I customized this Ludwig Acrolite aluminum shell 5×14 black galaxy finish snare drum by adding black chrome tube lugs, rims, tension rods, butt plate and a hand painted P85 strainer. A Remo Corey Miller Tattoo Skyn batter head gave it some more attitude and a snare side ambassador and Puresound wires helped give it some crack. I did this as a fun way to trick out a lower end drum and ended up pleasantly surprised by the attack and overall sound. Meet “The Attackrolite!”
Here’s a video with notes about this snare and the work I did to get it back to good playing condition. The drum looks and sounds great! Really happy with how it came out.
I picked up a used Speed King pedal recently and quickly realized it was in pretty bad playing condition. I’m not a Speed King player but I knew they had to be quicker and looser than this. I did some homework and found a cult-like following of these pedals online. They get sluggish as they get older because the factory grease gets gunky and thick. I found some good lubricating tips but no real solution to remove the end caps and clean the bearings. They are friction fitted and most people seem to destroy them trying to take them off. Well, here’s a simple trick that worked perfectly for me. Now, if I can just do something about the classic Speed King rattling sounds…
I saw this 5×10″ Gretsch Steel Shell snare on eBay and thought it would be fun to check out. I’ve never really gotten into smaller snares or even piccolos but this was a pleasant surprise. After cleaning it up and changing the heads, it looks and sound great. Loud and bright with a lot of attack. A lot of sound from a cool little inexpensive drum.
I bought this kick drum several years ago and saved it for a project. The time has come. It was missing a hoop, a lug and half the t-rods and claws. After some good cleaning and hunting down the missing parts it’s complete and looks great! I liked it so much I’m now working on a matching floor tom and rack tom… a never ending cycle has begun!