Small feet and heel down - which shortboard pedal???

Jml said:
Yeah I’ve seen that video. Good stuff. In the end, I may just have to change my preferred style in order to find a good pedal, instead of the other way around. I don’t get how so many drummers play heel up. It’s very fatiguing on the legs.
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I played heel down for years. Still do when required. I had to start to rethink my technique when I had to do sustained faster triples or more, and I’m not a metal player. Just started coming across songs that needed it. One was even in church, where the pattern was KKKSKKKK. It never hurts to learn different techniques. Heel up also keeps your muscles more flexible and your core stronger. That couldn’t be a bad thing for any drummer.

You’ll find plenty of reasons to switch between heel up and down, so not like you’re reinventing the wheel. Both techniques (or more) have their places.
 
Have you grown much in height since you last took lessons? Perhaps it's an issue of throne height and placement?
 
Ha! No. Last took lessons a few months ago.

The throne issue does remind me of another question - for heel down, your right foot should be slightly extended (foot slightly in front of your knee). For heel up, your foot should be right below your knee. So how do you set up if you're going back and forth between the two styles?
 
I noticed the DW 5000 has a single chain version. Might that be a good compromise between durability and lightness of feeling?
 
Jml said:
Ha! No. Last took lessons a few months ago.

The throne issue does remind me of another question - for heel down, your right foot should be slightly extended (foot slightly in front of your knee). For heel up, your foot should be right below your knee. So how do you set up if you're going back and forth between the two styles?
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Switching techniques shouldn't require you to move your throne because heel down playing usually has your foot higher up on the footboard (ie. moving your foot forward) whereas with heel up playing your foot is usually closer to the heel plate (ie. moving your foot backwards).
 
Try old school! A Yamaha belt drive FP-6110A (I use at church) or a Sonor SP473 or Sonor 600 series pedals; light feeling, but stable.

Can be found in great shape pretty inexpensive.
 
Definitely need something with a base plate. I had the Yamaha 7210 which was good, except it had no base plate and tended to wobble around. A strap drive on a "heavier" pedal might be a good compromise. No Sonor pedals for sale anywhere around here.
 
opentune said:
Perhaps you feel all these pedals are 'heavy' because you have too high spring tension? I have an Iron Cobra and it can feel pretty loose and easy if you set it that way.

Anyway, try a Tama Camco, ... or any light single chain pedal from Yamaha , Pearl or Tama. Starter pedals are very 'light' and most work fine.
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By far the best and most effective answer, but nobody cares. Typical for all forums.
 
Jml said:
Definitely need something with a base plate. I had the Yamaha 7210 which was good, except it had no base plate and tended to wobble around. A strap drive on a "heavier" pedal might be a good compromise. No Sonor pedals for sale anywhere around here.
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Definitely, nobody needs a base plate. Neither the drummer nor the pedal. Be glad you do not have one.
 
Skilas said:
By far the best and most effective answer, but nobody cares. Typical for all forums.
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Not sure what you’re getting at. I value everyone’s opinion here. That’s why I posted in the first place.
 
There are today (unlike many years ago) no pedals who leave the work "Heavy" or "Soft". Anyone can get along with the supplied spring if he adjusts the tension correctly. This is sometimes not easy if you do not have the necessary experience.
 
I help, a base plate is the worst thing that can happen to a pedal. The second worst is a chain. So find something that does not have both. And a Footboard no longer then 25cm.
 
Skilas said:
I help, a base plate is the worst thing that can happen to a pedal. The second worst is a chain. So find something that does not have both. And a Footboard no longer then 25cm.
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Could you please explain yourself a little bit better.

I would like to know better why these are your strong opinions.
 
Skilas said:
There are today (unlike many years ago) no pedals who leave the work "Heavy" or "Soft". Anyone can get along with the supplied spring if he adjusts the tension correctly. This is sometimes not easy if you do not have the necessary experience.
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So just curious - how long is the “necessary experience”? 1 year? 2? 5? What is your experience?
 
Skilas said:
I help, a base plate is the worst thing that can happen to a pedal. The second worst is a chain. So find something that does not have both. And a Footboard no longer then 25cm.
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25 centimeters? That’s very specific. I would argue different drummers have different tastes when it comes to footboard lengths. Why else would people like short boards and long boards?
 
Skilas said:
I help, a base plate is the worst thing that can happen to a pedal. The second worst is a chain. So find something that does not have both. And a Footboard no longer then 25cm.
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I'm dying to know- what is this mythical pedal of which you speak and how do we all get one (I had no idea I was using the worst pedal imaginable)!?!?
 
I was going to suggest the Pearl P930 but you've already mentioned you didn't get on with it.
Did you try shifting the plate forward to it's a little shorter/steeper and your heel can rest on the floor if you back off it a bit?

One thing that springs to mind, given you've not liked ANY pedal made by anyone ever... might it be your kick batter head tension that's the issue?

If it's too soft or pillowy, you won't get the rebound you're expecting from the pedal. I noticed this when I used a house kick for a gig a while back and brought my own pedal (P930), and found it so much more responsive, purely because they're kick batter was much tighter than mine.
 
Yeah, I liked the P 930, but I had the issue with no heel plate. Playing heel down, my heel would already be on the foot board, making it hard (for me) to do doubles.

Going to try out a few pedals this afternoon. I'll report back. At this point, I think it's more mental than physical! : )
 
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