Questions re Yamaha's tight fitting tension rods

K

Kroy

Member
A few years ago when I was trying out the Yamaha Maple Customs I was put off buying the drums by the tight fitting tension rods (I prefer to tune by the 'feel' of the rod's tension and couldn't do that with these rods because the feel was always too tight).

I have a few questions if anyone with any experience can answer for me.

1. Is it possible to replace the tension rods with a slightly smaller diameter so that they fit like most drums and have a looser, smoother rotation?

2. Do the new Yamaha drums, like the Nouveau series have the same tight fitting rods?

3. Which other drum makes use this tension rod design?

Thanks!
 
Kroy said:
A few years ago when I was trying out the Yamaha Maple Customs I was put off buying the drums by the tight fitting tension rods (I prefer to tune by the 'feel' of the rod's tension and couldn't do that with these rods because the feel was always too tight).

I have a few questions if anyone with any experience can answer for me.

1. Is it possible to replace the tension rods with a slightly smaller diameter so that they fit like most drums and have a looser, smoother rotation?

2. Do the new Yamaha drums, like the Nouveau series have the same tight fitting rods?

3. Which other drum makes use this tension rod design?

Thanks!
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This doesn't really answer your question, but they loosen up after you use them for a while. I have a MIJ Club Custom set, a MIC Live Custom set, and a MIJ copper snare with the Nouveau lugs. They are all like that.
 
The lugs have a plastic insert that causes the tightness. Yamaha claims it helps keep the drum in tune. It does take some getting used to...
 
jbonzo1 said:
The lugs have a plastic insert that causes the tightness. Yamaha claims it helps keep the drum in tune. It does take some getting used to...
Click to expand...

I've had a few Yamaha snares and they were all like this. It did bother me as well at first but I do find that they stay better in tune, even when playing lots of rim shots.

I think that Sgt Thump is right, this tightness will wear off slightly after some use. I had a snare that was almost like new and the tightness was really noticeable. On an older model less so.

Before, I used to hand tighten the screws until they made contact with the hoop as a means of having an even starting point for tuning. Of course this only works if the hoop isn't out of shape and is resting evenly on the drumhead which in turn is resting evenly on the bearing edge which must also be even. So I'm not sure how reliable a method it is. It might be amateurish, but when tuning I tend to check if the drumhead flesh hoop is the same distance from all the lugs.

As to the initial questions: no, don't replace the tension screws with smaller diameter ones because they simply won't fit.
 
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Thanks for all the replies. It's a shame about Yamaha's tension rod system because I'd be very interested in a Maple Custom kit were it not for this. I don't really care about the drums staying in tune better because I've never had too much of a problem in that area, and if they do go out of tune I just tune them back up - guitarists do this all the time. But if I can't tune them in the first place..

I hear that the tightness wears of, but to what extent? It may be a risk for me to see if it wore off enough so I could use my tried and trusted method..

Mike, I don't think any tuning method is amateurish as long as it works. To me, the real secret to tuning is knowing what the right sound is. How we get there is whatever works for us.
 
I stand with Mike Stand. Lol. I've had yamies like that for a few yrs. now and it did bother me at 1st. I've always used a lot of feel when I tune. Kind of like human torque wrench. I just developed a feel for the tuning that I like I guess, and thought that I'd have problems tuning. They don't bother me at all now, except for not being able to hand tighten them when I put new heads on. It's really a minor issue.
 
Kroy said:
I hear that the tightness wears of, but to what extent? It may be a risk for me to see if it wore off enough so I could use my tried and trusted method..

Mike, I don't think any tuning method is amateurish as long as it works. To me, the real secret to tuning is knowing what the right sound is. How we get there is whatever works for us.
Click to expand...

The tightness of the tension screws on a new drum would not wear off any time soon. I currently have a Maple Custom Absolute snare which I think was made in 1998. The screws are still slightly tighter than on drums from other brands. I have my doubts whether it would ever be possible to turn down the screws by hand until they make contact with the hoop. On a new Yamaha drum, it's really noticeable when the screw has reached this "biting point" well before contact has been made with the hoop. The screw suddenly goes from being very loose to being quite tight. Now, presuming that all screws are equal length and that the lugs and their inserts are all placed equal distance to the bearing edge, it should be possible to use this "biting point" as a reliable starting point for tuning instead of the point of screw/hoop contact.

Agree about tuning. Whatever works. The afore mentioned method is actually less about finding a sound than checking that the head or hoop aren't faulty and that I haven't got the initial tune up completely wrong. Fine tuning come afterwards.
 
MusiQmaN said:
I never had any problems with this to be honest (20 years and 13 kits later) what I do find (and maybe probably because of the tighter inserts) is that they almost don't de-tune, and this is something I like.
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Agreed!... Had a 1962 Ludwig super sensitive COB that would de-tune every time I played it because of the looseness of the lugs...never really had to worry about this on my Yamaha's ....
 
Tighter 'is' better IMO. As mentioned you could ream out the inserts, you can't go back tho w/o buying new inserts.

How often do you change heads really? Better to have a snug fit, "loser, smoother" rotation is only good if you're taking apart/assembling drums every day.
 
Something I do is use a key like this with the knob at the top:

lg_TDK10.jpg


Then I twist the top knob with my fingers until they're finger tight. I guess that's not the exact same thing, but kinda.
 
Kroy said:
A few years ago when I was trying out the Yamaha Maple Customs I was put off buying the drums by the tight fitting tension rods (I prefer to tune by the 'feel' of the rod's tension and couldn't do that with these rods because the feel was always too tight).

I have a few questions if anyone with any experience can answer for me.

1. Is it possible to replace the tension rods with a slightly smaller diameter so that they fit like most drums and have a looser, smoother rotation?

2. Do the new Yamaha drums, like the Nouveau series have the same tight fitting rods?

3. Which other drum makes use this tension rod design?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
I have the same frustration with the standard Absolute lugs on my MCAs because of the tensioning ring inside. I can't snug the screws down to the hoop finger tight to create the starting point for tuning. They almost touch the hoop before hitting the tensioning ring, but not quite. So I thought, why not use some thicker nylon washers to fill the gap? I just ordered a pack of 100 nylon washers made just for drum lug screws off ebay for $15. They are thicker than the metal washers (I'll probably use both) and should allow the lug screws to hit the hoop before engaging with the tensioning ring. I'll report back once I have them installed. Thanks for helping to make a great forum. Cheers!
 
That's what I love yet hate about Yamaha, they stay in tune more often than not but you can't really finger tighten them when changing over heds etc. You do get used to it over time especially on the Maple Customs etc but on the older Recording Customs due to yhe one piece lugs this isn't an issue.
 
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