Conga tunning - do's and dont's of conga tunning

[franc]

j.c. conguerro mayor. why is that you cannot put lubriderm in your heads.what effect does it have on the skin?? it has lanoline . and where can you get the mateca de corojo or palm oil. tu panita, franc

[Johnny Conga]

You can get West African Palm oil in African shops/Bodegas, it depends on where you live. Manteca is "lard", that is what you use on heads also, that you can buy at the market. I am not into "hand lotions" for use on conga heads, I'm "ol skool". Give me that MANTECA!......
:;): JC JOHNNY CONGA...............

[franc]

J.C, can you use the manteca that one can use to frie?? and thanks for the info. i do appreciate help from the pro!! i have the giovani galaxie series congas and i have been applying lubriderm since it contain lanoline. also ''conguerro mayor'' where can you find a product with only lanoline. luck, take care!!! tu pana, franc

[mco]

Hey Johnny, No, I'm not from Australia or NZ, nor am I a spokesman for the lanolin consortium! It's just that I've tried a lot of different hand lotions because I work in a research lab where I must wear gloves and am constantly changing them and then washing my hands (over 20x day). My hands used to get severely chapped in the winter (before I started drumming again). Now that I'm drumming again, I've been very careful to keep my hands moisturized. I have yet to try a moisturizer called "Bag Balm", which is sold in farm/ag stores and is used to sooth the chapped teats of dairy cows. A girl I work with who grew up on a farm swears by the stuff (for her hands, I assume!)

[RitmoBoricua]

Hey Johnny, No, I'm not from Australia or NZ, nor am I a spokesman for the lanolin consortium! It's just that I've tried a lot of different hand lotions because I work in a research lab where I must wear gloves and am constantly changing them and then washing my hands (over 20x day). My hands used to get severely chapped in the winter (before I started drumming again). Now that I'm drumming again, I've been very careful to keep my hands moisturized. I have yet to try a moisturizer called "Bag Balm", which is sold in farm/ag stores and is used to sooth the chapped teats of dairy cows. A girl I work with who grew up on a farm swears by the stuff (for her hands, I assume!)

......manteca de corojo also known as "EKO PALM OIL". Like I said before I got mine from http://www.bongolandia.com. Que Suenen Los Cueros :;):



Edited By RitmoBoricua on 1075048959

[Johnny Conga]

Si Senor..."manteca" or "Lard" is what you fry with is what I am talking about. But you use it very sparingly. A very thin coat on the head, but it has to "melt"(sun for 3 or 4 hours) into the skin to make it really work. It may also create a slight discoloration but that doesn't hurt the skin, it brings it back to life,kinda. And the sound brightens up also, doing that to the skin. It also gives the skin longevity. I have had drums with the same heads on for over 20 years, and still sound good. It's an art, really. Mounting heads ,cleaning heads, coating heads. FRANC whatever helps I say, Brother. If it works for ya ,cool, but I wonder about that girl on that farm :;): JC JOHNNY CONGA....

[stlouieray]

:(

Dang, so, that's where the bag balm goes . . . I was using it for . . . well, it doesn't matter. (Ha)

In all seriousness MCO, you say you work with different moisterizing products. I'm interested, based on the testing exposure you have if:

a) You like any particular cream for hands, and
b) Do you cover a range of testing, that would include or apply to the heads/skins of Congas, or is that out of your realm?

Ray

[otto]

Hello All
This has been some great information on my original question, but I am not clear if we are talking about skins that are old and worn or if this applies to new skins. I just accquired a set of LP Performance Series Drums and a set of Generation II Bongos should I applying any sort of treatment to these new skins. Someone told be to apply baby oil to the skins but after hearing some of the info here I'm not sure I want to do that.
Thanks Again to All
Otto

[RitmoBoricua]

Hello All
This has been some great information on my original question, but I am not clear if we are talking about skins that are old and worn or if this applies to new skins. I just accquired a set of LP Performance Series Drums and a set of Generation II Bongos should I applying any sort of treatment to these new skins. Someone told be to apply baby oil to the skins but after hearing some of the info here I'm not sure I want to do that.
Thanks Again to All
Otto

I recently bought a head for one of my bongos and right away I treated the head with "Manteca". If you want them heads to last and sound good you have to do your maintenance, plus save you some money you know quality heads and skins are kind of expensive, Preventive Maintenance and Up-Keep Goes A Long Way! :;):

[mco]

stlouieray,
I work in a research lab, but we test pharmaceuticals, not hand lotions. Sorry if I was unclear about that. My experience with hand lotion stems from having to wash my hands dozens and dozens of times a day at work. There are many lotions I havn't tried , but of those I have tried, those containing lanolin (eg Lubriderm) work best for me. All the African djembe teachers I've met swear by Shea butter for both their hands and the goatskin djembe heads. When available, I'll slather Shea butter on my hands before I go to bed. It provides a nice protective coating overnight. I don't know how shea butter works on conga drum heads, though

[otto]

Thanks RB
I have seen a lot of users mention the Manteca and the 3 to 4 hours of sun drying time which now is impossible here in the new york area. I was told that baby oil that is not petroleum based would be good to use. Or should I just wait to the warm weather comes back if it ever does here. My congas are now about a month old but I am at them almost every day. If I do the Manteca what is the process involved. i.e. Melt down manteca, apply with a colth or not etc.
Thanks again
Otto

[RitmoBoricua]

Thanks RB
I have seen a lot of users mention the Manteca and the 3 to 4 hours of sun drying time which now is impossible here in the new york area. I was told that baby oil that is not petroleum based would be good to use. Or should I just wait to the warm weather comes back if it ever does here. My congas are now about a month old but I am at them almost every day. If I do the Manteca what is the process involved. i.e. Melt down manteca, apply with a colth or not etc.
Thanks again
Otto

You know I applied the "Manteca" with my fingers smells a little a bit. Well I treated my skins the other day and here in Virginia is cold too, I just allowed the stuff to do it's thing like for a day or so. Of course my drums are indoors like at a room temperature of 70 or 75 degrees.

[Johnny Conga]

Ok one more time here goes......take a little Manteca and with 2 fingers put some on the head of the skin and from the center out to around the head down to the rim you put a thin coat of manteca...get your strongest lamp or heating type light and put it about 10-12 inches away from the head. I just did this the other day for my bongo. I left the lamp on it for a few hours, then let it dry over night. It works this way too. At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA

[yoni]

I must try manteca some day - in all my years of hearing of it, I still haven't tried it!

On the subject of hand lotions, I swear by one called "Corn Husker's Lotion", available at many U.S. drugstores, but too bad they don't have it here in Israel. That stuff works GREAT, better than anything else I've tried for the hands. Has glycerin and some other stuff in it, originally made for people who husk corn, I guess, a job that's probably pretty tough on the hands.

Don't use it anywhere else but on the hands, though! :;):

[akdom]

Bongoes and congas are obviously not the same. You don't want to soak the skin in lotion! Conga skins are thicker and juste the surface has to be oiled. The greas won't penetrate all the way through anyway.
Everybody has his own tricks and I recommend to put some light lotion on your hands before playing. It will be more comfortable for you and this will keep the head slightly oiled.

Have fun

Big B