Need some advice

[3rdEYE]

I just recieved a kit today I purchased on ebay, the snare drums bearing edge has a pretty significant crack in it(see pic).

The seller is a power seller/store who seems pretty professional. What would you think the appropriate compensation would be for this? I contacted him immediately with pictures and am waiting to hear back. For the listing you can see a previous thread in the misc. board titled "donoho drums"

[Louis Russell]

Was the drum damaged in shipment?  If so collect on the insurance.  If it was a defect the seller knew about you should contact him.  Most power sellers will correct the problem.

[James Walker]

I just recieved a kit today I purchased on ebay, the snare drums bearing edge has a pretty significant crack in it(see pic).

Wow!  How did that happen?  Was there any damage to the box(es) used to ship the snare drum, any indication that the shipper may be at fault?

What would you think the appropriate compensation would be for this?

1)  Replace the drum

2)  Replace the shell

3)  Return the drum, and get a full refund (including the cost of shipping the drum back to him)

4)  One more option, but it wouldn't be my preference:  if there's enough room to cut down the top edge (and bottom edge to match), recut the bearing edges, and still leave you with a drum deep enough for your tastes, either have him repair the shell (covering shipping for you both ways), or reimburse you for having a local drum shop do the repairs for you.  Damage like that, judging from the picture, makes me wonder if there isn't unseen damage to the shell - and even if there isn't, you'd end up with a shallower snare drum than you originally paid for.

Check the hoops as well, to see if they've been bent out of round or out of true, and take off the lugs and snare assembly as well, to make sure there are no cracks in any of the drill holes.  There may be some other damage to the drum as well.

[3rdEYE]

Thanks for the reply Louis,

The drums were packed with more foam, peanuts and wrap than I have ever seen. I highly doubt it was caused during shipment. The seller took apart the drums totally so all the shells had no heads or hoops on them and were all wrapped seperately. With that in mind it could have happened anywhere along the way, from the original buyer, from them taking it apart, to the shipping.

James, I'm not sure how I would work out the price of the snare seeing that it's a used kit and there are 5 other peices involved in the price.

[3rdEYE]

After checking the rims it looks like there is a small dent that could have easily caused the crack. So if I put my CSI skills to use I must deduce that it was caused pre shipping.

[James Walker]

James, I'm not sure how I would work out the price of the snare seeing that it's a used kit and there are 5 other peices involved in the price.

Ah, gotcha - I misunderstood, and thought you bought directly from Donoho.

Do you have a picture of the shell showing the damage from the side?  I'm curious how deep the damage is, and whether the drum could be repaired by having the edges recut.  There isn't a whole lot of wiggle room on a 5" deep snare drum.  If there is enough room, get an estimate from a shop that does those sorts of repairs (Precision Drum, f.i.), and request that much in compensation from the seller, if you're willing to live with the shallower snare drum.

Is Donoho still in business?  If so, contact them and find out what the cost would be to repair or replace the shell - then pass that cost along to the seller.  If they're no longer active, maybe some other builder could start with a fresh Keller shell, take the hardware and badge from your drum, and match the finish?

To be honest, I've never been in this situation, having to deal with one component of a drum set being unplayable, so I'm not exactly sure how I'd handle it.  Would you send the snare drum back for a refund?  Ask compensation for damages and keep the drum?  I'm sure that would factor into the compensation as well - whether, when all is said and done, you have a new snare drum or you don't.

Perhaps someone here has dealt with that sort of thing, and could share their first-hand experiences.

[3rdEYE]

Thanks James,

The crack is almost about as deep as the edge is tall. I would think that it could be recut without loosing too much depth.

The questions you asked are pretty much the questions in my head, I don't know how I would go about if given the option. Regardless I still need to hear back from the seller to see what they say.

[Matt Self (Gaddabout)]

That just might be the worst damage I've ever seen to a drum that's been shipped ... with or without notice of damage.

[Chris Whitten]

That drum looks like a write-off to me.
I'll defer to James' superior drumsmithing skills however.
Still, if it all seems like a hassle, or too much of a worry, you should be able to return the drum and get a refund IMO.

[Louis Russell]

I have been trying to understand how that damage could have happened.  Apparently the drum, was apart and something was dropped on it.  That has to be the worse bearing edge I have seen on a drum.

[3rdEYE]

I have been trying to understand how that damage could have happened.  Apparently the drum, was apart and something was dropped on it.  That has to be the worse bearing edge I have seen on a drum.

Well it's a very sharp 45 degree edge so that makes it a little more prone to damage. The picture does make it look a tiny bit worse than it is but I still didn't even think about putting a head on. I'm still waiting to hear back from them, personally I don't want to go through the trouble of fixing it so hopefully I'll get some money back.

[Drum Slave Jack]

I have been trying to understand how that damage could have happened.  Apparently the drum, was apart and something was dropped on it.  That has to be the worse bearing edge I have seen on a drum.

Hmmm i dont wanna be outdone!!!

Jack

[Louis Russell]

The picture does make it look a tiny bit worse than it is

Yes, but it is still bad!  I guess with the 45 edge just a slight drop could do some serious damage.

[James Walker]

The crack is almost about as deep as the edge is tall. I would think that it could be recut without loosing too much depth.

I'd estimate that you (or whoever you get to do it) would have to take about 1/4" off of the shell to get past the damage and cut a new edge.  Taking a look at the original auction, and the lugs on that snare drum, I'm not sure if there would be enough clearance between the counterhoop and lugs if you took off that much shell.  That's why I suggested the possibility of simply replacing the shell.

("Simply?")

That drum looks like a write-off to me.

It certainly would take a lot of time and effort (and perhaps money?) to get that drum repaired/restored to its original state, especially if the shell would need to be replaced.  I guess a lot of this depends on how much you want to have a matching snare for the kit.

[Louis Russell]

That's why I suggested the possibility of simply replacing the shell.

I can hear the little voices in James' head now.  "OK, I've got all this hardware and a damaged shell.  All I need to do is................."

[3rdEYE]

So here is the reply:
"we apologize that your shipment arrived damaged.  we will gladly file all insurance claims on your behalf and get this resolved for you as quickly and painlessly for you as possible.
would you like to claim the full amount of sale for damage or would you rather put a price on just the snare drum value and claim that?  the decision is yours.  please let us know and we will get on this as soon as possible for you."

I have never delt with shipping insurance before, how does this work and which way should I go about it?



James, my brother in law is a woodworker and I'm wondering if he may be able to fix it. He has never worked on drums before but I'm sure he has all the tools to recut the edge. What advice do you have or could you point me in the right direction to a good sight that would explain the process.

[James Walker]

James, my brother in law is a woodworker and I'm wondering if he may be able to fix it. He has never worked on drums before but I'm sure he has all the tools to recut the edge. What advice do you have or could you point me in the right direction to a good sight that would explain the process.

Have him check out the drum building tutorials over at drumfoundry.com (such as  http://www.drumfoundry.com/Amazing/itemdesc.asp?CartId={72465B2EVERESTB-A0CF-4314-8642-4ECAD9B61E9D}&ic=TUTORIAL10&eq=&Tp=]this tutorial  on cutting bearing edges).  As long as he can cut the edge perfectly level (and parallel to the reso side edge), and he's comfortable working with a router table, he should be OK.

Definitely run the shell past your brother-in-law.  He may even be able to repair the edge without cutting down the shell depth, especially if the original apex of the edge is still intact (hard to tell from the picture), and if there's enough wood still left around it to support the edge.  I'm just a hobbyist where this stuff is concerned - a real woodworker will know far more than I do about what sort of repairs are possible.

[3rdEYE]

Thanks again James,