Let's see your guitar and bass gear!

Beer Baron 🍺 said:

In reply to Antihero :

Rubber strings or metal?

Rubber strings and really that's what you want too

I wanna say his is a Caramel?

Every time i bring out the 12 string I'm reminded why chorus pedals are so much easier.

It's a nice guitar but tuning is annoying, bending is annoying, re tuning is annoying.....

So, I've had this Ludwig Acrolite 5x14" snare for a while.





The Ludwig Acrolite was designed as a student model snare, but it really does everything well. They have made a few variations of the Acrolite, and they all have their fans. It's a late 90's "Black Galaxy" model; these ones are extra dry due to that textured finish and they sound killer. 

My dad found it in its original Ludwig student case (with stand, sheet music, etc) a few years back at the town dump's "Swap Shop", where people leave good items for others to grab for free. This was some kid in town's snare that must not have used it much, because the original heads were barely used. They must have lost interest, and the parents dumped it off at the Swap Shop. When I first started playing, I had a mid-80's gray steel Acrolite as my first drum for Concert Band, and I had to trade it in when I got a new drum kit back in the 90's to cut the cost down. I instantly regretted that, and he knew it too, so when he saw that familiar hard plastic case, he snapped it up instantly!

All that said, I have been having issues with the snare wires loosening up since I got it. These are notorious for having lousy strainers; they were designed for cheapness and simplicity, and the screws like to strip out over time. After watching some videos on my YouTube feed on Acrolites, I decided to take a second look and also try something new with it. 



I ordered up a Tama 42-wire snare wire kit with some new snare straps made of nylon cloth instead of the usual string or Mylar strips to see if they would help grip the clamps better. I've read (and heard) that using a 42-wire snare would both fatten up the sound and give it more of a crack than the typical 20-wire ones do. And after changing the routing a bit, that seems to have fixed it. This thing is LOUD. It really cuts, and it has a great crack to it. The strainer itself seems to be doing strainer things for now, so I'll leave it alone. It's a really great alternative to my mainstay 6.5x14 Magstar Custom Maple snare. 

It's amazing how versatile these are; you can really play any style and genre with one of these. Every drummer should have at least one Acrolite! 

In reply to Tony Sestito :

That's awesome. Is that steel or aluminum? 
 

Edit for pictures of drum stuff. The kit from the Plant/Krauss show. I don't remember the drummers name, but he was an animal. Super dynamic. 
I'd pin the kit as form the 50s or so. 

In reply to barefootcyborg5000 :

Acrolites are aluminum, with 8 lugs and a built-in muffling system. Some have no coating, but this one and another made in the late 80's have a textured coating on the shell. The early textured ones are gray, and for some reason, they switched to this "Black Galaxy" finish in the mid-90's. They reverted back to the spun aluminum shells sometime around 2005-10. They still make them, too! 

And that kit is WAY early. Like 1920's-1930's at the latest. Crazy that someone is gigging with that in 2024!

In reply to Tony Sestito :

Way cool. I'd like an aluminum snare at some point. I have brass, steel, and hickory. And I've seen very reasonable deals on those Ludwig's. Something to watch out for. 

In reply to barefootcyborg5000 :

You might want to act fast, since they are starting to creep up in value. Going price is around $200 used now. If you look around, you might be able to find one for half of that (or in my case, free) from some parent whose kid lost interest in band/orchestra drumming in school. 

Another one to look for is the Ludwig Supraphonic. The Acrolite is basically a stripped-down Supraphonic. The Supraphonics have chrome-plated aluminum shells, 10 lugs, and are all over the place as well. Nice ones go for more than the Acrolites, but again, you might be able to score a deal. The plating does like to flake off, but if you're into patina, you might be able to find one cheap! Pretty sure John Bonham played a Supraphonic, so that's all the endorsement you need right there. 

In reply to Tony Sestito :

Wish I could act fast. I've been on a spending spree lately and life is running up on me fast. Afraid if I dragged home another instrument right now, I'd be in real trouble. 

I've yet to play a metal snare that I've liked, but others seem to get a decent tone out of them.

Current snare is a 14x8 maple snare with a 42 strand snare wires, and hydraulic head on it. I'm not great at tuning but right now its not a gunshot, it's a cannon shot sort of tone. You have to be careful to not hit it too hard or it's incredibly loud

In reply to Antihero :

I don't have a ton of experience with either of my metal snares. One is because it's not going to be in my possession long enough to justify tracking down the parts it actually needs, and the other because I didn't want to bother in the apartment with trying to use a mesh head. But every time I'm listening to something and say to myself "Man, that snare sounds REALLY good." it always ends up being brass. And tomorrow I sign for the new house so I'll have plenty of time to tinker with mine moving forward. 
 

Metal snares either sound awful or they sound incredible. I've had a few over the years, including a Yamaha 6.5x14 steel snare and another, earlier Acrolite. The Yamaha sounded like a big pingy tin can and not that great. Ludwig figured out metal snares decades ago, and knows how to make some great ones. The Acrolites... amazing. The Supraphonic is an absolute classic that lots of drummers love. Another one I loved back in the day was the Pearl Chad Smith 5x14 snare. A friend of mine had one, and it was a great all-around snare. 

All that said, I am more of a maple guy though. My Magstar Custom Drums has a 10-ply Keller shell and it's magical. I think I want to get the same 42-wire snare for it that I just got for the Acrolite to fatten it up even more. 

Snares are super difficult in that the sound heard varies hugely depending on not just heads and tuning, but also on location. I've never heard one that sounded the same from behind the kit as it does out in front. And live vs recorded is huge too. Mic choice, placement, mix... for a simple percussion piece, it's a really complex subject. 

A couple of weeks ago when I posted a pic of my new guitar and said that was the last time I would be buying my last guitar, I meant acoustic guitar.  Just clarifying.  In unrelated news, here's my new Jazzmaster.  And I think I'm actually done now and I'm serious.  Though I am making a Telecaster out of some parts and a tree my Grandfather planted when he got home from WWII.  I don't think that counts.

In reply to Apis Mellifera :

Pics of the tree?

Apis Mellifera said:

A couple of weeks ago when I posted a pic of my new guitar and said that was the last time I would be buying my last guitar, I meant acoustic guitar.  Just clarifying.  In unrelated news, here's my new Jazzmaster.  And I think I'm actually done now and I'm serious.  Though I am making a Telecaster out of some parts and a tree my Grandfather planted when he got home from WWII.  I don't think that counts.

 

Im interested as well in the tele project

In reply to Antihero :

Googling "Pinecaster" will show what my goal is.

This started in 1945 when my Grandfather (Army) and his sister (Marines) returned home from WWII.  As a result of a Forest Service program (an interesting global post-war historical topic), they were given various seedlings to reforest their rural farm.  Some white pine were planted along the driveway to my great grandparent's farmhouse.  Seventy years later, we own the farm and one spring a series of storms knocked them down one by one.  Every time I'd go up for the weekend, the driveway was blocked, so after the fourth one fell, we took them all down. 

Being sentimental, I wanted to do something with the wood.  Pine makes ugly furniture, so most became lumber, but I saved some and cut it into a thick slab.  The end grain was sealed and it sat in the barn for next eight years to air dry.  Eventually I cut it down the middle to make two blanks.  I don't have a thickness planer wide enough, so I made one using a router sled (stock photo).  Then I bought some Telecaster templates and traced the outline.  That was last week.

The blank pictured has developed a large check so it has become the practice piece.  I haven't checked the moisture yet, but I may bake the wood in the oven so see if there is enough stability to proceed.  I may also dowel  across the width if necessary.  I also have a salvaged piece of walnut that would make a much prettier guitar, but having never done this, I'm saving it.

In reply to Apis Mellifera :

Are you building the neck? I bet the walnut would make a beautiful fretboard

I haven't decided.  I'm not sure I have enough of the walnut to even make a decent body.  A fret board, however, is possible.

In reply to Apis Mellifera :

A buddy built an explorer about ten years ago with a walnut top. It has a nearly white stripe right down the middle (I don't remember if it was book-matched or just turned out that way) but with a dark stain it came out beautifully. 
 

Which is to say, Walnut is very pretty. You should do it. 

And back to drums. My snares:

And all the drums are in the new room. I do have to share the room with wife for her craft stuff, but that's a small compromise. 

might experiment with the tom situation a bit and put the second snare under that LH crash. I also need a couple more cymbal stands and a big dirty china. 

In reply to barefootcyborg5000 :

Looks good! Is this the 1st time you've had it all set up in the new space? Also, you might be able to get some accessory clamps with cymbal arms for more stuff; might be cheaper and put the cymbals where you want them. 

In reply to Tony Sestito :

First time in the new place, yes. But this isn't permanent or the final setup. Going to experiment. Mostly just set up because I was tired of going up and down stairs and was eager to put the pinstripes back on.
 

The 17" crash in the middle is on one of those arms, attached to the Tom arm. but ideally I'll have two more rather large/heavy cymbals and they should get dedicated stands. But for now, the extra money and time is going into sound proofing the room. Drums is loud. 

I was looking on FBM for a better amp. Saw this and decided that I *am* ready for a 2nd bass.

Inbanez SR1600 Premium, seller included the Roadrunner gig bag.

Guess I'm diving into this new hobby with both feet.