anybody know whats going on with Vaughncraft?

Larry

"Uncle Larry"
Their website did not come up on a Vaughncraft drums google search, the Vaughncraft website is down for maintenance it says, and Ebay used to have a bunch of unfinished shells for sale and now I can't find any.

Anybody know what the dealio is?
 
I dont know Larry

You could try ringing them on (785) 594-6776

I tried various google searches but found no information apart from the ebay sales you mentioned....

By the way Larry did you know there is a "bucks county drum company" http://buckscountydrumco.com/ I came across it while doing a search for Vaughncraft
 
If you are seeking one ply steam bent shells, Drum Foundry is also making them now and I have heard great things about the quality. He also offers a B and C line for very affordable shells. The B line is only cosmetic, like and unattractive seem or some imperfect grain pattern.

Prices for steam bent raw shells are usually in the $200 range which seems expensive when comparing them to regular ply shells. There is a reason only a handful of people in North America offer them. The process is very difficult, and there is a high waste rate. Any little flaw in the wood can cause breakage during the bending process.

I steam bend my re-rings, and even these scaled down pieces break very easily and I usually break one or two pieces when making a set. So the builders need to factor in a wasted piece of Walnut at $20-30, then exotic wood can hit $60-100.
 
New member here.
I along with a few others are having issues with VC and stuff we payed for anywhere from 6 months ago to 3 years ago.
I payed the balance of $1550 for a 4 pcs "completed" shell set early June and have since received nothing but excuse after excuse, and a wrong size shell and a wrong species snare shell.
Please be careful if you are considering sendin any amount of money to John Rose.
Lot's of threads with dissatisfied drummers like mine on Ghostnote forum, DFO, Drumsmith, Pearl Forum.
 
I ordered a shell for a very good customer back in May and received it in August. It had a lifted scarf joint and I returned it and VC made another one. This time it was the wrong size. Returned that shell at the beginning of September and am still trying to get my $279 back. There at least three other customers I know of who are out a lot of money with Vaughncraft. Here is a video from one of them showing the quality of the shells he received, returned, and was never refunded.

Vaughncraft used to be great. Not anymore...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac2P92v4Onk
 
Wow, how could anyone not be ashamed to ship that miserable excuse for a drum shell is beyond me. It looks like it was made by a blind shoemaker working in the dark.
 
Wow, how could anyone not be ashamed to ship that miserable excuse for a drum shell is beyond me. It looks like it was made by a blind shoemaker working in the dark.

With my limited understanding of US consumer protection laws as they are...

Taking money and shipping nothing is typically a criminal suit. Over state lines makes it a federal crime.
Taking money, and shipping the totally wrong thing is a ciivil suit.

If he hadn't shipped anything, the customer could call the cops, and the guy could go to jail. Since he shipped 'something', it's now a civil matter, and the poor customer needs to file suit. It's sort of like in american football when the QB throws the ball away... He has to make it look like he was throwing it to a receiver or there's a penalty.
 
Wow, how could anyone not be ashamed to ship that miserable excuse for a drum shell is beyond me. It looks like it was made by a blind shoemaker working in the dark.
Agreed Jeff, it's very poor. The biggest issue is not the aesthetic of the seam, or even the splits, it's the uneven thickness in terms of how the shell will perform.

Steam bent seams can often be uneven, it's not the biggest of issues, but in this case the moisture in the glue has reacted & allowed it to be stained by mold. That's the black discolouration so apparent in the pictures.

Steam bent shells can offer the very best of resonance, but only if unhindered by heavy hardware, & most critically, correctly constructed. Production of steam bent shells has the biggest black art element of any shell form. There will always be rejects no matter how much care is taken. It's what you let out of the door that defines your business, along with how you react to customer concerns when raised.
 
So where is it when the builder says in response "The shells are fine." ?

If the drums go out, the builder must be OK with them. Is it that the customer(s) are just not (as) familiar with the inconsistencies of steam bent shells?

How many ordering from VAUGHNCRAFT have even seen a steam bent shell b/f?

Some of the shells VC sends out are OK aesthetically, are customers expecting more, when they probably shouldn't be cuz of the steam bent process?

In light of what it takes to make a real good steam bent shell, are not VC's priced accordingly?



The publicity is not looking good for Johnny at VAUGHNCRAFT.
 
So where is it when the builder says in response "The shells are fine." ?

If the drums go out, the builder must be OK with them. Is it that the customer(s) are just not (as) familiar with the inconsistencies of steam bent shells?

How many ordering from VAUGHNCRAFT have even seen a steam bent shell b/f?
You have a point. Customers who are used to the consistency of ply shells will expect to see the same in a steam bent shell, & for the most part, they should. Obtaining a completely straight seam is extremely difficult, & in terms of shell performance, a straight seam is irrelevant. So long as the seam is reasonably vertical & not visually over obvious (i.e. not significantly more obvious than the seam on a wrap), then it's good to go. Of course, all other elements should be as good as a multiple layer ply shell. It should be round within an acceptable tolerance, & free from significant defects.

There's very few companies that actually bend their own shells. Most offering steam bent shells buy them from someone else. If you buy a finished drum from either a company who bends the shells themselves, or from a custom builder who buys the shells in, you're judging the whole build, not just the shell. Working through a reputable company/builder is that extra layer of assurance. Reputable companies who bend their own shells decide what is & what is not acceptable to turn into a drum. Most are pretty sharp on this, because it's much more economical to reject a shell before you've worked on it than to reject a finished drum. Similarly, builders who buy their shells from others are going to inspect the shell carefully before working on it. It's more costly & more difficult to return a shell to the supplier after it's been turned into a drum. The point I'm trying to make is this - the biggest risk to the end user customer lies with the customer who buys directly from a shell maker.

My advise to anyone contemplating buying shells directly is to consider price carefully. If a shell is cheap, it's usually cheap for a reason. This applies to all shell forms, but especially to solid shell forms. Sure, I can go & buy segmented shells from china at $50 each. They may well meet the "spec", but that's only part of the picture. They're mostly ok standard thick pieces, but the wood quality/selection is very poor, & even the best 10% of the batch will only ever sound mediocre. Just because something is made from a certain wood species or to a certain construction standard is no guarantee of performance - far from it! Not always, but generally, you get what you pay for.
 
I've had several 40's-50 Slingerland Radio kings over the years,and only have one left.One was a duco finish,and the other was a refinish/stain.I still have my 47 RK,which is WMP.They all had a straight seam,at a 90 degree angle to the bearing edge.Cravioto also offers steam bent snares and drum sets,in stained lacquer finishes,and the shells are flawless,with the seams at a perfect 90 degree angle,to the bearing edge.

Those examples on the youtube vid,wouldnt even pass muster for a shell that was even going to be wrapped,and aren't fit to be sold.The workmanship dosen't even rate classification.They look like they were an experement that escaped a high school wood working shop.Disgraceful QC,not to mention the dishonesty,of even representing that garbage as a musical instrument.This isn't acceptable on ANY level. That kind of business model is inexcusable,and that business,and its owner,deserves to make reparation,before going under.I understand every company hits a rough patch here and there,but,the horror stories from "customers"( a misnomer,since almost all of them haven't recieved any drums yet) are an eye opener,and a clear example on how NOT to run a business.Just check the open thread over at DFO,or the recent facebook or internet chatter.

Steve B
 
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I couldn't agree more, Tamadrum. Here is the second attempt at a quilted maple shell by Vaughncraft. This one and the first were sent back months ago and still no refund.

This shell had a "graft" as there was some kind of defect with the re-ring. The shell had lots of tear-out in the grain, low spots, was made from two pieces of wood, was the wrong depth, shell wall thickness varied. Very poor quality and my customer flatly rejected both as did I.
 

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I've had several 40's-50 Slingerland Radio kings over the years,and only have one left.One was a duco finish,and the other was a refinish/stain.I still have my 47 RK,which is WMP.They all had a straight seam,at a 90 degree angle to the bearing edge.Cravioto also offers steam bent snares and drum sets,in stained lacquer finishes,and the shells are flawless,with the seams at a perfect 90 degree angle,to the bearing edge.

All finished shells, as in 'ready to sell/play'.

The VC's in the pics are raw shells that still need to be finished.
 
I couldn't agree more, Tamadrum. Here is the second attempt at a quilted maple shell by Vaughncraft. This one and the first were sent back months ago and still no refund.

This shell had a "graft" as there was some kind of defect with the re-ring. The shell had lots of tear-out in the grain, low spots, was made from two pieces of wood, was the wrong depth, shell wall thickness varied. Very poor quality and my customer flatly rejected both as did I.

The repaired re-ring in this picture will probably play and survive just fine, I would be more concerned that it is two steam bent shells glued together to make one. I think I prefer my solid shells be made from one board. Unless a shell is 10" deep or more, this should not be too much too ask.
 
The repaired re-ring in this picture will probably play and survive just fine, I would be more concerned that it is two steam bent shells glued together to make one. I think I prefer my solid shells be made from one board. Unless a shell is 10" deep or more, this should not be too much too ask.

The first one they sent me was one board, but the seam was lifting on it. This one I am sure would have played fine, but had so many cosmetic issues and yes, it should have been one board. I think he was just using whatever he had lying around. Never got my $279 back either.
 
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