articles & reviews

DRUM SOLO
By Greg Gaylord (Music Market January 1997)

LASERS AND CYMBALS?
Recently I attended the Pacific Coast Machine and Tool show in Santa Clara. While checking out a display of how lasers were used to produce the "writing" on plastic cards (such as phone cards), I noticed a Zildjian splash cymbal in the display case.
The gentlemen operating the booth explained that Zildjian is now using lasers to "engrave" the logo into their cymbals instead "engrave" of stamping it in. The lasers are able to sense how the cymbal is positioned, and then center the cutting beam relative to the edges of the cymbal. This means an engraved logo that won't wear off, as many have in the past, and is remarkably fast.

State of the art neat o!

DRUM FINISHES
I am often asked what my opinion is on drum finishes. In this article I would like to address the issue of drum finishes, including wraps, oils, and lacquers.

Lets start with the ever popular wraps. Most of the wrap on the American market is made by Delmar Products Inc. They produce a variety of styles of laminates, including a line for drums made of cellulose acetate, which is acetone based (acetone evaporates quickly, which is why some drums show shrinkage space between seams or near the bearing edges). There is an Italian sister company to Delmar, azzuccheli, with a sates department located in Munich, Germany.

The biggest complaint I hear about wraps is that the wrap "muffles" the drums resonance. This is however, true of anything you add to a drum.

Since most drums on the market are multiple ply shells, this "muffling" argument, in my opinion, doesn't fully hold up. Yes, it will muffle more than another type of finish, but the adhesives between the drum shell plies are also a form of "plastic". This adhesive will cover the entire surface of the plies, contributing to a "muffling" effect. If you have a 10 ply shell, you have 9 layers of the adhesive!

If you like the wrap and want more resonance or sustain, use drums with fewer plies. The wraps do provide excellent protection, but are difficult to repair without re wrapping the entire drum(s). The bottom line is simple. If the drum sounds good AND looks good, USE IT!

The thinnest finish is oil. Tung oil comes from the nuts of the Tung tree of China, which are now being grown in South America. Tung oil penetrates the wood, becoming part of the wood with virtually no thickness. The thinness provides very little water vapor protection and little protection against scratches.

Polymerized Tung Oil (factory heated to about 500 degrees in an oxygen free area) can be built up in many thin coats to provid protection against water vapor. It is however very expensive and must be thinned with mineral spirits.

Most of the "oils" on the shelves of your local hardware store will be a varnish/oil mixture. Examples are "Formby's Tung Oil Finish", "Jasco Tung Oil" and 'Tar Wipe On Tung Oil". These oils can be built up in heavier coats to provide a surface on the shell which is better suited to resist scratches and water vapor. I know of several custom drum builders who are currently using varnish/oil mixtures and getting excellent results.

Wood is a cellular "living" entity. It is continually expanding and contracting across the grain due to moisture content fluctuations. This means that a 1-ply shell will expand and shrink in the direction of the shells depth, although so minutely that you probably won't notice. Because of this expansion and contraction, whatever finish is applied must be able to move with the drum. It must also be able to handle the vibrations that are inherent in drums.

"Lacquer" has become a general term that applies to several finishes including nitrocellulose lacquer, water base lacquer, urethanes with or without polyester, shellac, and others. In general, any sprayed finish.

Shellac has been used by furniture manufacturers throughout the 19th and into the 20th century. It provides excellent water vapor protection, is fairly simple to repair, and is safe enough that it is approved by the FDA for use on medication. The hand application of shellac is also known as "French Polish". Rob Kampa at MagStar Drums has used this technique to achieve some fabulous finishes.

Lacquer came out in the 1920's and has been very popular within the drum industry ever since. Nitrocellulose Lacquer provides "good" water vapor protection and overall durability, although they are prone to cracking and yellowing. Lacquers can be tinted to any color and buffed to a deep wet look with a beautiful shine.

To make Nitrocellulose lacquer, cotton or wood fibers are treated with nitric and sulfuric acid, which is then combined with a resin. These fibers are deposited on the drum, and "set" as the thinner evaporates.

Curing of the freshly applied lacquer begins immediately as the lacquer thinner begins to evaporate, which is why it is sprayed and not brushed. Nitrocellulose lacquer actually "melts" the lacquer previously sprayed underneath it, creating a thicker single layer of lacquer. Other finishes such as water based lacquers are layer upon layer, not a single layer.

Water based lacquers do offer excellent clarity, are non-yellowing, and are much more environmentally friendly. The Bay Area is an area with great concern, and laws, concerning Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC's), which is why you won't find Nitrocellulose Lacquer on the shelves of hardware and home supply stores. The environmental concern is the big appeal of water base finishes.

Water based finishes are actually solvent based, usually an acrylic or polyurethane. If they were truly water based, they would dissolve in water. A nuisance on those rainy nights or foggy outdoor gigs! Water base finishes do not offer the durability of solvent based finishes, nor do they have the water vapor protection of solvent based finishes. Technology is quickly advancing the water borne products. They may soon become the superior product, and are already becoming the only legal alternative, due to VOC regulations.

Drum companies have moved into using polyester in combination with other finishes such as nitrocellulose lacquer or urethanes because of its durability, stability and surface smoothing characteristics. Polyester and its catalyst are messy, toxic, and extremely flammable. The resin will set up in 20 to 40 minutes. (Bad news if it sets up in your spray gun!) Results from polyester/urethane finishes can be absolutely beautiful. DW gets some stunning finishes that are thin and yet look deep because of light refraction. The urethane outer coats are also good protection against water vapor and are extremely durable. This disadvantage to polyester is the dampening of the shell. The polyester should be applied very thin, and is really not an issue.

So what does all this techno jargon mean? No much in respect to the bottom line. All the new quality drums on the market will have good finishes. The bottom line is you, the consumer. If the drums sound good and you like the appearance of the finish, go for it! With all the options available and the emergence of custom drum builders, you should be able to find the best in both sound and finish.

If you have any comments on drum finishes, I can be contacted at (415) 898 2647, or mail your comments to Bay Area Music Market Magazine. Let's share those ideas with