I had to go old school at last nights gig

[DanRH]

So, on a gig last night with my band, The Real Thang, I start unloading my Tama Star Walnut kit out of their bags and as I unzipped my bass drum, I realized, “Houston, we have a problem”. My last gig that I used the Stars was with a gig with my Petty trib band, The Big Jangle. My logo head is on the drum! A very big S word dropped out of my mouth.

My options were few. Leave it on the drum. Not happening. Put some covering over the logo head. Not a good solution since I did not want to tape anything to any part of my lacquer finish and it would look like crap and sound bad maybe. Drive home and get another head. Not happening since it was a 45 minute drive without very bad Friday night traffic. No time to do that.

The most obvious option was what I did. OK, looked terrible and I really do prefer the boom a reso head gives you. I stuffed it full of laundry and it was off to the races like the old days. Turned out fine.

 

[doubleroll]

LOL…back in the day thats how we rolled!…doesn't look so bad to be honest. Glad it worked out

 

[DanRH]

LOL…back in the day thats how we rolled!…doesn't look so bad to be honest. Glad it worked out

So true! Here’s a pic of my band from 1972.

 

[cochlea]

It has that Ringo "rooftop kit" vibe despite not being a set of Ludwigs.

 

[Jhouse86]

No reso, no problem! The inner ply of those Tama's look incredible!

 

[DanRH]

Tell you what, listening back to the recording I made, I may do this again!

 

[5 Style]

Ha... I went a long time playing a kit with no reso head on the bass drum. It was a mongrel kit, with a cheap old bass drum and I didn't do the laundry stuffing thing, but I did use lots of strips of felt on the thing. I played that way for years before I realized that I wasn't getting much in the way of bass drum tone or even volume from that thing. Turns out that a band can work without a bass drum sound in the mix, but it's not ideal...

 

[CC Cirillo]

Tell you what, listening back to the recording I made, I may do this again!

When I rolled that way on my 22” bass took a 20” ride and used it as a template and just cut out the hole with the front hoop on so I didn’t have to worry abut the front bearing edges getting dinged.

 

[DanRH]

When I rolled that way on my 22” bass took a 20” ride and used it as a template and just cut out the hole with the front hoop on so I didn’t have to worry abut the front bearing edges getting dinged.

It’s what I do on my SC’s in my shed.

 

[jb78]

I think it looks amazing!

 

[RyanLovesDrums]

I’ve actually been doing that lately. I’ve been playing with a mesh head on the front. Pearl and Evans makes them. Having your kick with no front head is working for me in the house and I think for recording too if you have the mic right in front, or camera. It gives you just enough tone and you get that punch, and you don’t have to worry about tuning the front head!

 

[mydadisjr]

Did it for years back in the late 70's when I was gigging in country bands while in college...

I had a 26" (!) WFL kick stuffed with laundry and a brick sitting in there to hold it all in place!

Actually got everybody two-stepping pretty darn good at the country bar I played at in Flagstaff AZ.

Don't need no stinkin' front head!