there is a very real danger of blowing through the nickel to either the copper layer, or the brass below that. They really are cleaning up nicely. Stuff looks like 'new' to me and I'm holding it my hand.

I just finished the shell. It came out as good as I could get it. Again, NOVUS 3, 2, 1. I dressed the bearing edges using 00-00 steel wool and butchers wax. I had to address two small issues with the wrap: 1 1/2" of seam lift which I glued and clamped overnight, -done- and a 1/2 hairline crack I found on the bottom side of the drum. The repair was done the same way, carpenters glue on a toothpick and it is invisible because when I went back to look for it, I couldn't find it!

A couple of shots of the shell... see photos

I'll get some 'daylight' shots when the drum has been reassembled.

John