Looking after your drum kit will make it play better, last longer and be more reliable - it may even increase its value!

Back in the dark ages of music, a band was often referred to as having various musicians, and a drummer. Sadly, in terms of education, information and technical support, little has been done to help the poor skin-basher shake off this image. His colleagues on guitar and keyboards are showered with new products, volumes of data, custom options and answers to any problems they may encounter, but, alas, drummers have been very much left to fend for themselves.

But help is at hand! IN TUNE has entrusted me with the task of covering the main areas requiring attention on the average acoustic drum kit, that will hopefully result in longer life (the drums, not you!) and less wear and breakage, along with better performance in some instances. The work involved isn't skilled, and requires only the following basic items: a drum key, '3-in-1' type oil, a screwdriver (and for some makes a very small spanner), and plenty of soft, clean cloth. And so to work!

TOM TOMS & THE BASS DRUM

Firstly, remove the tension bolts and hoops, preferably placing bolts and head washers in a container from which they won't 'walk'! When the heads are off the shell, examine them for excessive wear or dents - you'll be better able to assess their condition now they're not under tension. Replace those which have seen better days; but those that may be just dirty can be washed in warm, soapy water (using a nail-brush to remove stubborn marks) before rinsing in clean water and drying thoroughly.

Next we move on to the hoops, which can be given the same cleaning treatment as drum heads, except that they'll need a good, dry duster to restore a top shine to the chrome. Avoid the use of abrasive chrome cleaner on all but old or tarnished chrome, unless it's essential - you will achieve the best results with soapy water, rinsing then drying as previously described.

Tension bolts are your next target, rolling each one in turn along a smooth surface and looking for any that are bent or have damaged threads. They must be replaced if in this condition, because failure to do so will result in the drum being difficult to tune, giving a false sense of tension. Most probably the distortion will also damage threads in the tension lug insert (we'll deal with that beast in due course). If the threads are filled with grime, give 'em the old water treatment. This dirt will also prevent them turning easily, and you'll find the nail brush a good friend for this job, too. Moving on, we meet the tension lug (sometimes called a nut box). Its function is to accept the head tension bolt in the threaded insert you'll see protruding from the chrome case. On a standard snare drum the tension lug has an insert top and bottom to accommodate both drum heads, whereas on the floor tom tom it's just a single unit.

Being ultra careful, apply the very smallest spot of oil to the threads of each insert. If you get carried away, the oil will run out all over your drum shell - and believe me, it's a long, messy job getting rid of the stuff! An alternative to oil can be to use multipurpose car grease, applying a small blob to the end of a matchstick and placing this down the inserts. Later on, when reassembling the drum, turning the head tension bolt will spread it evenly onto all the threads - the choice is yours.

Inside the shell, you'll have noticed the bolts holding tension lugs, spurs, tom tom holders and legs. Using either a screwdriver or correct size spanner, check that all are snugged up against the shell, looking for washers missing from under any of them. If one is missing, it's essential you replace it. Don't be tempted to do more than gently tighten bolts against the shell - that one extra turn you can't resist could be enough to split the shell or strip a thread from the fitting! Use a very light tension on this job, and before leaving the inside of the shell, why not mark it with an antitheft pen?

Now that the mechanical work is done and the shell is nearly bare, you have the ideal opportunity to give it a thorough clean. A plastic covering responds best to just a damp cloth followed by the faithful old clean duster, and the chrome can be treated the same way. If you have a natural wood finish, it often pays to employ a good quality furniture spray - but take care, and try it on a small area that's out of sight before doing a complete drum.

On reassembly, it's important to make sure that every head tension bolt has a small washer between its head and the rim of the hoop, these being vital both to the protection of the hoop and to ensuring smooth turning of the bolt when tuning your drum.

SNARE DRUM

All of what has gone before applies to the snare drum, with a few features peculiar to its design and function within the kit. Drums having a single lever snare assembly should be dismantled in the same way as described for other drums, with care being taken when handling the snares themselves, which are very delicate and easily damaged. In addition to work carried out on other drums, place a spot of oil on any visible pivot pin or thread on the snare tension lever. On refitting the snares, make sure that the cord ties (or nylon strips) aren't getting worn through, as it's definitely not fun to find you no longer have a snare drum, but an extra tom tom with the snares hanging from the drum like a dead cheese-grater! I know; I was that man - and it doesn't do a lot for your image! Snares that are distorted, have broken strands or one loose, should be discarded.

Paralleled action snare drums are a different bucket of worms, which in certain areas are best left to the expert when requiring attention. I wouldn't advocate any but the really confident messing around with internal bars or rods, as they can affect not only snare tension but also the pressure of these against the head. Whilst you may treat the snare drum like any other in most respects, don't get oil or grease on the nylon parts often employed in the snare assembly, but by all means give other moving parts the benefit of lubrication.

STANDS & HARDWARE

Using the oil can again, give all rivets and threads the regulation one spot, once more avoiding parts where nylon bushing is present. A point I feel ought to be mentioned is that wing nuts and other fastenings should never need more than finger tension to grip. In the days before memory systems it was common to see a drummer fitting a tom tom with an adjustable wrench, and once you've done such a dastardly deed, things only get worse. Not a great deal of work is involved to keep hardware in good order; the main points being to ensure rubber feet aren't worn out, the same applying to sleeves on the snare stand cradle. Make sure cymbal stand felts and sleeves are all intact, or you may find metal to metal contact - not only bad for sound, but very expensive if damage occurs to the central hole in your cymbal! Bass pedals will need oil at the pivot point where the bass plate and footboard meet; the same going for the external spring and its mountings.

CYMBALS

One cannot, in honesty, claim that a cymbal is subject to maintenance in the same sense as a drum; however, it will want a little of your time. Mostly this just involves cleaning (which I find a messy and thankless task), because as a cymbal gets dirtier, its tone gets duller. A few drummers claim to like this, but most give their cymbals a clean from time to time, using one of the 'name brand' preparations for the job. Never use Brasso or other metal polish - it can ruin the cymbals. Also, don't let cymbals rub together in a case, as in a short period of time it will damage the tone grooves, altering the sound and possibly spoiling it.

GENERAL DOS & DON'TS

Drums are pretty robust instruments compared to many others, but they do have their sensitive little places which should be treated with care. Snares are possibly the most delicate part, and also the one which seems to attract George Formby impersonators who like the banjo effect of strumming their fingers across the strands, often rendering them useless. Never handle the snares unless it's really essential - that way, you'll reduce the chances of having a snare drum that rattles or produces a buzz like a demented wasp.

Always carry drums in hard fibre cases. These will pay for themselves many times over in the protection they give. Soft canvas types are available, but (apart from reducing the effects of damp) I can see little use for such receptacles, especially when roadies take to stacking a few tons of speaker cabinets on top of the kit!

If you're a busy, on the road drummer, it's wise to carry a few spares which could be useful in getting you through the night. Bearing in mind limited carrying space, the following items are all I have ever considered essential: snare drum batter head, snare cords or nylon strips, and a length of wire to do a bodge should the bass or hi-hat pedal linkage break. Whilst there are numerous other areas which could fail, the only extra part I'd include would be a bass drum head if I was involved in ultra-heavy playing. If any other drum or component should give trouble it can be frustrating, but in the majority of cases you can get through a night's playing with just a snare, bass, hi-hat and ride cymbal.

Having followed the details I've tried to explain, either by setting about the whole kit or doing it on a drum by drum basis, you should now have a set that not only looks a lot better, but tunes easily and is less liable to let you down on a gig. There are many topics which have been deliberately missed out, as I've intended to cover just the essential servicing that all drums must receive if they're to survive the punishment laid upon them. Add to what has already been said the fact of a drum kit being subjected to dust, smoke-filled halls, constant vibration and condensation (look how the metal mists over when you unpack a drum that's been in a cold place), and you can argue that they have to contend with a harder life than any other instrument. Even the budget ranges can't be bought at the price level of a cheap guitar and amp, or in line with the lowest of keyboards; so even if your drums fall into this bracket they will sound as good as they can if you look after them, with the dealer being prepared to offer a few more sheets of the folding stuff when you decide to trade up to a higher quality set.

It's important to note that most of the work I've mentioned applies just as much to a new drum kit as a well-used one, with the exception of the cleaning process. Don't assume that brand-new 'Nagawako' set has been lubricated at the factory, or that there are no loose nuts and bolts! Anyway, I trust this basic care and maintenance guide will at least have helped to get some kits back into shape. There's a lot more which can be done to get the best possible sound from a drum, but unless the instrument is in 'working condition', anything else is just a waste of time. I'll be covering some of the ways in which you can improve a drum's sound in a future issue of IN TUNE - but for now, good luck with the oil, rags, soap and water!