In going through my pad holdings and determining which pads I’m keeping as I downsize, I came across my Tom’s Pad, offered by Volkwein’s Music online. I added rubber feet to the bottom for greater stability when used on a tabletop (because it is a little heavy for a cymbal stand, IMHO).
It’s a great-sounding pad with excellent response, ideal for multiple applications including lower-tension marching.
But I’ve always thought it would be even better in a 10” size. It could still utilize a Remo practice pad replacement head, and the larger size would be welcomed by many drummers and instructors.
The current 8” sized pad starts at around $79.00; expect a 10” version, if they decide to make it, to come in at above $125. That’s not entirely out of line with other heavier duty craft-made pads these days.
I’ve emailed Volkwein’s Music to inquire about the possibility.
I invite anyone else who’d like to see this come about to do the same. Their email appears under “About Us” at their web site.
After many years of trying out various sticks, pads and drums, I’ve begun to narrow down what I like and what I plan to keep as I downsize. Because I don’t play professionally anymore, I can choose the gear I enjoy using the most and let go of the rest.
This week, it’s sticks.
I’ve tried a lot of different shapes, sizes and types of sticks over my five-plus decades of drumming. And I’ve managed to dial in my favorites for each kind of drumming I do. After expanding and then contracting the various kinds of drumming I’ve done over the years, it’s come down to these favorites, which I’ll continue to use and keep on hand.
Concert: I don’t do a lot of pure concert drumming in performance anymore. When I did play in a wind ensemble, my choice was always a good, solid 2B stick. My absolute favorites are the older Promark oak sticks with the gold band near the end. For a modern stand-in, the Vic Firth American Classic 2B isn’t bad. I still have a couple pairs of older, vintage 2Bs from the 1950s that I’ll hang onto, from Ludwig and Mercury.
Jazz/pop: behind the kit, I’ve used everything from super-skinny “jazz” sticks to 5Bs. These days, I seldom have the chance to play a kit at home — even with a soundproofed door, some sound still comes through. I love my partner more than I love drumming, so some concessions must be made. When I do play my kit, I prefer the model 580 acorn sticks from La Backbeat, turned in American hickory and wonderfully balanced. They’re like 5A sticks with a little more authority, and well balanced enough that I can control the volume whenever I need to without having to rely on a lighter stick. Buzz rolls with these sticks are heavenly, like tearing tissue paper. (Note: Frank has had machinery issues all fall, and his work is on hold until further notice. He’s waiting on some parts for his lathe, and says he’ll be up and running when those come in. He does have some models available at his site, so if you can support him with a purchase now, please do so. It’s a one-man operation and he works hard to make great sticks.)
Marching/rudimental: after trying nearly every stick on the market, leaning especially hard on various Cooperman and Vic Firth models, I had to admit to myself that for me, there’s just nothing else out there as perfect for me as the old style 3S sticks from Ludwig, Leedy, Gretsch and others. The longer, more elegant taper and true balance continue to be the most comfortable sticks I’ve ever drummed with. And unlike too many of the modern sticks readily available, they’re perfect for chopping on older, lower-tensioned Mylar heads. Since almost no one actually makes this style of Rudimental stick anymore, I’ve had to search the online auctions and ads to find individual pairs.
But this week, I got a lucky score that should see me for awhile yet: a NOS box of six sets of Ludwig 3S sticks from the late 1970s. They have Nylon tips, which isn’t completely ideal, but I’m not that aggressive a drummer and I use a CS Dot head, so that should reduce the wear and tear a little on my marching snare drum.
Here’s a video I made this morning while Sweetie was out, so I could play my marching snare a bit. I wasn’t terribly warmed up, and the cold weather hasn’t been great for my arthritis, but I had to take advantage of the time I had and just chop. Here’s a bit of Crazy Army.
In order to help finance the NOS lot, I’ll be selling off more pads and sticks I don’t use. Best places to check will be FB Marketplace and Craigslist.
Best wishes to you, dear readers, for a happy and musical holiday season.
This is a topic that used to appear annually in my bicycle blog bikelovejones. After I left the bicycle industry (and even more so after Covid and Long Covid greatly reduced my riding), I stopped writing it.
At the end of a year in which I tried lots of different drum things and ideas, it seemed like a good year to apply this thinking here at my drumlove blog. So in no particular order, here’s a short list of things I tried and liked this year.
1. Suitcase kick from Side Show Drums. I tried making my own kick drum from an old suitcase a few years ago and it was such a ham-handed effort I gave it away. When I got the hankering to try again, I sucked it up and bought one made far more professionally by Max Wheeler and sold on Reverb. Here is one that’s very close to what I bought (mine’s blue).
2.MadPads snare pad. Thanks to Michael Beauclerc, I had an opportunity to test-ride and review a MadPad. Sustainably made in Canada from gum rubber and an MDF nearly free of formaldehyde, the pad delivers a feel that falls nicely between the old tan RealFeel pad and the Cardinal rubber pad. I tend to favor tunable pads with Mylar heads for my daily practice, but this rubber pad was a very nice surprise. I’ve enjoyed adding it to my rotation ever since.
3. Rohema RM2 marching sticks. I had an opportunity to buy a couple sets of these through the Third Floor Bazaar on Facebook. They are quite similar to the Jeff Queen solo sticks from Vic Firth, but a touch longer and with a nice, longer taper that shifts the balance just slightly rearward. They also tend to be in stock more regularly than the Queens. I like them and may order a couple more pairs. (Rohema sticks have multiple distributors worldwide and can often be found online at Reverb.)
4. Chopping on modern drum licks posted online. My Rudimental drum library tends toward the days of lower tension and Mylar heads. And I’ve read through most of it a few times. To avoid getting stale, I started grabbing short little licks from Facebook and Instagram and learning those. My favorites so far have been the licks shared frequently by Carlos Botello, who offers material for nearly all levels of drumming that’s interesting, challenging and fun. If you like the locks, check out his library of Left Hand Path instructional books.
Although I’ve been rehoming a number of my practice pads, my MadPad is a keeper. Small-batch, craft-made pads from Canada that do not disappoint, and which feel better than almost any other rubber pad on the market. I’m a fan. (If they ever make a hoodie, I’m there.)
The latest from Xymox, the Voldemort of drum practice pad makers, appeared in my feed today.
That’s right. Oblivious to the patent and trademark infringements going on here, Xymox has decided to screw everyone by selling a knockoff of the old tan RealFeel pads from the 1990s.
Same look, same shape, and a nice knockoff of the old HQ logo that reads “OG”.
They must know they’re in violation of something here.
And my guess is that they don’t care.
As soon as this showed up on the drum pad groups, people howled, either in derision (“I cannot believe that Xymox would stoop this low”) or in excitement (“I have to get one!”)
A guy who works at D’Addario, which owns Evans and all the designs and branding from HQ (which originated the design thirty years ago) is popping a vein. He promises that D’Addario will take legal action, if necessary, to stop this thing in its tracks.
I predict that they’ll be too late, and that almost no one in the general pad market today will actually care all that much. They’ll be too late because the pads are already in production and are being sold at the Xymox web site, and any legal action taken will not stop the pads already shipped out. (Nor will said legal action protect the exclusive on the octagonal shape, because you cannot really patent a geometric shape anymore.)
And other than a few hundred people who got ripped off by Xymox, almost no one else will care, especially the Gen Z kids who see this as their chance to get something close enough to the original tan RealFeel pad their dad practiced on thirty years ago.
It gets better. RCP just came out with this delightful little Chinese-made knockoff, which I believe is supposed to hearken back to Offworld’s Shuttle Pad. It’s another crass attempt to play on fake nostalgia, and it’s kind of depressing.
Crying foul now, when nearly every mass-produced pad on the market is made in part or in whole in China, is like bolting the barn door after the horse has fled.
And with that, I know that I have stayed involved for long enough.
There is less and less interest in vintage pads and their history now. The online drum chat groups are populated mostly by folks who are young enough to be my grandchildren, and they want whatever the top 12 DCI drum lines are using. Even if it’s poorly made, even if it’s unsustainable, even if it will wear out in a year or two. They do not care. Fine. Let the modern mass-producers of practice pads chase each other’s tails, and chase the dollars of every high school and college drummer out there. I’ll chop on what I have and be content.
I hope to be shed of all but about five pads by the end of the year. If I ever feel the need for another practice pad, I can always make one.
Happy drumming.
(Photo: yours truly, using a fire hydrant as a practice pad.)
You won’t find much info there, or even any contact information.
You can watch this shiny new demo video, offered by a talented snare drummer who marched Bluecoats this summer.
Be advised, though, that said drummer is sponsored by the company, which just means that he got his pad for free. How nice.
If you want one, it will set you back a cool $140 PLUS shipping.
Before you jump at the chance to own one yourself, be advised that the pad is being pre-sold in small batches, and you have to get on the list before you can see a meaningfully detailed photo of the pad.
Also note that we don’t know the manufacturing process at all, only that it’s “made in America.” We don’t know by whom, or where.
In the absence of any more info at the web site, I looked up their business info, and found a listing for Live Edge Drum Company’s incorporation in Florida dated October 11 of this year. That means the company became an LLC just seven weeks ago. It’s possible the pads are being made in Florida, but we have no way to confirm that.
We also don’t know what kind of wood is being used or what the playing surface is made of, because that’s not mentioned either. The grainy-resolution photo at the web site doesn’t help matters.
A clue comes in the video when the drummer tells us that the pad is very lightweight. So we know it’s probably not a dense hardwood because those are mostly fairly heavy. A softer wood could be coated with an epoxy and still weigh less than a fine-grained hardwood. And whatever the playing surface is, it can’t be terribly heavy, either. It may be a very thin layer of clear silicone, which wouldn’t add a lot of weight but still provide some bounce.
So in the end, I reached out to a friend with decades of professional woodworking experience, and I asked him what his impressions were.
He was underwhelmed: “I’m sure it’s a cheap trivet from somewhere we can all access. It’s really covered in plastic or epoxy or something when I zoom in. Bark should not stay on wood naturally like that. Reminds me of the stuff at like Michael’s or other craft stores. If it’s light it’s fast growth birch or balsa.”
I trust this guy and his response makes a lot of sense to me.
UPDATE: just got these, which explains things even better.
As with all things, Your Mileage May Vary.
But I’m not going to get excited about a cheaply-made pad that sells for $140.
I am liquidating most of my remaining collection of practice pads.
This is the first batch being offered.
Top photo
top row, L-R: WFL gum rubber tilt pad, 1940s, SOLD Leedy tilt pad, refurbished, 1940s, $20 George Way tilt pad, VGUC 1960s, $50 Ludwig tilt pad w/padded calf surface, 1930s, SOLD
bottom row, L-R: Jim Dinella homemade tilt pad, $40 Satellite tilt pad, 1950s, $40 World tilt pad, $35 Ludwig oak tilt pad, $40
All of these pads have good playing surfaces with good to excellent rebound.
Postage will be additional, and will depend on how pads you want to buy.
I will consider a price break on multiple pads going to the same address, though I cannot offer a price break on postage (shipping rates have gone up a lot this year). I'm not able to ship outside the USA, sorry.
If you're interested, reach out to me on Facebook Messenger.
