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

[otto]

I am a beginner and I have read and heard conflicting views on the tunning of the conga drums. Some say that its ok to leave the drums tuned when you are done and some say that you need to tune down the drums to loosen the skins. I practice almost everyday and find having to retune the drums everyday takes time if its necessary I will gadly continue to do so but if I can leave them tuned without causing any damage it would help.
Thanks for any ideas on this subject
Otto

[Johnny Conga]

First Welcome to this forum. There is a wealth of information here. I would tell you My wooden congas, here in the Northwest stay in tune because of the weather. But when I lived in Miami I had to "de-tune" my drums because of the humidity factor and how it streches the skins out. Second it is not necessarily a fact you have to de-tune after playing each time. Because mine stay in tune, most of the time I might only have to give a half turn on each hook, for one of my 3 congas. My conga heads have also been on the same drums for over 6 years...there is much to learn grasshopper.... At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA...

[otto]

Thanks Johnny Conga
The info was good I have my congas in the basement of my house for now (noise Level, this stage its still noise but getting better) Its been pretty dry and cold here in New York but I see how this can become an issue in the summer.
I got the congas for Xmas and I have been trying to make sure to practice everyday for at least 30min I bought 2 videos that are helpful and have picked up some pointers from them.
But I will use this forum to gather more info from others who have or are traveling same path as I have just started.
Again many thanks
Otto Cruz

[kinoconga]

Otto:

Understanding a little bit the behavior of materials, due to my engineering background; in theory; we shall de-tune our drums at least two or three turns after each playing. The longer the drums remain with the heads under constant high tension, the more deformation both the skin & the edge of the drums will suffer, at least in theory.
The degree of deformation is very subtle overtime, but on the long run it could result in out of round drums and severely affected skins, depending on factors such as the uniformity of the physical properties of the materials in questions & the environmental stress on them.
The skins will tend to loose their resiliency, making it harder to tune effectively.
All of the above is at least suggested by engineering theory.
In practice many professionals rarely de-tune their drums at all, and it looks like their experience is not demonstrating any significant damage to the skins and/or edge of drums. Go figure.

In summarry, if you want to play it safe, de-tune them every day, particularly when not used for long periods of time.

Hope this helps!

Sincerely,

KinoConga

[Johnny Conga]

Hi Kino ...what keeps my drums from "egging" is because of an inner hoop or "alma" as they say in Cuba. That is why my drums can stay tuned without affecting the shape due to constant tension. If it doesn't have the inner hoop, it with some wood start to "egg" the head in time....At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA....

[yoni]

Hi Johnny,

That hit it on the head, what you said about humidity. When I lived in the Caribbean I had to loosen the heads more - one tore all by itself once just 'cause the humidity weakened the skin while it was sitting too tight. But now in a drier climate I hardly have to "de-tune" at all.

[kinoconga]

Johnny:

Yes, an inner steel hoop will help keep the drums from going out of round. But many modern drums don't have this hoop.
Even with the hoop, the skins will suffer over time from the stress caused by the high tension applied on them.

Sincerely,

KinoConga

[Johnny Conga]

Part of the secret is how to take care of your skins. Just a little bit of "manteca", will take care of that. Or some "palm oil". It brings the skins back to life.......At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA :;):

[stlouieray]

:;):

With my congas, I'm not certain if I'm doing my skins the best, but I've been at playing a long time. I'm not very religious, about de-tuning, but I do practice a lot, and I don't think that they're tuned very tight, anyway so, I haven't de-tuned them, lately.

Sometimes I will de-tune them, but at this time, I don't know that they're very tight, during my practice sessions.

As far as any seasoning of the heads is concerned, I had an LP Rep. tell me, if my heads are tight:

a) I'd probably have to hit the drum harder to get a good sound, and that b) If the heads are fairly tight then, you want to stick some kind of lanolin based lotion, but only around the 1st inch to inch and a half of the skin - not too far towards the center.

What do you think Johnny?

P.S. I forgot to say, that my congas are Giovanni (Galaxies), and they boast of some N. American Ash wood, or something. So, does this type of drum have better durability characteristics? Dayumm, if I know.



Edited By stlouieray on 1074695660

[rumbaman]

How are you all do'ing . My experience has been that on my congas i do'nt detune them. They are most of the time in tune . I live in Miami so i am very carefull not to leave them in a very hot place like my garrage . They have stayed in pretty good tune maybe a 1/2 a turn or 1 full one ocassionally . I have meinls ,my instructor told me not to detune them since i keep them in my house . With all respect the suggestion to put hand cream or oil on them i would'nt . I have a set of Armando Perazza bongos and when i started playing them i went to the internet for advice . I ran across a page that suggested to rub hand lotion on the skins . Well to make a long story short i messed the heads up they were never crisp again . Good luck !

[Johnny Conga]

Hey guys I don't recommend "LANOLIN" for your drums. Something more natural like "manteca de corojo" or "palm oil" with a very thin coat rubbed in all the way to the center and out to the rim. Then put under a heat lamp or the sun for 2 to 3 hours so it melts intot he skin thereby reviving it....Trust me!.....JC JOHNNY CONGA.... :;):

[stlouieray]

:cool:

Hey Rumbaman, I appreciate the advice. I was wondering if that might have some type of ill effect on the heads. I asked myself, how had the drums I had for years (3 diff sets before the Giovanni's) never had a problem, and I never thought to de-tune them, or season the skins - at least my 1st two sets were that way handled. Three years ago, when I got back into playing, I bought 3 Aspire LP's, and that's when I started de-tuning, but never always doing it.

With the Giovanni's, I keep em at a certain pitch, that doesn't appear too tight, and practice that way. When I'm ready to play a gig, I then, fine tune them for the sounds I want to project.

Thanks again. Anybody else have infor, I'd appreciate that as well.

[RitmoBoricua]

Hey guys I don't recommend "LANOLIN" for your drums. Something more natural like "manteca de corojo" or "palm oil" with a very thin coat rubbed in all the way to the center and out to the rim. Then put under a heat lamp or the sun for 2 to 3 hours so it melts intot he skin thereby reviving it....Trust me!.....JC JOHNNY CONGA.... :;):

One place I ordered my "manteca pa' los cueros" is http://www.bongolandia.com. Pretty Good Stuff!

[mco]

Johnny,
While I won't attempt to dispute your recommendation against using lanolin on drums heads, I just want to say lanolin (wool oil) is in fact a very "natural" product. It is an oily secretion from the skin of sheep. The excreted lanolin becomes trapped in the sheep's wool and can then be extracted from the wool when the sheep is sheared. Lanolin oils are very similar to the sebacious oils secreted by human skin (we're both animals). Lanolin is what nourishes the sheep's wool and protects it from the harsh environment. The lanolin containing moisturizer I've used on my hands (LubriDerm) has worked well in keeping my hands from chapping. Lubriderm does contain other stuff, however that may not be ideal for use as a drum head restorer.

[Johnny Conga]

Where the heck did you learn about sheep like that???.That's a good one,very informative I must say. But yes Lubriderm is good for your "hands", I just wouldn't put it on my heads. Are you from Australia?.....just messin with ya... :;): JC JOHNNY CONGA.... I love it ,you learn something new everyday here.