End of Summer...

[Jammer]

That really looks great. I like the little man stepping up to help officiate.

I really like your drums in the other post. Do they sound as good as they look?

Latzanimal's Drums.

[latzanimal]

Thanks Jammer! It was a surprise to everyone, but he stepped right up.

As far as the drums.... I may be biased but they do sound good. The top walnut w/maple stripes was my alternate to the puzzle drum for the drum raffle/fund raiser. I contacted the guy who won the drum to ask for a pic with the raffle badge on it. He said it is his favorite drum and loves the sound of it.

I have another customer who has a maple segmented shell that is wrapped in a turquoise sparkle. He raves about the drum.

The bottom walnut with the inlay was for the owner of a drum case company who has between 50-100 snares. He has said it is one of his favorites.

The customer who I am making 2 cocobolo snares for is pretty particular, so we'll see. I am not worried. Pics to come....

[Jammer]

You gave the dimensions on another post and I calculated it out for Bronze. Looks like it would weigh about 32 Pounds finished so were looking at about a 40 pound pour.

Here's something that I was thinking about. How about casting some ribs on the side of the drum body to screw the hardware through... if that makes sense?

[latzanimal]

Interesting idea. My concern would be that the ribs would inhibit the resonance of the shell....

Only 40 lbs? I think somewhere I posted pics of the place in Duluth that was casting shells for a company and has since produced their own, off and on. They are casting at least .5" thick, if not thicker, to avoid cooling as the mold fills from a center sprue.

I need to look back as this has been on the back burner....

[Jammer]

Well, a half inch would increase the weight. I was using .3125, so .5 would make it over 50 pounds. I see some drums online that are brass and less than 1/4 inch thick. I don't know if they are rolling up plate metal and welding it or casting it thick and turning it down. I think the cymbal material would be good for a drum, and it's around 95% copper and 5% tin. It would seem to make sense and should have a good sound.

[latzanimal]

The thin brass ones are either rolled or machine drawn from a single disc. I have all 3 versions, cast, rolled, and drawn... The cast is my favorite.

[Jammer]

Have you seen the videos of the water cast cymbals? They pour the bronze into a bowl of water which makes it a very soft metal. Then they roll it out and shape it. They work harden it to get the sound. Hmmm Molten metal, Water but no explosion! ?? It can be done but you better know what you're doing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbolyAYYOV0

[latzanimal]

Not familiar with that brand. Interesting video, tho.

There have been several cymbal companies pop up in the last 10 years or so. Before that, the industry was dominated by the 3 major companies, Zildjian, who just celebrated their 400th anniversary, Paiste, made in Switzerland and use a slightly different bronze formula, and then Sabian, made in Canada, which was formed when 2 of the Zildjian offspring fought and went their separate ways in the early 80's.

The newer companies popping up are usually based in Turkey....

[latzanimal]

Interesting turn of events here. Was at the kids Parent teacher conferences. My son's auto shop teacher is a drummer recently refinished his drums. We talked for around 45 minutes. My son's welding teacher is also into woodworking, etc and we talked for another 45. He offered to help me build a furnace to melt stuff. I mentioned the cast drum and his eyes lit up. As much as I'd like to do this, I honestly have no need for "another" project/tools. I realize there will be more to cast, but honestly, I have SO many irons in the fire already. And as big as the furnace would be, what the hell do I do with it after I cast a shell?

The offer is intriguing tho.....

[Jammer]

Too much is never enough. I think James Bond said that. I built my larger furnace 12 years ago and did one melt in it to see if it works. Melted about 5 pounds of Iron and haven't used it since. I've got cans of used motor oil, Deisel fuel, 3 different burners... 2 I haven't even tried. For some reason the metal won't melt itself.
What to do after you make a shell? Make 20 more shells and corner the market on Heavy Metal Drums.
The rolled up sheet brass or bronze drums that are welded. I think that would mess with the tone, needs to be cast like a bell.