I’ve wanted a 15 x 12” marching snare like the one I marched with in high school. I had one several years ago, but it was never the one I wanted. I sold it and waited to find something closer to my dreams.
This fall, I found it. Or rather, I helped make it happen.
I scored an old single tenor drum from the same vintage as my high school days, for an amazing price. Then I set out to convert it into a marching snare drum. I got new rims and some lovely NOS heads. I found an old throwoff and butt plate in my parts box. I found a vintage set of 15” snares at a local shop, and cleaned up the lugs and tuning rods. Finally, after getting quotes from local shops for the cost of carving and sanding snare beds ($35/hr with a two-hour minimum!), I decided to do it myself with a large pocket knife and sandpaper, working with a light touch and keep the beds shallow.
It came together beautifully and I took it out to test it, arthritic hands and all. I couldn’t play ad infinitum because of the neighbors, but I played enough to know that my next stop will be a park on the next sunny day. Color me happy.
I took it out this morning right after I finished setting it up. It was after 10am, but my next door neighbors have a baby and I didn’t want to make loud noises for too long. Plus, my hands were sore this morning and I couldn’t find a groove very quickly. So I diddled around and promised I’d take it out again on the next sunny day, to a park where I’d be less likely to bother the neighbors.
But just listen to the sound! Deep, crisp, rich. Today’s Kevlar Kids wouldn’t know what to do with it, and that’s okay. I’m thrilled to have this and will enjoy it mightily.
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