Drums. I’m talking about stripping drums. And specifically, I’m talking about stripping the wrap off my drumkit.
I bought (on a whim) a set of 1999 Ludwig Superclassics (the 90th anniversary edition) during my first year of college. It’s been a great kit. Back at the time, I was mostly jamming to Dave Matthews Band, various (other) jambands, and a lot of rock-funk & fusion. So a 22″ kick, and 10/12/14/16 rack/floor setup was perfect for me. The drums boom, and that’s all I knew. They are in a white sparkly wrap, which is at the crux of the issue here.
Over the last 20+ years, I’ve abused these things. I played them as they were meant to be played, but they sat in non-climate-controlled settings for so long. First at a dorm that didn’t have AC, then in a basement of a crappy house, then in the basement of a slightly less-crappy house, then in a garage, and now they’re in a basement again. I think since I bought them in 2000, they’ve had maybe 3 solid years max in a climate-controlled environment. And it’s showing. The wraps are peeling, the hardware almost all has rust on it, and the hoops are battered. I’m *really* hoping none of them have lost their round, or it’s just simply going to be “new kit time.”
I have been speaking with a drum builder (the person I bought my custom snare from a few years ago) and our thoughts are that the best way to repair is going to just be to remove the damaged wraps and probably paint the drums. They may be able to handle a stain, but usually these wrapped drums didn’t use the prettiest wood (since they were going to be covered with a wrap), so that will have to be determined once the wrap is removed.
So yeah… starting another project. With time I don’t have, in space that’s not available, with skills never learned.