DRUMMER CAFE - Community Forum

Hey..

What sticks does everybody use?
And perhaps a reason why you use them?

Just to add to the fun.. what do you look for in a stick?

To start, I use Vic Firth 3A's, F1's, and Cappella Swingmaster Nylon Brushes..

I use the 3A and F1 because I like a thicker stick, they are botht he same stick except for the tip and a slight difference in the taper. The F1 has ball end and more of  taper the 3A has more of a barrel end and much less taper. The F1's I use for lighter music.. lower volume and such. The nylon burshes I use because I like Cappella's and they work for me.

Peace
Josiah

I use ProMark 5B nylon.  I've tried other sizes but these just feel comfortable to me.  I've tried the Vic Firth 5BN but I find they break too easily.  If I was playing in a situation that required a lot of intricate work (like a concert band or orchestra) I would go with the Firths because I find the balance to be better, but for live with a rock or country band it's ProMarks for me.  I also have a couple pair of MultiRods - darned useful things.

I have a set of Calato brushes, I don't know the model.  They're telescoping and have black rubber on the handle.  I'm not a big jazz player so brushes aren't a priority.

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Rob

LOL funny dwarf with the "don't hate me cause I'm beautiful" line.

I use the Zildjian Vinnie Calauta sticks but prefer the Gner LA Fusion model.  I'm all out of the Gner's almost...I think they went broke.  They are swiss sticks...I really like them.

I use Vater sticks, specifically the Marvin "Smitty" Smith model.  I used to use the Fusion, but wanted something a little longer, larger in diameter, and heavier(i have fat hands!).  These are great sticks, they are very similiar to the Fusion model, but just bigger overall.  They are both made of Hickory(which has a nice weight and durablilty to it) and they don't have much gloss on them, which is important to me because my hands sweat when I play.    They both have ball tips, which i strongly prefer.  I do occasionally still use the Fusion model, for lighter stuff, but I try to stick mainly to the Power Fusions.

Vater Fusions for all my drumset work. Vater used to put my signature on the sticks for me, made me feel like special ... LOL... but they have since stopped doing custom stuff like that. I'm continuing to endorse their products.

Years ago, when I was in school/college, I used to change sticks out based on what I was playing. Loved the Erskine sticks that Vic Firth made; great for combo jazz.

Now I just use one stick for everything; it seems to help me play more consistantly from style to style.

The only exception to all of this is when I'm playing percussion ... more specifically, orchestral percussion. In that situation, I get the tool that best suits the job. To list every mallet & stick that I have in my collection would be just nuts.

Formerly a dedicated Weckl sig. use, now a dedicated Pro Mark 717/721 user. I can't decide which one, but I definately like the weight and length of these sticks. Also, the bead has so much better definition than any Vic Firth stick I ever used.

Promark?

PROMARK?!

[img align=left]http://baeproductions.net/images/emoticons/blowingup.gif[/img] Why I oughta .....

HA HA HA, what a great smilie!!!!

I agree, Promark??? What's next, Remo??

YEAH.... REALLY!!!
(http://baeproductions.net/images/emoticons/rotflmao.gif)

Hey Felix, glad you like it :-)  I was searching around for something to say that wasn't obscene (which is harder than it sounds) and finally came upon that.

Hey Bartman, what you got against Promark? :)  Tell you what, you talk Vater into sending me a box of their 5B nylons gratis and I'll try 'em out ;)

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Rob

LOL ... I endorse VATER and they don't send me SQUAT!!! I give clinics and they won't provide free giveaway sticks either ............. NOT EVEN BROCHURES TO HAND OUT!!!

_{So ... what does that tell you? Unfortunately it seems that their heads are getting as pointy as their sticks. I sure wish their attitudes would change, well, at least one particular AR guy.}

11 posts and 46 views on the subject of drum sticks. I think we're all now officially drum nerds.

Vic Firth 5A wood tips. I've tried 'em all and these are the ones that do it for me.

Anyone try those Zildjian Dipsticks or whatever. @$%# things nearly tore off the skin on my fingers. Who was the dipstick who thought of that idea?

   I use Vic  2Bn's for my general set work these days.
I always used Pro-Mark 5a's and 727's. I still use them for church . I started using 2b's as a middle ground to daily pad work with VF Ralph Hardimon marching snare sticks .

Hey, I had the same attitude as you before I tried 'em. I figured they were the sticks for Billy Cobham and a bunch of metal drummers who spent more time obsessing over bass drum pedals.

My friend who worked with me on my grip endorses them, and pretty much demanded I use them while he worked with me. I even got a pair with his sig on it. Since I'm pretty adamant about using one stick for everything, it's become pretty dang comfortable, and they're the only sticks in my bag now. Unfortunately no music shop carries them, so I have to order them a box at a time.

Remember the Dennis DeLucias? Those weren't sticks. They were billyclubs. Silver Fox ruled!

Sorry, Pro marks inhale the chrome off bumpers...I remember working in the drum shop...I never saw a manufacturer with such terrible quality control.

But back to something really important.  When I played alot of orchestral snare I noticed this problem and I have been working on Bart's endurance exercises and this problem has reared it's ugly head again:

The difference in stick to stick timbre drives me insane.  I can't find wood sticks that have the same pitch.  So I gave up.  I'm thinking trying an Easton stick for practice.  Does anyone else hear this problem?  It's not my hands either.

    I have had the same problem with so called computer matched Vic- Firth Corp masters .
    I was so embarrased the first night I was studing with my drum line instructor from a small alumni corp .
He asked me to run thru some rudiments to get a gauge on my playing and I wasn't into my 4th set of 1,2,3 parradiddles when he says , " give me those sticks ". ???

              the perfect pair
The "match box "  matched thru  computer analized for optimum balance of weight and pitch .    Yeah , right

   What could you expect for $9.00 a pair. ::)

Yeah, I used to use those sticks back in my drum corps days. I think some people used to build homes with those things.



It drives me nuts too! Since I get my sticks several cases at a time, I try to match them up myself ... especially for sessions. Vater has been pretty good about matching sticks .... lately.

Short story ............ I had THE perfect pair of sticks years ago, which I used for warm-up and practice pad work. They were PERFECT in weight, pitch, balance ... and guess what they were?

Promark 2B Oak   ;)

I got the sticks in the late 70's, but in 1988, while working on my graduate degree (SWTSU) I was a Teaching Assistant ... some kid forgot his sticks for drum line practice. I went to my office and got these sticks because they were the closest thing to marching sticks that I had. I told this kid to be careful with them and that I had these sticks for years, etc. What does he do .... he breaks them within 5 minutes. I about came unglued and opened a BIG can of whip ass!

_{I felt like someone ran over my dog}

The only thing of Promark that I have is a Certificate of Recognition that they gave me years ago. I should probably give Promark another chance; it's been over 10 years since I closed my drum shop ... and I haven't picked up a pair since. Perhaps they are better now.

    I had a chance to meet Ed Shaughnessy many years ago while he was playing in Doc Severinsen's All Child Band at a local festival .  I got to go up on stage and check out his set up and he gave me a set of signiture sticks . I held on to them as a prized possesion for a long time .  Then one night while packing up for a gig they accidently got thrown in my trap case . I never relised I was using them till after they were all nicked up . So like an idiot I kept using them . ::)   KIDS !

Vic Firth 5As wood tip
Zildjian 5A plastic tip
Ayotte 5A a bit longer nice feel wood tip
Vater 5A plastic tip my new sticks i will always use they have impressed me i was looking for ayottes in a plastic tip no go asked the sales person what similar to the ayottes so he said vater and i say wow
Pro Mark Hot Rods don't knock them till you tried them
Dave Weckell sig. Vic firth they haven't marked up my skins yet so still a great stick. So what i am getting to is i used to uses really beffy and heavy sticks like 5Bs and other sticks and i had wrist problems after i played my drums with the 5Bs so i went a step down and no more wrist problem

So you are saying you can buy them cases at a time and if one finds the perfect pair then consider it a blessing?

LOL...I'll stick with the Easton ...kidding.  Played some 5A Vic Firths this weekend that I liked.  Fast stick.  I might go back to a 5A.

I've bought a case or two of the weckle's...I like them...tiny bit long and narrow for my taste these days.

Hot Rods are great...I recorded a whole cd with them 2 years ago.

I must say Felix I am dissapointed in you.  Hot rods?  Those are just $20 wooden dowels!  The only guys who should play those are the endorsers, or guys who just have tons of disposable income.  

They are cool, but just ridiculously overpriced.  Here's what to do, go buy the wooden dowels in the diameter you like, and a roll of electrical in the color of your choice.  Simpley cut the dowels to the length you like, tape them up, and BAM, you got your own custom rods, for about 3 bucks a pair!!

The actual HotRods use duct tape, then electrical shrink tape (red) around that for the cosmetics. I haven't gotten around to making my own, but I have located all the materials ... so I know where I will be getting them and how much they cost. I thought of doing this BEFORE they started making various diameter versions. Once again ... I'm slow to move and miss the $$$$.

I use Promark sticks...whats wrong with promark sticks????? In MY experience they last a HELL of a lot longer than any of the VIc firths I have had, and I'll tell you I tried a few! The Promarks I have now..well, had before I (eventually) broke them, were perfect! ;D

tut tut, you should all be ashamed of yourself, you big bunch of....stickists!!! thats right! (is that even a word?) :D

Misenko.

Let me defend myself.  I bought them in a hurry for some quiet situation I was going to be in (can't remember)...and they sat after that.

Then, when I was building my current studio, I had to record my drums upstairs in an apartment that I was living in...so I used hot rods.

They are long gone and I seriously doubt if I'll buy another pair.  But I cut a whole cd with one pair and I thought that was cool.

I think I'll post the title track for you so you can check out how much better hot rods sound than the homemade dowel version.  See, if they cost more they have to be better right?  Aren't promarks made with japanese oak and hickory???? LOL

PS...hot rods sound GREAT on cymbals if you don't know that already, especially for lower volume situations.  Totally awesome.

Misenko,

Don't use your drumsticks for Karate practice and I think they will last longer ;D

Felix, you're right.  Hot rods do sound great on cymbals, and pretty cool for low-volume stuff as well.  I'd be interested in checking that track.  A good example of them is on the Dave Matthews Band song, " Say Goodbye" off of the Crash album.  It has a great intro with Carter doing some interesting stuff and ends the intro with a blazing fill.  ALso, the Nirvan Unplugged album is Grohl with rods if I remember right.

I have a song on my music page with me playing multi-rods, it's the song called Bridges Of Straw.

http://www.angelfire.com/freak/rob/

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Rob

i'll pretty much try anything in the 5-7B range...wood tip only, and no roundies...silly llittle things. i always have 'em take down a bunch of pairs and tap on the desk to find some with a matching pitch, then check the grain to hopefully find some with 1 top to bottom, avoiding ones where it's obviously gonna shear real quick. plus my technique sucks, so i go thru too many too fast...

Nice groove on that little ditty Dwarf.

Kudos!

I guess I'll have to post my Hot Rods "masterpiece"

Thanks Felix,
     One of the reasons I put that there is because I like the groove.  I figured I should put up a page so that people can hear my playing since it's not likely that many of you will catch me live at a gig.

     Put up your rodsterpiece, I'd love to hear it.

--
Rob

Ay me... are you guys still talking about drum sticks?

Felix, stop being such a wuss. I'm not afraid to admit I use and love Hot Rods. They work perfectly for one of the bands I play in. I wouldn't give a @$%# if they were chopsticks bound together with horse hair, if they work and sound good that's fine with me. Unless you all like to hunt down and kill your own goat, gut it, skin it and then stretch it over various sized, hollowed-out tree trunks. Hey, it's cheaper than a drum set. ;)

Hey Side, that reminds me of the time I went to see Mount Rushmore.  A mountain goat walked in front of the van.  We missed it, luckily, but I kept thinking "the bodhran that got away".  :D

--
Rob

Speaking of .... I keep a pair of chop sticks in my stick bag at all times. Makes a great tool for cymbal work; even use them on the HH and Snare for re-mix grooves.

LOL...ok, you want to know what I really think of HotRods???  I'll quit being politically correct.  They are for wimps and wussies IMHO...I'm a rocker baby, used to playing behind marshall stacks.  I hate brushes, hotrods and don't particularly care for hand percussion.  That's were I wanna be, behind people that are plugged in...not backing up some lounge act.  I WOULD NEVER ADMIT I LOVED HOTRODS. LMAO  seriously.   If I ever start playing alot of brushes or hotrods I hope someone puts me out of my misery.  

Liked the idea of saving up all my chopsticks though to make a pair...pretty funny.

;D ;D ;D Felix is walking around with a can opener lately... lookin' to open a can of Sidereal whupass. ;)

Funny, your comment about chopsticks Bart. I remember messing around with them years ago and digging the sound, but I haven't tried it again since. I'll have to throw some in my stick bag.

Bring it on!  Battle of the HOt Rods...I'll post my hot rod masterpiece and you post yours...May the jury decide.  

(I wouldn't be afraid)

Hey Felix, I'm noting a certain schizophrenic tendency in your recent posts on this subject.  Are your meds holding up?

--
Rob

Don't joke about my meds and I won't joke about your haircut!  Yes, I'm schizo, so what?

Got the "masterpiece" on the laptop...I'll upload tonight...STAND BACK...Side's going to be in big trouble!
LMAO

http://www.greazyspoon.com/toledo.mp3
 

Take that!

Has anyone tried Vater's version of the HotRods? "AcouSticks" They're wrapped with slats of nylon for even better cymbal sound. I love nylon! . . . now that sounds kinky.

I tried making my own rods before too, because I couldn't justify spending the outrageous markup. I even got the electrical shrink wrap. Hair dryers don't do the job when it comes to heating it, and buying a dedicated unit just for rods kinda defeats the purpose of making them yourself. (unless you're an electrician) Anyway, there IS a difference in the sound between homemade and manufactured. Could be the quality of the dowel stock. Mine was standard Home Depot.

For sticks I'm using Vater Rock - Nylon tip. They are a long stick and I like the heft of them. Also, the bead is almost round, and the combination of round and nylon sound SO good on cymbals IMO.

I've tried the Vic Firth 2BN 's ( ;)nice choice, rudibass2) and I really like the balance. The Omar Hakim signature is also very nice. . . again, round and nylon-tipped.

For a lighter sound and feel I have some short ProMark 3A 's. I wish I could find them with a nylon tip, but I don't think they make them.

How about the Johnny Rabb Rhythm Saws? It's kind of a cool effects stick. It's a very quick and passable guiro if you hold it against an LP block and scrape.

I use the VATER AcouSticks as well as the VATER Whips which are kind of like Blasticks ... but slightly different.

I use Vater Piccolo.  These are thick sticks with a short neck and a ball tip.  These are made from maple and are very light even though they are really thick sticks.  I also purchased a pair of Rikki Rocket ;) Bottle Neck sticks made by Johnny Rabb.  They are suprisingly very comfortable.

PS.

I too own a pair of Hot-Rods.  I like 'em 8)

No jeers from the Peanut Gallery?

Don't any of y'all ( I was in Austin yesterday) have DSL yet.   Sorry Hubley, no time to see your band play on 6th St.  Maybe next time.

Tough room...I thought Toledo would crack somebody up.

Do I have to invert a paradiddle to get any respect around here?

Hey Felix,
     That's true, I never commented on Toledo.  I found it amusing, I kept thinking of George Carlin's "Toledo Window Box" throughout the tune.

Btw, I have a cable connection, fwiw.

--
Rob
And yes Felix, I'll respect you ... in the morning :)

Do I have to invert a paradiddle to get any respect around here?    -HAha....nice, Felix.

Very awesome site here, guys.   My original skepticism (for ANY internet forum/chat)  immediately crashed to a halt after reading thru many of these subjects/replies.  

Hotrods....firestarters.   I have three pairs of Hotrods and can't remember a moment when I ever thought they were a great idea.   The usual fans of Hotrods seem to be everyone BUT the drummer in smaller stage situations.    I'm sure they have their applications...I personally have yet to realize what they are.   The cymbal sounds are washed out and delayed on a crash..very poor definition on rides and typically clumsy sounding on toms.    

My tendency when using them is to overcompensate for this lack of dynamic balance by playing cymbals harder...although the sound is still washed and the whole point for using them in the first place is defeated in the process.   This is to say nothing about futile attempts for any roll more intricate than a double stroke.  

I do enjoy them for giving a different vibe on a melodic solo drum piece (for kiks), but that's about it.    If anyone has any suggestions on other applications I'd be interested in hearing about them.    

Since I am soooooo open minded (or schizo as the Dwarf likes to put it) I am trying to justify hot rods myself.

I am a horrible brush player, but there is one brush technique that I have a knack for.  It is when one playes a figure 8 pattern with the left hand and comps with everything else...I guess it's a ballad brush pattern or something...anyways.

I'm sorta toying with the idea of utilizing hot rods with this technique...but I just keep hearing their sound in my head and I don't know how in the world it is going to sound hip to me.

Felix, I kinda doubt that hot rods will be any good with a swish technique.  Maybe a brush in one hand and a hot rod in the other.

As for hip - if it ain't hip now then make it hip!  Do it with conviction and others will follow.  People are like sheep (minus the wool), all they need is a good dog to tell them where to go :)

--
Rob

Glad to hear your thoughts...hip is relative I suppose anyways.  The chances of me picking up a pair of those things again and then playing a brush pattern are slim to nil anyways.  

Too many other cool things to focus on.  I should be trading some stocks.

Recently decided I don't like nylon tips any more, don't know why, getting old and crochety I guess.  Now that dents in cymbals are de rigueur, I want to hear wood on bronze.  No more smooooth cymbals and high-pitched nylon "ping" for me.

Used Furth 5As for a long time but just got turned on to Rabb 5A Straightnecks.  For me, these things are twice as alive in my hand as Vic's finest.  Make the Furths feel like clubs. Love 'em.

(But I have to say I find Mr. Rabb's "rhythmsaw" thing a bit - shall we say - undignified?) ::)  Not my cuppa tea at all.

Oh, and in contrast to Felix, I have been trying to get more serious about brushes.  I like the Furth Heritage brushes with the rubber handle.  I just got some of the Pro-Mark Clayton Cameron brushes, too, but haven't tried them yet.  (Since I like Mr. Cameron's video.  Although the slow motion parts seem a bit redundant.  And @$%# slow!)

I like pizza. Seriously.... I really like pizza. But I can't eat pizza every day. sometimes I want a steak.

I wouldn't tell your gf that.

where the heck have you been?  YOu know the more I like someone the more irritating I am right?

So Felix, I guess you must really love the people on this board ;)

--
Rob

LOL! :) yeah baby, feel the love...

are we still talking about drum sticks?

Figure I'll chime in to this old post...

I've been using ProMark's "The Natural" series, 2B, out of a dislike for shiny slick surfaces.

Just recently, I got a pair of Rikki Rockett's Bottleneck sticks from Johnny Rabb (5B), and I really like them.  Nice balance, and the grip is very comfortable.  Wish they made a nylon tip, but you can't have everything.

Good to be here.

xian

ok, flame suit on...

vic firth-buddy rich  ;)

Buddy's sticks feel so strange...the shoulder on those things feel incredibly out of balance...like too heavy.

I just found my fav sticks...I have to order them direct from Switzerland:

Agner LA Fusions-  I love them.

i'm still looking for a stick i really like. until then i'll stick with buddy's.

sorry for the bad pun. ;D

Used to be a Vic Firth 5A.  Now I'm a Vic Firth 7A.  My tutor always used to have really narrow sticks and I used them here and there.  I decided that I would make a compromise between the 5A's and those chopstick things he used to changed to 7A's.  Been using them about three years now.  Also use Vic Firth brushes and some bright orange Flix sticks.

Okay, I'm ready for any flying dirt that this reply might throw up!!!!!

I use Promark, Phil Collins signature models. They're like a 3A only shorter, about 14 1/2 inches long, with a round bead. I'd prefer a nylon bead but they don't make them like that. For some reason I find more control with a shorter stick, I used to use Vic Firth 3As and used to cut about an inch of the bottom!I use the same sticks, whatever I'm playing and have found them very versatile.
 I also use Hot Rods and Vic Firth wire brushes.

I use Vic Firth Rock and Pro mark 2S..... ;D

Hey MuseFan I think I know you from the nicedrums board ?

Oh, and I use VF 5A nylon tips, been using them for ages, and once you get accustomed to them it gets harder to switch, but maybe I will try something a tiny little bit heavier in the future, I find that if my sticks are to light for the volume you're playing at (which is sometimes the case with these for me), my hands and underarms start to hurt after a while..

Well, I have an interesting method on this thread too.  LOL!!  I rotate between Pro-Mark 5A's and 747B's, both Japan Oak Wood Tips.  The reason behind this is strange I suppose, but justified nonetheless.  I use the 5A's for band rehearsals just to save everybody's hearing, but at a gig or in the studio, I will pick up the much heavier 747B's (unless a VERY small club), not only because they draw a much nicer response out of my kit, but they are heavier, and help me keep a steadier time pattern.  When practicing soloing, I will use the 747B's, but live I will use the 5A's, so I can get just a little more speed up.  Make sense?  Probably not, but you asked.   :D

Not that strange, I know a few drummers who use heavier sticks for practicing.

I began using Vic Firth 7a several years back because I was trying to learn to play softer, and it is the smallest, lightest stick I could find. I've stuck with it and now 5a seems like a tree trunk. But I never have a problem playing too loud anymore... Plus physics tells me I should be able to get around the kit a little quicker, don't know if that's true though.

Yeah, RLRR, I'm on to six drumforums, including the nicedrums forum...... ;D

i'm a pro mark fan my self i like to use the 7A for lighter playin' and 707 for heavier playin' both in oak. they last longer and i found if u practice with a thick stick when u go to a smaller stick your faster and more accurate

Man let me think,

I have a bunch of vic firth 7a's
some weckl sticks (the only sticks I have broken in the last five years)
a couple of 5b's
plastic brushes
steel brushes
medicine sticks
chanquito timbal sticks
Mark Quinones timbal sticks
hot rods
big wooden hot rods (some one gave me to try out)
a half inch open socket (for my rack and timbales)
extra washers and phelps
and a drum key.

I'm doing this from memory, my stick bag is in the car!!

Pro-Mark J.M. 11a's with a nylon tip. The weight distribution is excellent and the stick has a very long taper down the shaft which gives you a better rebound of off the drum-head.