Basic Drum Shell/Hardware Cleaning & Maintenance | Season Three, Episode 36
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- Опубліковано 27 вер 2024
- Drums are generally beautiful instruments and can last beyond a lifetime if taken care of. This week we explore some methods for cleaning drum shells of various types along with some approaches for cleaning hardware. We’re featuring a lacquer finish, stain/satin/raw finish, and an aluminum shell.
Please note: there are plenty of alternatives out there and we’d LOVE to hear what you’ve had experience with in the past. These have worked quite well for us! Please ALWAYS test these methods in a small, hidden area on the drum in the event that the results aren’t positive. We do not accept responsibility in any way.
Lacquer Shell: Griot’s Garage 3-in-1 Ceramic Wax
Satin/Raw Shell: Watco Tung Oil
Tension Rods: White Lithium Grease
Hardware: 0000 Steel Wool
Aluminum Shell: Eagle One Nevr Dull
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Signal chain:
Mics - Focusrite Clarett 8Pre USB & OctoPre - MacPro w/Pro Tools 12.8
Recorded at 48kHz / 24bit
Focusrite Clarett 8Pre USB tinyurl.com/Cl...
Focusrite Clarett OctoPre tinyurl.com/Cl...
Full kit: AKG C414 at drummer's perspective
Snare drum & tom tom close mics: Shure SM57
Bass drum: AKG D112 outside
Drums:
Pearl Masters Maple Custom Extra snare
Witt Percussion Beech Steam Bent snare
60’s Ludwig Acrolite snare
60’s Gretsch Round Badge Bass Drum (20x14”)
Drumheads:
Snare: Evans G12 / Snare Side 300
Bass Drum: Evans G12 Coated (batter & reso)
Hosted by: Cody Rahn
Production: Ben O'Brien Smith @ Cadence Independent Media
Production Partners: Evans Drumheads, Promark Drumsticks
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I’m into my third month of drumming, I’m so thankful I found this channel. The content is unreal!
Way cool! We're glad you found us. There's plenty of tutorials on tuning and setup throughout the channel. If you're really enjoying what we've produced, please consider joining our Patreon to help support our efforts and make it possible to continue. Cheers! -Ben
That’s awesome! I wish I knew of all these resources right off the bat when I started drums. Junior in high school, been playing drums since 6th grade, and still learning something new everyday. Rock on 🤘🏼!
@@SoundsLikeADrum I just subscribed to your site. I buy old drums and flip them like you do. Yesterday, I just bought a set of Gretsch Catalina's Dark Cherry Satin finish. They are only a year, but really dirty. I was told to use Pledge furniture polish to clean them, but I think I'll try your Tung Oil suggestion.
I’ve restored a few chrome over brass Rogers Dynasonics. One from the early-mid 60s and three from the mid-late 70s. Long story short, removed all hardware, washed everything with dawn dish soap. When dried, I went over everything with mothers chrome polish. Makes them look so beautiful and makes me feel so bad about putting fingerprints on them after.
Hey guys, I just wanted to say thank you for such a great content.
Thanks so much!
"That also smells really nice!"
ARE YOU SUGGESTING MY DRUMS DON'T ALREADY SMELL LIKE THE BREATH OF THE GODDESS HERSELF?!
[goes to sniff drums]
The person who told you about the power drill and the steel wool had to be RDAVIDR! That dude swears by that method and the lithium grease lol
Nope, been doing that for quite some time now but we do love David's work. Can't remember if I showed it to Cody or not but this has been something I've used for almost 20 years now. -Ben
One tip I learned cleaning up old bicycles that had surface rust on the chrome was to pour vinger on a piece of tinfoil and rub the tin foil against the rusted/ pitted section. Works great. Won't remove all pitting but will remove most all the rust. Love your videos, get more out of what you have rather than get more stuff. Brilliant.
I've just got my first acoustic set after playing on the old electronic kit for the past 5 years. This is really helpful!
Next time you're going to make a video about cleaning, please show footage of the actual cleaning process you went through with your drums as well as pictures from before and after the cleaning, so it is easy to see what effect your methods had. Video is a visual medium so use the power of images!
yup thought the same thing
Great video as always! A quick tip for chrome hardware is to use crumpled up aluminum foil and water/wd40/windex instead of steel wool. Some vintage (and some newer) chrome isn’t very high quality and will scratch, even with the finest steel wool.
I just completed a deep-clean on my 2004 Pearl SMX Sessions. That Griot's 3-in-1 is amazing! The drums shine like new and tune up nicely with a dab of lithium on the tension rods. Thanks for the direction!
I've used Meguiars Mirror Glaze 26 carnauba wax on my lacquer kits for years...it's great because it leaves NO white dust when wiping it off..and it's a mirror finish that lasts a very long time with the added bonus of UV protection as well.
It ain't cheap, but I'd use nothing else.
Love you guys, but I disagree on steel wool on chrome. (Especially on vintage stuff!) The steel wool can cause microabrasions in the chrome that lead to a cloudy appearance. To remove dirt and such from hardware and lugs, I use Bon Ami or Barkeeper's Friend and a super soft toothbrush.
Alternatively, Evaporust for rusty parts is the most insane and helpful product. There are few things like it. Quick-Glo for chrome polish is also awesome because it's a wax that cleans and protects at the same time.
(And for old wraps, nothing beats the Novus 1, 2 and 3 plastic products. )
Sometimes it feels illegal to watch your content - as if I should've payed for it..
Unbelievably helpful and important stuff!
I read somewhere to use a warm damp soft rag with some dishwashing soap. It worked for me on my lacquer finish. Love that outro drummer!
I learned something new for this
Shout out to "Nevr Dull" lol, i've been using it to clean up drums and hardware for years
Dirty rims and lugs in a mesh bag take a trip through the dishwasher before I scrub with 0000 Steel wool and the polishing wheel. Learn to love the maintenance!
By God just a simple cleaning
For chrome I use Flitz polish and Novus towels. If the dirt is bad I do a pass with the towel dampened first, then hit it with the Flitz then a microfiber towel to finish
This is a great vid, thanks... I have used Nevr-Dull in the past, it works. But I prefer Dursol or Autosol Metal Polish, and it works even better than any other metal polish - especially on Chrome! I just restored a gorgeous late 1960's 5-Line Rogers Dynasonic snare drum that looked like it had never been taken care of since bought new... no pitting, but really dull and filthy. Looks brand new now! Next, I am digging into a 1920's Leedy snare drum that looks super dull, with rust here and there too... steel wool first, then my fav metal polish to finish off the job!
Tin foil and a little bit of water also cleans chrome hardware as well. Great video as always!
Really enjoyed this one guys. A lot of great tools that I know I can implement for my drum maintenance clients. To clean hardware I have used WD40 and aluminum foil. Works out get, I’ll also look into the Iron wool as well. Keep up the great work guys.
New to drums, just bought a used Tama imperial star set and I'm excited to start playing!
Nice, on-point and informative video. Thank you!
Magic erasers can do wonders on the metal pieces
Thanka for sharing this one! Watched after you guys recently mentioned you'd already done a video on setup and cleaning drums.
Something that I missed is: how do you get rid of dirt/rust in the tuning lugs themselves? The tuning rod may have been cleaned up, but that fix isn't complete until the pleace were the rod goes is cleaned up as well. Hopefully that Q makes sense.
Thanks again for the awesome vid!
thank you again for this great advice in cleaning of the drums..my 66 acrolite is ready for a great cleaning 😁🤘🏽🥁🇨🇱
I had bought a Pearl Firecracker steel snare, the thing was so rusted on the inside... I didn't even try to play it. However, my grandma is a silversmith and I asked how to clean heavily rusted parts delicately and she recommended a variable speed Dremel and some fine steel brushes and some buffing tips (luckily I had the tools and tips in the garage). Took the snare apart and let the little parts like screws and tension rods sit in a vinegar solution overnight and got to cleaning. Sure enough, the snare looks clean... this video was definitely helpful advice going in though.
I see you have the Evans drum key I use. Means I’m Cool, too. Ha ha
Really enjoyed your metal bass drum tuning. Tuned my drum how you guys did it and it sounded great
You guys are great....you should publish a drum BIBLE
Amen to that
Tung oil on the inside, 🤯!
Loved it as usual 👏👏👏👏🤟🏻🤟🏻🤟🏻🥁🥁🥁🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
CAMEL BACK CINEMA!!
I heard that too.
First!
I really have learnt a lot from you guys
Steel wool - even very fine 0000 grade - will leave tiny scratches in the chrome that eventually widen like tiny cracks in concrete until the metal underneath is exposed and begins to rust, hence “pitting.”
Water and aluminum foil works like a charm for cleaning chrome.
This is a chemical process which has positive results but I've had better, more consistent experiences with steel wool. To each their own! -Ben
@@SoundsLikeADrum That's nice, I'll give it a go the next time I get the urge to clean my kit.
I've used this as well, but the 0000 Steel wool really is better.
W-D40 liquid on the tension rods.leave over night in a small container let it soak.and get steel wool or steel brush or wire wheels bench grinder
Hello and thx for the video, great info. Do you know if the Griot’s Garage wax removes minor surface scratches on the finish?
I took apart my drums and started cleaning them just a couple days ago. I was wondering what to use on the lacquer finish, and what kind of grease I should use for the lugs. This video couldn't have come out at a better time. Thanks!
The part of the Ayotte lugs that accepts the tension rod tarnished and a few even rusted a little. (Ayotte calls it the Tune Lock cylinder) I soaked them in CLR and used chrome polish to remove anything the CLR didn't get (smelly and messy, but safer than steel wool). In hindsight, the chrome polish alone was probably enough. Unfortunately, some of them are a little too damaged to look shiny and new. Thankfully, I have a few extras, because Ayotte isn't selling them at the moment (and getting ahold of them is rather hit-or-miss it seems).
Have you seen Music Nomad drum detailer? It’s just a spray that you can use to clean hardware, shells, cymbals, etc.
you guys should have affiliate links for us to buy these products!
We’d rather that you go buy them from your local hardware store and support a small business. If you’d like to support our efforts, joining our Patreon is the best way to help us continue to make this series.
I use WD-40 on rods before using steel wool. And of course, I clean them before lubricating.
The Evans drum key drill bit is a great item to use, too!
I’ve used Brasso and soft cloths for metal shells and parts.
I’m experimenting with lubricants; lithium grease, silicone, and Teflon. No long term results yet.
On wooden shells, do you (or anyone) put anything on the bearing edges, other than bearing edge lubricants that I’ve seen advertised? I’ve used extra fine sandpaper very lightly just to touch them up.
I have a question about gold hardware who would you go about cleaning that.
Naive question maybe: is there a difference approaching black nickel hardware vs. chrome hardware?
i don't think there is much of a difference. maybe be a little more gentle or more carefuly to the black nickel. but i think its really similar.
Awesome stuff! How do I clean traditional finish cymbals? Thanks :)
Polishing works great for brilliant finish cymbals but traditional finish? Mild Soap and Water? Cymbal Cleaning Spray?
Great job as usual Cody! Aluminum foil and white vinegar removed some serious pitting and slight rust on lugs for a very neglected DW Performer kit. I dont dare say its universal as every company has a different electroplating technique when it comes to lugs?
I was hoping you would touch on drum finishes that are wraps. Did you say that is for a future video? I hope so cuz I would like to hear your insights. All but two of the drum sets that I've ever owned have been wrapped finishes. I currently use a spray bottle of drum polish that I bought from Guitar Center for my wrap finishes that seems to work very well. Gone are the days of using furniture polish which I found out was a huge mistake. And as far as the nevr-dull goes, I used to use that on my motorcycle until it started doing something that wasn't good to my Chrome so I stopped using it. How that works on drums I really don't know. And in regards to the lugs I used to spray a shot of WD-40 into my lug holes to keep my lugs lubricated.
Dear what paint pearl drums
For the wrap, I've read that the Novus 1-2-3 plastic cleaner is pretty good at getting some grime and fade off. I have never tried it though.
Be careful it can take some of the finish off of the wrap
What about wrapped drums? Just bought used drum set and peeled stickers off of toms and bass; left behind sticky residue,
@ BEC's Girl: a product called Goo Gone works great for inks, sticker & glue-type reside.
Thanks for another wonderful video! Any tips for fixing a squeaky kick pedal? I don’t know which lubricant is the best choice.
What product would you recommend for cleaning a maple wood with a Matt finish? Thanks 👍😊
A *VERY* lightly dampened cloth would be ideal. Depending on the manufacturer’s recommendations, use of Tung Oil as shown here is a great way to go after cleaning. As with anything, always test in a small, less visible area before going all out with the whole drum. Cheers! -Ben
Great channel! Can you do one about the cymbals please?
Thanks! That’s going to be part of our cymbal series exclusively on Patreon.
I would love to hear about a matte paint finish. I have a Tama SLP Big Black Steel kit and I don’t want to put the wrong thing on the finish.
This is exactly what I came for too! Have a matte black dw design and don’t want to strip the thing clean 😅
Hi. I have a problem. can you help me find a solution. how to make the cymbals sound back to normal? because I use too much polish cymbals
Unfortunately you're going to have to let them age again. There may be some things you can do to speed up the process a bit but most of the hacks out there are a waste. Best to spend sometime playing it!
I have a painted shell ‘76 (I think) Acrolite. It’s in rough shape, finish wise. Scratched and dull and whatnot. Any advice?
What about wrap finishes?
That’s referenced in this episode.
Very interesting they didn't mention brasso
Brasso is for cleaning brass. Not good for much else.
@@scottvelardo700 all of my drum hardware begs to differ
Sorry to get off topic, but I've been wondering for a while if that drum in the background with the Trick Drums throwoff is a Brady. Is it?
Nope but you’re in the right neighborhood - Red Rock Drums, also Australian! -Cody
@@SoundsLikeADrum Awesome! Thanks for the reply man, you guys have the best drum channel on youtube!
What's the single flanged drum next to your knee?
That’s a snare that we featured from 3rd & 4th Drum Co. sladl.ink/SnareSpot3rd4thZebra
Does any of this change if you don't have chrome hardware? There's a lot of places that offer black and gold hardware and I'm never sure if they're plated and it will rub off or if it's safe to clean like normal.
Hey Cody, I have a Danny Carey sonor signature snare. The shell is bronze and has laser engraved/stamped logos and talisman patterns. Im worried never dull may fade or take these off? Any advice would be much appreciated
Hey there! I don’t have any experience with that drum at all so hard to say. I would err on the side of caution and maybe even contact Sonor to see if they have opinions or recommendations 👍🏻 -Cody
Thank you for this excellent video! Do you have any ideas for acrylic drums. My snare drum is an Acrolite, but the drums are Vistalite.
Thanks! A damp cloth or a specific cleaner like the RCI spray will do the job just fine. Cheers! -Ben
Be careful to not scratch the drum when cleaning, acrylic isn't the toughest material out there. If it starts looking dull you'll need to polish it. There are specific products to polish your car's headlights, which should work well on the drums too.
I saw a Keystone Acrolite... I had to click...
WELSH TUNING SYSTEMS AND CALF SKIN HEADS PLEASE!
Cymbal Cleaning Video?????
That's going to be part of Cymbal Sounds, our Patreon-exclusive cymbal series. Join at any level to get access to the series.
Has the cymbal in the background started keyholing yet???
I just cleaned my 1959 Ludwig Pioneer that had very dull nickel hardware. Simichrome worked really well to shine up the nickel hardware, as well as the chrome parts like the strainer and butt plate. It looks close to brand new again! I really couldn't believe how well it worked.
0000 steel wool worked great on my 1980’s tama boom stands single braces and it had lines on the legs kinda milky film on them.thair like new again ✨✨✨
Best way to clean tension rods and swivel nuts? CRC Brākleen brake cleaner. It will quickly blast off all grease and makes them perfectly dry and clean. I prefer Super Lube 21010 synthetic multi purpose grease to white lithium grease. It’s much cleaner, lasts longer, and is food safe.
THANK YOU for mentioning lug screws!!
I have a 74 COB Slingerland Krupa that… I mean, I don’t think Ive evr had it in tune… simply because the screws are so corroded, starting off at “finger tight” has never been doable or valuable.
Will try steel wool and see. I do still wonder about the threads inside the lug… do we use a wirebrush of some sort there?
Will try. Much love everyone 🙏🏻
I thought I invented the steel wool trick...Wear gloves, metal slivers kinda sucks.
Can anybody help me further? I have a satin vintage blond gretsch set. the surface seems to be dull, can I treat it with tung oil?
What is you're advice when your kit has gold plated hardware. Whats the best way to clean this hardware??
I was really hoping we could see the before and after:/
I have a Yamaha Manu Katche snare which is a spare (and usually just stays in its soft case) However the rims have got extremely pitted and lumpy - I didn’t realise how bad it was until I looked at it the other day. Is there any solution for that or do I just need to try to source new rims or get them stripped down and re-plated? Great content btw
Hey there! I personally would replace them, new triple flange hoops are not terribly expensive and definitely cheaper than having the originals replated. I put new ones on a snare of mine last year and it really breathed new life into it! -Cody
Thanks for the video
When rehabbing inexpensive drums that have no finish on the inside of the shells, I've learned to use a couple coats of thinned tung oil (1/3 thinner) which wicks deeper into the wood and ultimately makes cheap, somewhat porous wood more dense and thus more resonant. The difference is remarkable and allows a cheap kit to have a much better sound. That along with good heads and good wires on snares has made a number of "dead" kits come to life. Additionally, Vaseline works great on threads and is fairly invisible and less messy than lithium grease. Thanks again for putting out good content. If only this was available back in the 60's when I first started playing...... oh yea, the internet hadn't even been conceived of yet !!! Happy New Year guys............
Wouldn't vaseline be more perishable thus not lasting nearly as long as lithium grease?
@@SGresponse My '72 Rogers kit that I picked up in '87 still tunes up without issue and those lugs were treated with vaseline in the early 90's. Vaseline keeps forever in it's container and never gets sticky like cheap grease does.
When using tung oil on unfinished interiors, do you get it on bearing edges? I’m thinking of trying it on a set of Sonor Force 1001 drums. They have a lot of good qualities, but the wood is soft and they don’t project well. They were meant for practice rooms mostly, so that’s not a flaw; but I would like to liven them up a bit for gig use.
@@scottvelardo700 Definitely don't put on the bearing edges. I rub the tung oil on with a cloth and it's easy to stop it just where the edges begin to roll. If yours turn out as well as mine have you'll be a happy camper !!!
@@marty9464 Thank you!
Many thanks for the very helpful content! There's a couple of things here I'm going to have to try, like Tung Oil.
Another thing that works *great* on Chrome-plated hardware is *Turtle Wax Chrome Polish & Rust Remover.* Can be gotten at Ace Hardware or any Advance Auto Parts. It wipes off surface rust like dirt & makes the chrome gleam anew. I was shocked at how good it worked (& how easily). I couldn't even notice a small bit of pitting in a hoop of my '86 Ludwig Rocker (USA) afterwards.
Thank you .can you do video on cleaning cymbals when you can thank you
We’ve got one! All of our cymbal content is over on our Patreon (linked in the video description).
@Sounds Like A Drum thank you very much for response love all your videos Cody
@@cutitshaveit You're quite welcome! This is actually Ben (we're a two-man team.). Cheers!
I noticed some tarnishing in my bronze shell snare drum and found lemon juice mixed with baking soda worked to get some of it off.
Also, I had some old drums from the 80's and all the lugs were very corroded. I took them all off the drums and soaked them in apple cider vinegar over night. It got all the corrosion off and i was able to polish it all up.
Thank You very much for that.
My last lesson learnt is that be careful with the amount of of greese You put into lug/screws especially bassdrum tuning screws. I given too much to my brand new drums and caused drum to detune very fast (after 1hr of playing some screws were rattling) :D
BTW graphite greese works nice with tuning screws (but don't overdose it on bass drum)
I also put a coat of car wax on the chrome and the shells ( lacquered and wrapped). I use a spray on like Express Shine.
Good stuff! I’m glad you stopped me from using steel wool on my ‘66 Supra before it was too late 😅. Any tips for maintaining acrylic shells?
All of the products you listed in the video and description are Excellent! The Griot's Garage stuff in particular, I have been a fan for many many years and they sell great microfiber cloths and other cleaners. I use their products on my actual vehicles too; the stuff lasts forever.
Great video as always. Just a little contribution. I restored some badly treated drums and I have a couple tips. For chrome, when using 0000 steel wool, spray some WD40 on the area you want to clean up, the cleaning is more effective and gentle at the same time. Then, for natural wood shell interior, using bee wax helps nourishing and sealing the wood against moisture without changing tone. 💪🏻👍🏻
Gretsch wood finishes are clear coated with nitrocellulose lacquer. Using the furniture polishing product "Pledge" is a really bad idea. It actually breaks down the finish because Pledge is a silicon based product, NOT a wax.
Yeah, never use something like Pledge or Windex on drum shells...again, the 3-in-1 ceramic wax shown here works wonders.
Mother's mag and aluminum polish is the best I've seen.
Wish you would get to cymbals someday! Zildgian is only one thats real to me young or old any type, the best and only kind that sound right to me. Thanks for all your work and good advice Cody. .dan from montana.
We’ve got an entire series on cymbals over on our Patreon!
Never Dull is an excellent product for all metal finishes. To clean up those hats, try Wright's Copper Cream.
Does it work on black chrome and black nickel finishes?
You mention using a drum key & a power drill for cleaning the tension rods. Just wanted to say that buying a drill bit drum key was the best £10 I ever spent - it makes changing heads and doing things like this so much easier! Especially if you're doing the whole kit or all the toms, you just whip them off in no time.
Thank you for the great vids!
Any specific drill you recommend? It may sound like a dumb question but honestly does it matter can I just get a cheap drill and it be fine?
@@Jeremy_Sims I think the drill bit drum key is a Gibraltar one, less than £10 online. Any power drill will do the job, but you do need a drill as opposed to an electric screwdriver, as it needs to have enough torque to loosen the tension rod. It's helpful if it has a stepped power button too, you don't need it to be going full speed/power all the time as that can strip the threads if you're not careful. Most modern electric power drills have "touch sensitive" (for want of a better phrase) power buttons that get more powerful as you squeeze tighter. A light touch is usually enough to just whip the rods out in a few seconds.
Thanks for the tips!
You're quite welcome!