What are some of the best products to buy for rehabbing drumsets?

[GrandfatherOdin]

Hey everyone! Ever since I got engaged and had my first child a year and a half ago I've really struggled to find time to play my drums. Between work, home duties, and all the noise that's created from drumming my drumset has essentially turned into home decor. I was only a hobbyist anyways, and never got any good training to advance my skill past novice levels. I absolutely love drums, but never had the skill level to confidently play any songs or advance significantly. I'm hoping once my daughter gets older she will take an interest in drumming, and her and I can take lessons together and start a father/daughter drumming journey (a man can dream)

Anyways, I wrote all this to say that I had the idea of selling my kit and using that money to start buying used kits on facebook marketplace and cleaning them up and restoring them in order to re-sell them. I really enjoy cleaning up old kits and restoring them to their former glory. It helps me get my drum fix in, and it's much easier for me to spend a couple hours cleaning kits after the family goes to sleep rather than banging on heads as quietly as I can.

I've cleaned up a couple kits in the past just using common sense and cleaning materials I know work well on other things. I would love to get some advice from the experts here on good products to buy for the explicit purpose of restoring drums. Any advice is welcome, I think this would be a great hobby to tide me over until my daughter gets older, and I could make a few bucks to boot. Thanks in advance for your sage advice!

 

[lossforgain]

Other than the fact that it helps to have a lot of spare parts on hand, I pretty much use the following:
Non-abrasive spray cleaner
Dawn/similar dish soap
Mother’s or Turtle wax brand chrome polish
Nevr-dull polish wad
Novus plastic cleaner for wraps (#3, 2, and 1 but 2 gets used the most)
And lots of soft cloths and paper towels

 

[GrandfatherOdin]

Tha

Other than the fact that it helps to have a lot of spare parts on hand, I pretty much use the following:
Non-abrasive spray cleaner
Dawn/similar dish soap
Mother’s or Turtle wax brand chrome polish
Nevr-dull polish wad
Novus plastic cleaner for wraps (#3, 2, and 1 but 2 gets used the most)
And lots of soft cloths and paper towels

Thanks for the solid recommendations!

 

[bpaluzzi]

Evapo-Rust and an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner can make cleaning small parts very simple.

Aluminum foil and hot water is helpful for removing rust from hoops + stands.

 

[Georgia Phil]

Drum wrap! Add $100 in a good looking wrap and you can add $200 in price.

 

[MillerMav]

Aside from cleaning, if it's something you want to really get into I would suggest reworking bearing edges as well. In order to do that I would get a nice flat surface (plate glass or mdf) with some sand paper to flatten the drum and a nice router table and some bits to recut edges. If you're going to make them look good might as well make them sound good.

 

[1988fxlr]

A dremel/rotary tool can be very helpful for cleaning and polishing parts

Kroil or another good penetrating oil can help salvage rusted hardware

 

[Talktotommy]

Tap and die set for sure.

 

[richardh253]

John Aldridge recommended FLITZ polish (tiny dabs) to me for metal shell snares. Works nicely, I've found.

 

[Rik_Everglade]

Other than the fact that it helps to have a lot of spare parts on hand, I pretty much use the following:
Non-abrasive spray cleaner
Dawn/similar dish soap
Mother’s or Turtle wax brand chrome polish
Nevr-dull polish wad
Novus plastic cleaner for wraps (#3, 2, and 1 but 2 gets used the most)
And lots of soft cloths and paper towels

The Turtle wax paste is great for lacquered surfaces. Smear, let dry a bit, and a buffing wheel brings back that gloss.

 

[dustjacket]

As a father of a 2 and 9 year old with a full time job, I completely relate.

 

[Rockin' Billy]

Here is a picture of my arsenal. I also use an Ultrasonic Cleaner and Vibratory Polisher.

 

[Rik_Everglade]

Lol! You guys are hardcore

 

[varatrodder]

Cheap electric toothbrushes come in handy for scrubbing parts.

 

[JazzDrumGuy]

Off the top of my head....

What I have:
Dawn soap, Windex/cola/vinegar/Brasso to brighten chrome and clean things. Rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, bleach, and bottles of Goo Gone (NOT Goof Off!) to clean things or remove adhesive.
Lots of sponges - both non-abrasive (to rub the above and clean chrome) and abrasive ones (to add "patina" or knock down chrome to a "nickel" finish). Also, Mr. Clean Eraser sponges.
Paint/glue stripper - I like Citrustrip, as well as sandpaper and wood filler to fix shells and strip them, fix damage to edges, level edges, etc.
Rubber gloves, lots of towels - regular, micro fiber, and blue shop ones.
Various stain colors. Poly - I like satin. Shellac - I like amber and premixed.
Brushes - regular and foam.
Basic tools - screwdrivers (+ & -) and sockets, plastic and metal scrapers. Hammer with various stainless steel ball bearings to reapply grommets.
Lots of screws/washers and misc. parts! I also have various misc. shells.
Toothbrushes - old ones, metal brushes and firm plastic brushes.
Dremel tool with a good tip kit - lots of uses! A good drill with drill bits.
Plastic tubs (old water bottles), in which to soak stuff.
Wood glue (I love Tite Bond red label). 3M contact cement if you want the "correct" glue to do wrap.
Blue painters tape, Two sided tape
Wire hangers to hang things.
Lots of cardboard boxes and clear packaging tape. Not only for shipping in/out, but I also open and lay boxes in my work area to use as a work mat for painting, etc.
Youtube and internet - lots of ideas out there! Trial and error especially when refinishing wood shells.
Drum wrap - all sorts of online sources.
Nail polish - silver, pearly white, black, etc. - good for touch ups.
Sparkle vinyl wrap - 1/2" silver works great for "inlay" [I get mine from paperstreetplastics on Amazon or eBay.]
Scrap wood for testing stain/poly/finish.
Ruler, measuring tape, T-square, Right angle
Drum lug layout template

What I WISH I had:
Router table to do bearing edges. That is one thing I don't have.
Table saw to cut down shells. Same thing - I wish I did!

 

[drumshoptulsa]

Here's a quick video of what we use at The Drum Shop. As a long-time bicycle technician (first bike shop job in 1987), lots of older bikes would come in...and this handy trick made SHORT WORK of ugly chrome. HOWEVER...here's the catch...THIS METHOD WILL SCRATCH YOUR SHELLS when cleaning lug casings. Take my advice; either mask off the lug casings from the shell with masking tape or remove the lug casings/hardware entirely from the drum shell (I prefer the latter).

Okay - happy cleaning and enjoy the video.

How to clean your drum hardware.