3 Vintage in Chi. $500

[AlexV]

bnb,jorge,tai- thanks for the advice. i'm def going to use it. i'm going to sand lightly by hand and see what i get starting with the 60 grit to get the finish off.
i have a question though, the tumba has bottom seperation that needs repaired it's hard to see in the pics. should i glue first then sand? or the other way around? this is important i want to do things in the right order and plus i've never glued seperated staves before. i bought titebond III today. my cousin suggested that we glue then use duct tape to tightly rap the drum all the way around. does this sound ok? i looked at him like he was crazy. i was thinking more those belt straps but i would have to buy those. they would be more useful imo. continue with the suggestion guys this will be a team effort

[AlexV]

okay olsongo already answered my question glue then sand. i'm excited to get under way tomorrow. i forgot to mention that the hardware is in great shape and that the three tubs are in round the tumba a tiny bit off because of stave seperation but i expect that to be fixed after gluing.

[RitmoBoricua]

One thing to remember when you sand if you begin with something like 80 grit you don't got from 80 -120 grit straight to say something like 320 grit you have to go to 180 - 220 grit in between. You have to go through the grits can't skip grits if you want to attain a good finish.

Here is a link to a good article on sanding and sand paper : http://woodzone.com/Merchant2/articles/ ... /index.htm

Another useful link specially if you go to the expert blog tab and use the drop down menu: http://woodanswers.com/

You have to inform yourself well before you proceed, develop a plan or schedule, take your time , be thorough and patient.

[Joseph]

Hi Alex
Looks like you got a great buy.

IMHO
I would glue any/all cracks splits first, and then sand down to bare wood.
The old finish will prevent oozing glue from saturating into the surface of the wood, and save you having to sand deeper to remove any glue that may stain the surface.

For glue clamping, a cheap alternative to the ratchet straps is a "Spanish Windlass" (mariners term).
Here's a description of how it works:
http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/tips/the-spanish-windlass.aspx
Basically you make a loop around the shell, preferably with strap, as it won't roll towards the skinny part of shell, like rope would.
Put a stick in loop and start twisting stick round and round. It won't take long before it starts cranking tight.

Here's a pic of a shell that I clamped with spanish windlass.
The big clamp on the top of shell opening is there to keep windlass stick from unwinding while glue sets.
That thing is strapped tight!
Due to the length of the stick, you can get a lot more leverage (and tight clamping ability) than a rachet strap.

Notice that I have thin oak splines in the crack, as the crack was only on the surface of shell, inside glue line intact.
Due to nature of construction of this shell, with inlaid oak ring (under clampstrap) I couldn't completely close crack , even with serious clamp pressure, so I resorted to thin splines of matching wood, which are virtually invisible in glue line.

Notice also the only area of shell NOT sanded to bare wood is area where glue (TB3) occurs. Sanded after glue set up.

Have fun!

[bongosnotbombs]

my cousin suggested that we glue then use duct tape to tightly rap the drum all the way around. does this sound ok? i looked at him like he was crazy. i was thinking more those belt straps but i would have to buy those. they would be more useful imo. continue with the suggestion guys this will be a team effort

Duct tape is pretty amazing, but I don't think you could get the duct tape tight enough.

The best thing Taiko and I have come up with, and also the cheapest is to use rope. Tie a loop into both ends of a length of rope a little longer than where you are going to tighten the drum. Loop the rope around the drum and the place a stick, like a drum stick is good, in the loops on each end of that rope. Take the drum stick and twist it, which will also twist the rope and tighten it. You can get some pretty good leverage and get it tighter than a strap clamp.

If the rope wants to creep towards the edge of the drum, you can loop some string through the holes where the lugplate screws go. Pass the rope through the string, the string will keep the rope in place. The stick will also want to undwind so you might need to tie that off too, or duct tape it maybe. I twist mine in opposite directions then tie them to each other.

[AlexV]

okay well i glued and strapped it down making up my own method. it doesn't look like it but it's real real tight. hopefully tight enough. how long do i let it sit?

[AlexV]

tried to polish the hardware some. i haven't messed with the hooks yet. i'm going to replace the bolts and nuts for the side plates. and when i can buy new tension rods i'll order those but that will have to wait some.

[RitmoBoricua]

okay well i glued and strapped it down making up my own method. it doesn't look like it but it's real real tight. hopefully tight enough. how long do i let it sit?

You are wasting no time hard at work. Normally if I am not mistaken let it sit for at least 24 hours. The glue you used should tell you. Cold weather conditions may affect the time the glue takes to cure and the wood as well.

[bongosnotbombs]

Yep, that's exactly how my repairs look. All wrapped up in string and sticks.
Looks like your doing a great job. Those lugs look a lot better than the ones
that came on my Valje. Let the drum sit wrapped up for at least 24 hours.

[taikonoatama]

Great work with the rope tourniquet technique - it's a solid system, and super cheap. It's amazing how much tension you can get - more than belt clamps.

One thing I hope you did was to mark the crown lugs, side plates, and shell before/as you removed everything so you can put it all back together the same way it was. With handmade drums like this, sometimes the holes in the side plates are drilled slightly differently from plate to plate, and the bolt holes in the shell are specific to a given side plate. Same deal for the crown - it usually fits best in a single alignment of a specific crown loop to a specific side plate position.

If you did not do this, after you finish the drum and put the side plates back on, first put in all the bolt without the nuts, all the way around, to make sure it all goes back together, and thoroughly test the alignment of the crown lugs to the side plates to find the best one.

~james

[AlexV]

hey there guys. well it's sitting there and it looks dry but i'm thinking i'll give it another day just to be safe. i want to thank everyone who gave suggestions on how to get the drum nice and tight. i was somewhat afraid that i wouldn't be able to get it tight but it seems ok. there is a crack thats not on a stave that didn't seal to the point if disappearing so i'll have to fill that in. of course i'll be taking suggestions again. the only thing that has me worried is i have to sand outside or in the garage with the door open and it's cold out. i don't want to fluck it up. should i wait to sand until it gets warmer out? does it even matter once the drum is dry?

[AlexV]

taikonoatama- yes i marked the sideplates and kept each piece to it's specific place. i used painters tape and numbered each piece T1 T2 etc for tumba and 1 the first sideplate to the left of the handle holes continuing counterclockwise. i didn't want to put pieces back in the wrong place and stress the shell anymore than it already is. the rim i didn't mark. but since the skin wasn't the original i felt it really didn't matter. thanks for all your input and to everyone else too.

[bongosnotbombs]

there is a crack thats not on a stave that didn't seal to the point if disappearing so i'll have to fill that in. of course i'll be taking suggestions again. the only thing that has me worried is i have to sand outside or in the garage with the door open and it's cold out. i don't want to fluck it up. should i wait to sand until it gets warmer out? does it even matter once the drum is dry?

I have never used filler like that. Once I've sanded a drum down and refinished it, cracks are became much less visible. You might have a different standard about that. I can't imagine the cold affecting the drum while you sand it, but then again I live in a warmer state and never had to worry about things like that.

[AlexV]

i should clarify. the crack is sealed shut. on the outside of the drum there's a hairline still showing. i'd like for it not to show so i'm not sure how i could cover it up. i assumed i could fill it in with something before sanding down and refinishing.

[AlexV]

but yeah maybe you're right after sanding it might not be necessary. i think i'll take that approach first. if after i still want to fill it i could then just sand that small part thats filled. i'm not looking fwd to sanding it myself, but i'm looking fwd to the end product.