This kit has been in the works for a long time. I'm Overjoyed to finally share it with you and so excited to make this awesome instrument available for sale!
This process all started with the desire to Branch out and expand our drum building vocabulary at HHG. We feel that we have mastered all varieties of wood shell making and wanted to expand into the world of making our own metal shells and Hardware.
This was an arduous Journey. As you may know, Woodworking and metalworking have parallels but are entirely separate and distinct disciplines. Not to mention they require very different tools.
After investing a sizable amount of capital into equipment, we started experimenting. Rolling metal, shaping it, welding it, riveting it- Testing out all of the different techniques that we needed to master to produce drums worthy of our badge.
After all of the R&D we finally settled on the construction method that we felt confident would produce the most sonically useful, unique, and visually stunning instruments.
The shells are made from 20 gauge carbon steel that is rolled by hand into a perfect cylinder. Each shell then receives 13 ply black walnut reinforcement rings at each bearing Edge. The seam of the shell is neatly riveted together with aircraft grade stainless steel rivets.
The goal was to find a way to combine wood and metal in such a way that you could capture the benefits of both. We believe we have achieved that with these drums. They retain the volume, power, and thunder of metal shells while also having the warmth and tympanic articulation of a wood shell.
The shells are finished by hand to give them a visually intriguing brushed pattern, and then sealed against corrosion with satin lacquer. The interior of the shells and the wooden reinforcement rings are sealed with our own blend of oils and waxes.
We didn't want to stop at just the shells. We wanted to make our own hoops. We used heavy-gauge hot-rolled carbon steel that was rolled, welded at the seam, and ground flush into a perfect circle. Then, we machine the face that mates up with the drum head collar perfectly flat to promote good seating and even tensioning. The Hoops interface with some classy diecast Chrome claws.
We even went as far as to make the kick drum Hoops out of solid steel. The pair of them weighs about 35 pounds.
And to really kick it over the edge, we also made all of the floor tom legs which are half inch carbon steel round bar with 1" tool steel ball bearings for feet.
The kit you see in these pictures is a 24x16, 13x9, 16x16, 18x16. If you order this kit today, we will be building it for you from scratch. The price includes three toms and one Kick Drum in any size that you may want, made from carbon steel with all matching carbon steel hoops. Additionally, we can customize this setup in any way that you can imagine. You can go ahead and add the kit to cart, and at checkout, let us know the sizes you would like in the "order comments" field.
We can make all of the drums out of copper, brass, stainless, or aluminum. we can do etchings, powder coating, or paint on the shells, you can also add or subtract drums to make your perfect setup. Literally anything you can dream up. We can do it. Just be aware that there may be some changes in price for different materials, finishes, or Hardware.
I appreciate you taking the time to read this description. We're very excited about what we've created here, and we hope that you will consider making it part of your sound.