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The first vintage & Custom Drum Magazine, since 1988
This drum is from 2012 It was made for me by the great Adrian Kirchler from Italy. It is 7" x 14" brass with 24k gold plating. The shell is of 2 piece construction with soldered bearing edges like the 1920s Standard or Black Beauty models from Ludwig, although the "triangle" of the bearing edge is smaller in size [profile] than the
1920s drums.
Aaron Latos is a young drum maker from Newburgh, NY who is making hand crafted nickel/brass snare drums.
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See, play, and win the new Famous Drum Company “Celebrity” single ply snare drum at the Chicago Drum Show.
Read moreIt's constructed of brass in the old school 1920s Ludwig style soldered at the center bead. The bearing edges are also soldered back to the shell as in the 1920s Ludwigs. It's plated in 24k gold.
Read moreThese two snares are made out of the same constructed 6-ply shell - walnut (1) / ash (4) / walnut (1). Walnut is known for its classic and attractive characteristics for tone and visual aesthetic. Sonically, walnut’s tonal colors can be characterized as having a big and dark low end to it. On the other side of the coin, ash is known for its warmer highs and mids compared to maple. Having ash as the core and walnut as your outer plies allow you to obtain a lot of low end in the higher tuning range while not sounding “choked”. These drums will also have a deep and darker low end than maple. Both snares have a slight round over on the outer edge with a 45-degree inner cut. This allows the snare to give you both body and lively overtones.
It all started at George’s Drum Shop, my retail store in Jackson Mississippi from 1985 - 1987. Joe Partridge was my right hand man there, doing minor repair and refurbishing jobs like taking the old wrap off of drums and re-wrapping them (actually burning the wrap off of the old volatile pre-OSHA drums - the more sadistic customers wanted to be called when we did that so they could come watch!) Joe would also drill holes to put new hardware on some of the customers’ drums. We didn’t actually build any drums at that store, per se, just sold typical name brand drums and repaired then. Joe and I would start building drums separately in the years after that first shop .closed. But, I had some foil stickers made that looked like drum badges with the name of the store and a cool looking drum. So that was as far as we got with the drum building in those first years - badges!
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“This is a really unique sounding snare! The resonance seems to have a lot of warm complexity to it. It’s very crisp and sensitive. Playing light quick ghost notes and buzz rolls felt super comfortable and articulate. It really surprised me when I moved it down to a lower open tuning - this whole other body and fullness came out of the drum... huge! Overall, this is just a beautiful instrument - sonically and aesthetically” - Kris Redus
Read moreI’d like to share some of our conversations in order for you to get to know Mike as I did, describe a few examples of his work, and also explain how his approach differs from that of other gifted hand engravers, like John Aldridge and Adrian Kirchler.
Read moreThe shells are all hand built in my garage. I do have more pictures of building and complete. The “show piece” is the snare made from maple and Purple Heart.
Read moreDrumSellers.com is starting to attract drum builders who find it a great place to sell their wares. This month we focus on a maker of very unusual drums and percussion instruments, Ken Lovelett, an accomplished percussionist who is spending a lot of time these days inventing new kinds of percussion instruments.
Read moreI like to think of John Aldridge as a “Drum Jedi Master”. He is an endless wellspring of drum history, wisdom, experience and creativity. In this sequel to Part 1, I wanted to share some examples of John’s unique custom works with personal insights from John about their design. Many of these drums are from my personal collection and are greatly treasured. It is my hope that drummers will not only appreciate John’s incredible versatility, but also realize that “drum art” can be truly personal. Drum engraving is not restricted to scrolls and florets!
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Ritscher, drummer and drum builder from Osthofen sees himself as an "upcycler". He produces high-quality drums from old wood. He prefers to handle staves from old wine barrels.
Meet Sam Bacco, our new head of production.
Read moreThe first of these is the best-known drum engraver of our time, John Aldridge. Some years ago, John Aldridge wanted a hand engraved drum. When he discovered he couldn't afford it, John learned how to do it himself, and brought this lost art form back to the drum industry.
Read moreFamous Drums “2x4” Snare - available by order - contact George Lawrence
Read moreDrumWrapper manufactured by Famous Drums/Not So Modern Drummer
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Rick Smith presented another successful vintage and custom drum show at The Sphinx Shriners Center in Newington, Connecticut. This years’ featured clinician’s were Gregg Bissonette and Richie Morales. Once again, both the clinics and dealer booths were jammed with drumming enthusiasts of all ages. It was standing room only in the auditorium for Gregg and Richie. Both of their presentations were educational, inspirational, and entertaining
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Look for our interview with Ken Harck in the next issue of Not So Modern Drummer. Go to www.chicagodrum.com to see their beautiful snares and sets, as well as Slingerland original and replacement parts.
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George Lawrence of Not So Modern Drummer and Lucas Jacobson of Eccentric Systems Drum Company entered into an agreement on November 26th for Not So Modern Drummer to handle sales, marketing and U.S. manufacturing/assembly of the Eccentric Systems products. Eccentric was founded by Lucas Jacobson, engineer, and inventor of the eccentric cam for the DW5000 bass drum pedals and designer of the DW9000 bass drum pedals and hi-hat pedals. Lucas later patented and manufactured his own products. The most well known Eccentric product is the Quick Torque Cam, an add-on to bass drum pedals that increases the drummer's comfort, control and speed.
Read moreThe DrumWrapper, our exclusive drum covering laminate roller and press manual machine for drum manufacturers, custom drum builders, drum repair shops, and hobbyists is back in production.
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