Building an Edrum kit - I guess this thread belongs here now

[JLee]

Looks like the Edrum section is no more, so I suppose this would be the correct place to put this.

Yesterday, I made some progress on the edrum kit. Actually, in the absence of a drum module and therefore no way to test the placement of the piezos, it is basically a standard build for the time being. Once I have those parts, I will use the metal straps that I bought, with small L braces that fit perfectly through the lug holes that already will exist. It won't exactly makle Hart Dynamics quake in their boots, but I think it is going to work out pretty well.

I attached some photos along the way. After doing this on the first drum, the others should get easier, but even so, I would have to imagine that someone like John Riolo must be literally 5-6x faster at this than I am to literally do this for free when someone purchases just one drum with hardware.

The first shot shows the shells taped for drill holes. I learned one important thing here - if you are going to tape the shells and intend to use more than one layer of tape to protect the shell, do NOT wrap over the bearing edge, as if you do it will skew the angle you get with your square when you go to draw an alignment mark for your drill holes. In essence, your square would be propped up on one side. I do, however, think that taping is a good idea, as with the tung oil/wax finish I have on these (not exactly mirror shine - but much better than they appear on the pre-historic digital camera I am using, you have to press too hard on the shell to make marks with a pencil, and might scratch the surface.

Shot #2 shows the shell being test fit with hardware. this is kind of like the part on Mapquest that suggests you perform a "reality check" just to make sure you know where you are going.

Shot #3 shows the first mark that represents the top lug hole. As I see it, the key here is to position this so that you have enough room to properly tension the heads, while at the same time not running the lugs too far down on the shell - especially since these are all shortened shells. In my case, this hole is 3cm down from the edge. Shot #4 shows the second mark that represents the lower lug hole - which with the Pearl hardware is almost exactly 4cm from the top hole.


And in interest of brevity, I will break the next part into a new thread

[JLee]

After getting the drilling marks where I wanted them, and checking about five times, it was time to actually drill. I knew this would be the part that would either make this a great afternoon, or throw me into a conniption fit.

Just to make sure that the drill bit didn't wander, I bought an awl and punched in a guide hole at each of the marks. I would say that, in retrospect, this step is probably unnecessary, and a waste of about $5.00, as a brad point bit, coupled with a reasonable starting diameter, would make it fairly unlikely that the bit would wander. The first shot shows the shell in a Craftsman workmate, with the edges protected, and the clamping tension VERY minimal.

The next shot shows a set of holes having been drilled. I have to admit, I did get some frayed edges on a couple of holes, and found that it is directly proportional to the speed of the drill. Keep the speed down, and I think I could go through a whole shell without any tear through at all. I might be giving myself too much credit here though.

Shot #3 shows a couple of the lugs being fitted onto the shell. After using the small (1/8") brad point bit, I went to a step larger. But then, from there, I was afraid that if I kept going bigger, I would end up with them just a little too big, so I used a round file to gradually enlarge the holes to accomodate the hardware. It actually worked.

And finally, a picture of the completed shell with hardware. I also drilled the holes for the mount (it is going on a Gibraltar rack with L rods). Same principle here, but the holes are spaced 4.8 cm apart and mounted lower on the shell. In the interest of aesthetics, I placed the mount right on the seam of the shell - equidistant between the two lugs on that side.

It came out great. The drum is totally tuneable and there is plenty of tension rod left to tighten down the mesh head.

It represents a victory for the tool-challenged among us.

[E-Dog]

Wrong its a sub catagory inside the builder area look at the top..

Kick ass work and nice explination ..

[JLee]

Edog

Sorry I didn't notice the subsection - I should have been more observant.

And thanks for the compliment.

[drummerdan]

Jon,

Nice work. Looking real good.

I drill out my holes basically the same way. I make sure to hold a bit of wood up against the shell and it makes for virtually no tearout. I beveled the edges of the piece of wood to contour the shell so it would fit flat against the inside of the shell. Works great!

I should finish my edrums this week and post pictures. It'll be interesting to see how each of our drums turn out. Good luck!

[HiString]

Hey, looking damed fine splendid.

For a minute I thought you had our outdoor table but then remembered our's is white :D. BTW, Jon, have you priced the DM-Pro modules yet, I'd be interested to know what the US pricing is.

:cool:

[JLee]

Hi String

thanks for the compliment

As far as DM Pro modules are concerned, for some reason they do not seem to be very widely carried. I know they would go for about $300 on Ebay, but I am not finding retailers for them thus far - not musiciansfriend.com, not music123.com
. Maybe a little more research may be in order.

[drummerdan]

Jon,

I think they have been discountinued. That's why you're not seeing them.

I did find some customer ratings on the DMPro here:
http://www.harmony-central.com/Synth/Data/Alesis/DMPro-01.html

On this link, there is one place that has this module, although it's listed as blemished - click the link to zzsounds.

Here's 1 other link I found - it's listed as blemished, also.
http://www.samedaymusic.com/product--ALEDMPRO

Hope this helps.

Dan

[JLee]

Drummerdan

Thanks for the information.

It looks like the lack of availability of the DMPro makes for a more difficult situation. If blems are the only models left, it gets to the point where there is less differentiation between those and just buying from a reputable Ebay seller (some have feedback ratings of over 1000 and more. ) It would be one thing to buy a DMPro new and in the box for around $450 or so, but quite another to only save $35-50 and have it be a blemished product. Often times, these dents and dings are caused by misuse that is instead blamed on "shipping".

On the bright side, we do have an electronics genius where I work. So, if anything did go wrong I have a feeling he could probably get to the bottom of it.

Otherwise, maybe the TD6 for around $550 new?

[drummerdan]

Otherwise, maybe the TD6 for around $550 new?


All I can say is that I like the way my TD6 performs. I've had mine for about 8 months and no problems so far. Not to say that tomorrow it won't go caput!!

Best of luck.

[JLee]

The drilling process does get easier with a little experience. And the suggestion about placing a block of wood on the inside of the drilling point pretty much eliminated tearout entirely. So, I got two more shells ready for bridges and pickups.

This drum building stuff is pretty damn fun when things go your way.

[tcraw1010]

Looking FANTASTIC so far Jon !!!
(I still think they would look better with the white V-Drum heads- heheheh)



Keep up the EXCELLENT work !!!



Now, you KNOW we are going to want some sound bytes (or even video clips) of you playing those bad boys when you are finished - right? ;)




TOM

[JLee]

Tom

Thanks.

And for what it is worth, I think you are right - some nice Roland heads would look great on these, and maybe perform a little better too. I just wanted to experiment with the bridges, tension on the heads, etc. before I got too much money invested.
I also have a premonition that the Pearl mesh heads are not going to hold up for a long time. Hopefully I am wrong.

And while we are on the subject of cost, a while back you wrote about the economy of electronic drums, and you are correct. I will be into this for under $1000 when it is all done - including the rack, hardware, shells, cymbals, triggers and module. A lot of these parts are pretty cheap from here on in - Piezos are about $3 each, the metal straps for bridges cost near nothing.

So, when you consider that I hopefully will end up with a very playable six piece edrumset that can approximate an acoustic set in sound, yet allow me to play in relative silence at home, I consider this a pretty good deal.

And, not to sound corny, but I never would have thought about doing this, let alone trying to undertake it, without this forum. For better or worse, I am beginning to understand the addiction we call drum building a little better now. Every learning step I have had along the way - cutting my first bearing edges, cutting shells to size, finishing, drilling,etc. have enhanced a feeling of accomplishment. I likely would have otherwise just opted for a PVC rack and some practice pads.

I will have sound bites up as soon as I solve the module question.

[tcraw1010]

From the looks of the pics you have posted this far, you are doing a fantastic job so far. I have little doubt that this is going to help ME when I finally tackle my DIY e-drum kit. (To that end, be sure to post pics of your construction of the sensor/cone and bridge) ;)


The good thing about drum heads - mesh or otherwise - you can always change them out. ;)





TOM

[mr.mike]

I am with tcraw! This project will help me finish my edrum project. I have three old CB700 drums that I am going to strip, refinish, then put in piezos...I just can't find the needed material to make the crossbeam inside the drum. Lookin forward to seeing how you will do it.
- mike

[tcraw1010]

Mr.Mike . . . check out this thread --> http://forum.ghostnote.net/showthread.php?t=8245




TOM

[mr.mike]

Hey Tom! Thanks for those links. I used to have them but accidentally deleted them out of my fav's....and now they are back! The only pieces I am missing are the u-channels, and the corner brackets....I assume I'll have to by a length (like 6') and have it cut down to smaller sizes.....time to go to the Good ol' Home Depot!

[tcraw1010]

How's the kit coming, Jon ??



TOM

[JazzCat]

That kit is awesome! Would love to see more pics..

[JLee]

Iconoclast

If you are referring to the photos I posted, then thank you. Your compliments are much appreciated. If not, sorry for the interruption.

I have in fact made more headway on the set. I finished the floor tom and snare drum and mounted them to the drum rack. Also, I went and bought a bunch of parts to try my hand at the spring-loaded bridges that were posted by Tom a while back. At present, I have cut all the bridges down to size and am about half way through cutting the platforms on which the piezos will be mounted.

Also, picked up a Pintech bass drum trigger from our own DBautista - the guy with the famous avatar.

I will post some more pictures shortly - just figured that people would want to see the progress in bigger pieces so as not to bore them.

[JLee]

Tom

Sorry, I didn't see your post when I responded.

Things are going pretty well, and I should have some more pictures up pretty
soon.

Thanks for asking.