This was a deal I couldn't pass up. NOS (New, Old stock) Slingerland
American made, 5 ply (thick plys, 3/8-7/16 total thickness) maple shells.
16x24 bass, 10x10, 12x12, 13x13, 9x13, 12x15 toms. In near perfect
condition, stored since the closure of Slingerland's Niles, Illinois
factory in the 1980s. No edges cut or holes drilled. I'll
cut the toms down to 8x10, 8.5x12, 9x13, 11x13, 12x15. My first
inclination was to wrap these in some fancy veneer, birds-eye maple, curly
maple, fiddle-back, etc. then give them some red/orange fade stain with
50 coats of crystal clear lacquer. Then reality smacked me in the
melon. "You got time for that? Why not write an opera, or
build some pyramids while you're at it!"
The finish I'm currently leaning towards is something similar to Tama's
white silk on the Performer EFX line. Here's pictures of the finish
on a drumset and from their color options section:
Now, this finish is a wrap that my favorite drum parts supplier carries:
It's called "white ripple" and I don't see that it's any different from
Tama's "white silk". I haven't requested a sample yet, but it's on
my todo list. Wrapping a drum saves about 20 hours of workload PER DRUM!
All you do is cut it to size, apply slightly thinned contact cement to
both the drum and back of the wrap with a roller. The glue must be
smooth. Even though the wrap is quite thick and stiff, even small
lumps will show in the reflections on the glossy finish. Then you
wrap the wrap (while you talk the talk and walk the walk!) around the
drum and press it down hard. I use a rolling pin and press the
inside so that the drum shell presses down onto the wrap. I can
apply all the pressure I want this way without worrying about cracking
the shell. Wrap is more durable and scratch resistant than stained
and lacquered finishes. And if it ever does get damaged, it's a lot
easier to rewrap a drum than to refinish one.
 The lugs I plan to use are: A) Simple. B) Large (70's retro) and best of
all C) Inexpensive! They are reproductions of an old Slingerland
style. The lugs in this picture are the bass drum lugs. The
tom lugs are a little shorter.
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