Hats won't sit straight

[Natman]

Hey guys, I just grabbed 2 pairs of hats last week: HHX Groove hats and Diril Primitive 15s. Anyway, the Dirils are always sloppy in how they close and I noticed they never sit one on top of the other no matter how I adjust the tilter. I changed the felt thinking it might be flattened on one spot or something, no dice. Then I pulled out my digital caliber and measured the holes in each bottom hat.

The Groove hat was bang on 0.500" while the Dirils are 0.515". Do you think that's enough to cause shifting of the bottom hat? Regardless, I want to fix this as the Dirils sound more interesting and I'm leaning towards selling the Groove hats. What can remedy this? Thanks for your tips!

[Russ]

Do they intentionally make the Dirils so they're uneven? 15's a big cymbal, may perhaps need something stronger to secure them?

[FlyByNight]

This really bothers me too. Most Sabian hihats i’ve played don’t sit straight. It doesn’t really affect the sound though I find

[N2Bluz]

My 70’s Zildjian Quick Beats have a rubber grommet on the center hole of the bottom hat. With the grommet, the bottom hat fits tight on the hi-hat post. You may try the same thing on your bottom hat. You can buy the grommet at most hardware stores.

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[drummerMD]

My 70’s Zildjian Quick Beats have a rubber grommet on the center hole of the bottom hat. With the grommet, the bottom hat fits tight on the hi-hat post. You may try the same thing on your bottom hat. You can buy the grommet at most hardware stores.

2F1CF0DD-D5E9-4F89-BDAB-7C85BE51AF57.jpeg

Yeah, Brian is right also try a Grom-bal which is similar. They are made for cymbals, though iin that application you would install it upside down on the Hi-Hat bottom cymbal so the flat side of the Grombal is facing down. I have Grombals on all of my cymbals and they are awesome!

[Bish]

Yeah, Brian is right also try a Grom-bal which is similar. They are made for cymbals, though iin that application you would install it upside down on the Hi-Hat bottom cymbal so the flat side of the Grombal is facing down. I have Grombals on all of my cymbals and they are awesome!

Interesting. I'd not heard of Grombals.

[slinky]

Interesting. I'd not heard of Grombals.

Me either ... interesting. The only thing I thought of was to try and find a larger diameter top cup ... sorry I don't have the technical name but the plastic piece that the pull rod goes through.

I guess it could be thickened up with something available around the house too..

[MDK]

Yeah Gromblas are pretty cool and protect the cymbals. although they do wear out so you need to check them once in awhile. They now come in a few different colors as well.

[N2Bluz]

Grombals are cool....
Just remember to NEVER get them wet and NEVER feed them after midnight.

[SpazApproved]

Grombals are cool....
Just remember to NEVER get them wet and NEVER feed them after midnight.

hahahaha
I've never wanted a perfectly straight pair of hi-hats so I'm not sure what to tell you to fix this.

[Natman]

^^ Good one N2Bluz

The post of the bottom hat (cup) measures 0.449" FWIW.

I went and ordered one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/Gibraltar-SC-.../dp/B000EEL6VO

And also these:
https://www.amazon.com/Cympad-OSSP-O...ywords=cympads

Neither costs much, worth a try...
I did make some progress by tightening the top hat. Usually I set it as the looser of the 2 but in this case the bottom is already loose and I get closer to the feel I want this way. It's odd but there's less offset and it sounds cleaner. Playing with the spring tension helped some too.

[drummerMD]

Me either ... interesting. The only thing I thought of was to try and find a larger diameter top cup ... sorry I don't have the technical name but the plastic piece that the pull rod goes through.

I guess it could be thickened up with something available around the house too..

The best thing you can do is go online and check them out. They've been around for a while. They stay on the cymbal. I put a flat chrome washer on then a felt washer on then set a cone or plastic sleeve with the sleeve part cut off, just the base part with the cone part facing up then put the cymbal on with the grom-bal an then I cap it off with a Tama plastic lock cap and that's it! I'll have to post pics! lol. You eliminate felt washers on top and more free cymbal movement when hitting them.

[Natman]

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Here's a pic of how the bottom hat sits on the cup post... Suppose I should have shown the offsets too but it's much better now @ around 1/16".

[gdmoore28]

If you find a solution that will make hi hats consistently sit perfectly when they are closed, you will solve a problem that has aggravated drummers since the invention of the hi hat. I've played for over fifty years, and it does not matter the brand or size of the HH cymbals or the brand of the HH stand, the bottom cymbal seems to be possessed. For twenty gigs they will close perfectly, then out of nowhere they will not. I've gone through a succession of "remedies" from various felt sizes and thicknesses to different HH seats and tilters, and nothing provides day-in, day-out repeatability. I gave up fixes years ago, but I haven't given up the frustration. (Though it is an insignificant problem, considering . . . .)

GeeDeeEmm

[Russ]

Just an opinion here, but would you really want them to sit perfectly straight? Your sticks would likely hit them from an unsympathetic angle, leading to faster cracking. Which would then lead to you spending more to replace your investments, and you shouldn't have to do that often, right? Maybe it's just better this way?

[Natman]

Hey guys, just a note to say that the Cympads came in and they do bring out some highs and sustain. I was surprised, didn't expect much difference. It does nothing to centre my bottom hat, but the sound is improved slightly. Works awesome on my ride and china too, haven't tried the crashes or splash yet, they use Grombals... Stay tuned

[Natman]

Just an opinion here, but would you really want them to sit perfectly straight? Your sticks would likely hit them from an unsympathetic angle, leading to faster cracking. Which would then lead to you spending more to replace your investments, and you shouldn't have to do that often, right? Maybe it's just better this way?

No, definitely don't want "perfect" straightness, they were just WAY off when I started this thread. I shoulda taken a pic... Got a piece of heat-shrink tubing on the post of the cup, helps a little bit but still very loose. Hoping that rubber seat will offer some control?

[Russ]

I wanna say something not just to you but to everyone here. Much as i've tried, i've never once managed to get my hi hats straight, and I mean perfectly on the dot straight. I don't personally feel like there's a big meaning to, you're probably a great drummer - do you really feel like you need absolute straightness to make good music? I don't; I think you could probably do it without it, if a hi hat bends at a sympathetic angle that just makes it all the easier to play. It's a plus for you, a positive, one more thing that makes drumming easier and more fun to do yeah?