Shell Finish

[stereodave70]

I didn't really know where to post this one...(you can move it if it offends anyone here).
A little background on me first....I just recently started playing again. I kept my kit all these years, but I haven't played it regularly in over 10 years. It's a common story...got married...had a baby...the drums obviously lost that debate. I figured in a couple of years she (the baby) would be able to handle it. Then came baby girl number 2.....the drums stayed in storage for ...a couple more years.....then came baby girl number 3....so tack on a few more years of storage.
Well now baby girl number 3 is 6 years old now, the wife split over 4.5 years ago and left the kids with me, and I am back to playing again. It's been a long break, but I am getting my skills back. A co-worker and friend talked me into checkin out being their drummer as they just canned their's and need a new one. Been playin for about 3 weeks now....and it feels great...like the pieces are falling right into place....the rest of the band is excited...i'm excited ....it all just feels great!!!
Here is my problem...A few years ago I made an attempt to get back into drumming, and my the coating on my snare, a fake vinyl kinda chrome stuff had rotted. Remember, it had been in storage in a basement for years. It looked terrible...so, I decided ...It had to go. So I removed all the hardware and removed the coating. Thinking whatever is underneath has got to look better than this. I found a Beautiful 5 ply maple shell just waiting to shine. So I sanded off the glue and waxed it up with some wood wax I had laying around. It turned out beautifull. Then looking at the rest of my drums....all 9 other pieces of my 20 year old Ludwig set and said to myself...."I have to do this"....so I did....and now I have this Beautiful 10 piece Maple Ludwig kit. And now you're wondering ...."whats the problem?"......I'm in a band now and that means moving them every week-end. I'm finding that they are extremely vulnurable...every little nick turns into a noticible scratch.....what if it rains???

So, My question...finally...is what do I finish them with...I am definately staying with the natural maple. But, what is best for drums...I'm not real fond of polyuerethane. What other products are out there? Are there any other do-it-yourselfers out there?

Thanks for reading, I know it's longer than a normal post.

Dave

[2slow]

Dave, I want to commend you on raising your daughters !!!!!!! I thought about the drum situation you have and I would recommend getting a giging set and keep the ludwigs at home to practice !! There are many fair priced kits out now and if you shop used you can get a great deal ! Just get the drums and use the cymbals you have if money is tight.

[stereodave70]

Money is way to tight to consider buying another set. Besides...I seen what these are capable of looking like....check out funkymcstain in our member list he has a pic of his kit.....it is gorgeous....drop dead gorgeous.....that is what I want my shells to look like!

[pastor_bob]

Welcome to Drum Chat Dave! I'm sure that you'll get some good advice, but I do know that the process will not be easy, as I have read in another thread. I really can't help you out here, but I also want to commend you for taking care of your daughters. There should be more of that kind of dedication in the world.

Good to have you here Dave!

[bongobro]

...I kept my kit all these years, but I haven't played it regularly in over 10 years. It's a common story...got married...had a baby...the drums obviously lost that debate. I figured in a couple of years she (the baby) would be able to handle it. Then came baby girl number 2.....the drums stayed in storage for ...a couple more years.....then came baby girl number 3....so tack on a few more years of storage.
Well now baby girl number 3 is 6 years old now, the wife split over 4.5 years ago and left the kids with me, and I am back to playing again. It's been a long break, but I am getting my skills back...

Been playin for about 3 weeks now....and it feels great...like the pieces are falling right into place....the rest of the band is excited...i'm excited ....it all just feels great!!!...

...and now I have this Beautiful 10 piece Maple Ludwig kit. And now you're wondering ...."whats the problem?"......I'm in a band now and that means moving them every week-end. I'm finding that they are extremely vulnurable...every little nick turns into a noticible scratch.....what if it rains???

So, My question...finally...is what do I finish them with...I am definately staying with the natural maple. But, what is best for drums...I'm not real fond of polyuerethane. What other products are out there? Are there any other do-it-yourselfers out there?

Thanks for reading, I know it's longer than a normal post.

Dave

What a great "comeback" story, Dave! Sounds like it's as if you never left!

I have to defer finishing to the experts, bro', but I wanted to commend you (as PB did below) for stickin' to the job on your daughters... on the drums and on the young ladies, too!

...I also want to commend you for taking care of your daughters. There should be more of that kind of dedication in the world.

Good to have you here Dave!

[coke_can]

its great to have such a good person like you in this forum.

i happen to be a do it yourselfer on my snare drum. i took the wrap off and then stained it and used polyurethane, but if you aren't into using the polyurethane i would suggest a laquer finish. if you go to the minwax website it will tell you how to use all of this stuff

[stereodave70]

WOW!!...thank you everyone for all the commendations...but really I only did what any good parent would have done in our situation. There has been ups and downs in our relationships, but so far its been a great journey.........but we haven't seen puberty yet.....any ladies in the house that are willing to help when that time comes???...lol.....so far, this sounds like more than a great forum, but more like a great group of friends/community.

coke_can: How has the finish lasted on your snare?...I have heard good and bad things about polyurethane...but the bad made me nervous about using it on something as important as a 20 year old Ludwig kit. Something about air getting under the hardenned finish and parts just "chipping" up. I'll check on minwax's website and see what other stuff they have available.

Thank you everyone for your support

[pastor_bob]

Dave, you are so right about the family/community atmosphere here at Drum Chat. We are all different, and yet we respect one another, and come together for mutual support and encouragement. We help each other with all kinds of stuff.

[funkymcstain]

hey bro, great to hear you are getting back into drumming. i was kinda in your boat a few years ago. getting back to drumming has revived my life in many ways, wich in turn has bettered my childrens lives. i would def. get some kind of clearcoat on those old luddies. there are some great drum builder websites and forums out there that will tell you just what to do.

[Stevo42w]

2pac clear coat..... its standard to cars :P its what i been told to coat things with. its relatively thick and tough too *as you can imagine on cars*

Congrats on the kids! :> It would be a tough feate.... specially by your self when the going starts getting tough. specially 3 on 1 !!! AHHHHHHHHH

There are also places that re pain and re surface drums.... So they may be able to tell you and knock you up on a deal on a better clear to paint on :>

[cdaug]

way to stick it out man. thats just awesome! i took about a 10 year break when my wife and kids came along but got back into it like i had never left. i think it made me a better drummer (the appreciation of the art). i prefer a laquer finish although it is a bit vulnerable for gigging.

[Grissom]

Hi Dave-

First off, let me add my appreciation for the focus on family. Definitely not the easy road, but definitely th right one!

Re: refinishing - Funky / Stevo / cdaug have the right ideas - I would also check out some woodworking web sites as well.

Here is a link to some generally known wood finishes and their properties:
http://www.woodanswers.com/documents/FinishingGuide.pdf

What you will find is that most finished fall into a 2 main categories: Those that can be touched up/repaired and those that required removal if you ever want to refinish.

While Poly is a durable finish, if you ever want to reapply, you will need to completely resand and start over. it does not repair well at all.

Lacquer, while less durable, is solvent based, so small scratches/scuffs can essentially be repaired by wiping some back on.

Wood finishing is an art in and of itself... While I enjoy woodworking when I can, the finishing stuff is still an area of experimentation.

BTW - You mentioned that you had used a wax on your drums - make sure you use some type of a test board coated with the wax to test any new finish you want to use. You will have some adhesion issues if you try and put something over the bare wax - you may need to resand first to get the results you want

[stereodave70]

Thanks for the help guys...and all of the words of encouragement.

I work at a truck shop and we have a bodyshop with a booth....so I'll talk to our painter and see what he says.

A quick search on the web today brought the idea of "polyester" supposedly it is harder than uerthanes and clearer.... anyone ever heard of this?

Whatever I decide, I'll take before during and after photos to keep everyone informed on the project.

[Grissom]

here's a quick reference on wood finishes:
http://www.woodanswers.com/documents/FinishingGuide.pdf

If I had a choice and access top good spray equipment, I would be spraying lacquer for sure. Although less durable, it is easier to repair in the long run than poly.

[Stevo42w]

i havent heard about it but the tougher and clearer it is the better. so long as it doesnt react with what you have done with the wood too.

[Little Roober]

Thanks for the help guys...and all of the words of encouragement.

I work at a truck shop and we have a bodyshop with a booth....so I'll talk to our painter and see what he says.

A quick search on the web today brought the idea of "polyester" supposedly it is harder than uerthanes and clearer.... anyone ever heard of this?

Whatever I decide, I'll take before during and after photos to keep everyone informed on the project.

I've been considering stripping the wrap off my kit and keepin it all natural. Please follow up with the pics when you're finished. Good luck.