Thread: Turning SOLID TIMBER Drum Shells

Thanks for the info Bob. Since the original post I have started playing with MDF for the staves (purely as an experiment). The reason is that MDF is cheap, comes with precise thickness and is flat. Today I cut 16 staves, so the bevel angle is 11 ¼ degrees. According to calculation, for a 13 7/8 inch OD (ALL drums are 1/8 inch less than quoted diameter) the 16.3 mm thick staves should be 70.2mm wide and will fit snugly between a hole 359.8 mm dia. and a plug 320.3 mm dia. This will allow a maximum finished shell thickness of ½ inch after turning. I used an 11 ¼ degree router bit to bevel the edges and the bit was adjusted so that each pass reduced the stave width by bout 0.2 mm, so I was able to get the stave widths within this tolerance. The plug and hole were made out of a single piece of MDF using a straight router bit and a router compass. A rough and ready initial fit indicates everything seems pretty good, although I can foresee that fine tuning of the bevel angles might be needed. I ran out of time and will be able to better tell in the next few days.

I am planning on holding the staves between an internal plug and external hole at both ends and then using tie down straps around the outides to hold the staves while gluing. I checked out what is meant by “jubalee clips” which seem to be what Aussies call pipe clamps, so it is unclear what you did here.

The staves are 600 mm long because I am interested in toms and bass drums. Many guys have done snare drums, which as pointed out in the original post, snare drums are not very deep and have thick shells. However toms and bass drums are thinner and have deeper shells, and hence are much more difficult to make.

Have you done any toms or a bass drum?

Jubilee clips = wormdrive hose clamps.

Get the largest ones you can find, unscrew them until the "tail" is no longer engaged in the screw/worm drive then take the tail of one and engage it in another clamp, the do the same with the tail of that one......continue joining them until there are enough to go around the circumference of the shell......and tighten as necessary

A better way of "clamping" staves is to use big rubber bands cut from car, truck or tractor tubes depending on what diameter you have.

They are quick to fit, exert an even pressure and glue doesn't stick to them. Most tyre services can help with old tubes if you ask.

Updating an old thread after recent private message enquiry. <o></o>

3/4 inch bullnose and round nose router bits were used to make the interlocking staves, same method as Flute & Bead Bit Set used for canoes, but much larger dia. is better here.
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The staves can rotate for self alignment and they will be stronger than simple butt joints. Also, the joins will be inclined to the final surface making any filling a lot easier and better.

<o></o>For assembly, bases were made from 16mm MDF screwed to 16 mm plywood. A circular groove, with accurately machined inner and outer diameters, was routed then into the MDF (only) for inserting the staves. This and other info was calculated using a spreadsheet: drawing Round_Nose_12B_Stave.jpg. Looks complex, but simple in practice since the bullnose routing is done to get the "stave width" dimension measured with calipers.
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Dry_assmbly.jpg shows top and bottom strap clamps which pulled the staves together using a circular lid corresponding to ID (removed for pic).
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Glue up was piece at a time using sieved jarrah saw dust added to West System 105 epoxy to form a paste. The “Glad Wrap” around outside helped minimize leakage out of vertical joints (After_Gluing.jpg). Epoxy was scraped back into internal joints as it thickened while hardening.
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ALL_Stacked.jpg shows the six shells all glued up with bases still attached. My contact with a metal lathe pulled out after the shells were made.
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The big guy (bass drum) is 20 inch dia. Pretty scary if they were to break apart while spinning on a lathe. However the staves are glued solid into the 32mm thick bases, which could be used for mounting onto a lathe face plate and the lids could be fixed to the other end to help keep everything together.

Tapping them makes this great ringing sound for a second or more. They have been sitting around for a year or so. Machining the outside would not be too hard but I think the inside needs a metal lathe. Final thickness is 5/16 inch (or thinner is better). Any new ideas would be much appreciated.

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Jon,

Have you been to the Drumshed forums? There is a thread there (by Koko) about "turning" staves without a lathe which has some pics of the router "jig" he uses.........I'm actually thinking of adapting the idea for some work (not staves) that I may be doing.

My apologies for jumping in. This thread intrigues me, I am always looking for new challenges and would like to try my hand at turning drum shells straight from the log. Previous posts and links have given me an idea about sizes, but I have no idea about their relative value, besides the obvious relation with difficulty/bigger size.
Could somebody please tell me the diameter/length/thickness of three or four of the most prized standard size drums (only up to 20', I am not totally crazy!) I could try aiming for? Thanks in advance.

Originally Posted by jon46089

3/4 inch bullnose and round nose router bits were used to make the interlocking staves, same method as Flute & Bead Bit Set used for canoes, but much larger dia. is better here.

The staves can rotate for self alignment and they will be stronger than simple butt joints. Also, the joins will be inclined to the final surface making any filling a lot easier and better.

Now, this is a damned good idea! I know I'm no drum-maker, but I've turned staved items before and I can't help but wonder just why I've never seen this idea before? Especially considering the headaches everyone has cutting the angles juuuust exactly so.

Worth several greenies, in my books. But you'll have to be satisfied with just one.

I have to agree with Skew, that method certainly addresses the issue of angle accuracy.

F&E,

Standard or popular drum diameters range from 12' to 14" for snare drums (sizes either side of this are less common), 10", 12" 13" 14" and 16" for toms (you will also find 6", 8" and occasionally 15") and kick drums normally start at 18" going up through 20", 22" 24" and 26". Actual shell depth varies depending on a number of factors, one of which is what is fashionable at the time. Thickness is another issue again.

True solid shells (from a log) require a lot of time for the timber to cure correctly without splitting, it is generally accepted that allowing for curing times, it can take between 1 to 2 years to produce a shell......obviously this is dependant on a number of factors but solid shells require a fair degree of commitment.

Thanks HiString. I was thinking of finding a way of cutting concentric rings from a suitably seasoned log. Would any hairline cracks be a major problem for sound quality or would an epoxy or similar hard finish take care of them? Thanks again

Anything that compromises the natural resonance is a problem, whether or not hairline cracks could be filled, etc. with epoxy is something I cannot give a definitive answer on, ideally, it would not normally be done, at least not by any serious drum builders I'm acquainted with. Personally, I'd be aiming for total continuity of grain throughout the shell.

Just as with tonewoods for guitars, etc., it is possible to "tap test" a drum shell.............hang the shell (balanced) on the thin edge of a rule or on the tip of your thumb and give the outside a sharp "thump" with the hard ball of your other hand (the base of your thumb)......a good shell will resonate with a fairly defined note with few, if any, odd overtones or unsympathetic harmonics.

Disregarding timber species or for that matter, the construction methods used............shell thickness will have a major bearing on a drum's pitch.......thicker shells are normally higher pitched, thin shells have a lower pitched resonance. Remeber that when fully fitted out, drum shells are subject to varying amounts of tension, this is most applicable to the snare which is tuned much higher than the other drums.

Also, unless you have an old kit which you are prepared to strip for the hardware, it would be wise to work out........... 1) where you are going to source all the necessary hardware from (it's not overly plentiful in Aust.), and.........2) realistic costings (we pay a premium out here). I use top end and custom gear which I have to import from the US and have to allow around $500 to fit out a snare drum and that's not including the materials and hours involved in the shell .

Thanks again for your comprehensive answer, HiString. As regards hardware, I have no desire to actually make a drum, I was only interested in the mechanical challenge of turning the shell. I am sure that if I ever achieve that, there will be people here happy to take it off my hands...
Cheers
Frank

Comprehensive? I've barely scratched the surface .

Just for interest I've attached a pic of an Ironwood log being turned into a shell........this is up in Cairns and the guy does some beautiful work.

Originally Posted by HiString

Comprehensive? I've barely scratched the surface .

Just for interest I've attached a pic of an Ironwood log being turned into a shell........this is up in Cairns and the guy does some beautiful work.

That's woodturning? With a humongous methal lathe? too b****y easy!
Where is the challenge in that? As I read somewhere around here lately, "we are not into easy, mate!" (ok, ok, I have moved on from the foot operated lathe...)

Cheers
Frank

Hmmm... somewhere around in these forums [rummage, rummage] is a link to a video clip [rummage, rummage] where a bloke turns drum shells [rummage, rummage] from logs in the field [rummage, rummage] with a gizmo hooked up to his 4WD. [@#^%#!! Can't find it. ]

The clip only goes for a minute or two and shows almost the entire process. From memory, the logs were green and he was basically only roughing them to shape, ready for drying... but a cored log will dry out a lot more quickly and because most shrinkage is radial, it is less likely to have problems with splitting! I know that I wanted one the moment I lay eyes on it!

As a bonus, it'd be easier to inspect the roughed log and decide whether it's defect free and worth curing or whether it's a waste of time taking it home. I'm sure all turners with chain-saws have, at some stage, suffered the heartache of eagerly waiting for a particular log to dry, only to discover a hidden fault or inclusion once they've finally started turning it.


Oh... just BTW... I've moved back to using a treadle lathe. We are not into easy, mate!