My life with Rudimental Drummers Chop Pads -- UPDATE

In September of 2020 I took delivery of a Rudimental Drummers Chop Pad.

It was love at first strike.

I loved the response, the volume level and the ease with which I could adjust tuning for concert or marching sticks. I liked it so much, in fact, that I later ordered another RD pad, a Travel-sized version of the Chop pad, so I could have one to travel with.

Over the last nearly two years, I've been able to figure out what exactly I want in a daily practice pad. Thanks in part to my experiences with RD Pads, here's a list:

-- Response/feel. If the pad doesn't feel rght, there is no point in buying it.
-- Sound (or, in this case, lack thereof). I play on pads in large part to keep the volume lower and thereby preserve my marriage, so a pad that won't let me play a little harder without the neighbors complaining is of little use to me.
-- Versatility. After decades of collecting, researching and trying hundreds of different pads, I've decided that I want a pad which offers some versatility. I should be able to make minor tuning adjustments -- or even change the head, if desired -- so I can use it with different sticks and in different applications and still get the response I want.

For me, the best practice pad for daily studio use is one that feels like an actual drum and allows me to replace the heads.

My Chop Pads fit the bill nicely.

Recently, I decided that, to make my pads more versatile for my purposes, I wanted to outfit each with a Remo Pinstripe head. This would allow me to lower the tension a little and use a wider range of sticks.

Further, I wanted to find a Stick-Saver rim for the Baby Chop. when mine was made, Rene at RD told me he wasn't able to procure a Stick-Saver rim in that size. After months of searching, I found one and swapped it in.

Today, both the Big Chop and the Baby Chop are my most reliable, stable, consistent pads. I play the Big Chop nearly every day and love the way it responds and sounds.

(Reminder: The Chop Pad is designed for mid- to high-tension, but not nearly as high as on a modern marching snare! If you need something that can be tensioned that tightly, I suggest you look at RD's Drum Corps Pad, which comes with additional metal reinforcements that are designed to work with Kevlar heads.)

Rubber-on-wood pads have their purposes, and are fine for students on a budget.

For a pad that sees daily, steady use, save your pennies and spring for a tunable pad with replaceable heads. It will pay for itself in less than a year, when you realize it's the pad you practice on most of the time.

The Chop Pad -- and other pads for different types of drumming -- are available from Rudimental Drummers. Each pad is made by hand, one at a time. Delivery to the USA from The Netherlands runs between 5 and 8 weeks. They are, for my money, the BEST tuneable pad I've ever used.

Happy drumming!


(NOTE: I was not paid to write this unsolicited review and update, nor was I given any freebies from Rudimental Drummers. I paid for my pads just like everyone else.)