I broke my first pair of sticks!
- Thread starter StefaniB
- Start date
IBitePrettyHard
Senior Member
You should feel proud they survived at all after what looks to be a beaver attack.
iCe
Gold Member
Let me formally invite you to the club!
Sebenza
Member
That's from drumset playing, right? The shank on the hihat? Because if that is from just playing on that starter snare drum you mentioned, that's the weirdest wear I've ever seen on sticks
Al Strange
Platinum Member
Well played!! I cried when I broke my first stick
...it’s lovely to see that you’re putting the work in and smashing it! @StefaniB !
Al Strange
Platinum Member
Yes, I have a pack of Vic Firth sticks that I need to open up.
Sorry! I didn't provide enough context in my original post. I purchased a drum kit in January and was practicing on it last night.
I'm really loving it and enjoy putting in the time. I wished I had started on drums a long time ago. I think it has the potential to be my strongest musical instrument.Well played!! I cried when I broke my first stick
Yes, it's from the hi-hat chewing it up over the past serveral months. I was actually shocked early on when I was and the floor below was covered in sawdust after practicing.
Auspicious
Silver Member
As a do-it-yourselfer kind of student.. I would like to ask the collective mind, in your opinion, what would cause a pair of sticks to wear like those exactly?
Al Strange
Platinum Member
Swissward Flamtacles
Silver Member
Just in case you haven't done so already, angle the bottom hi hat cymbal a bit with the screw below its plate and loosen the top felt a little bit. That way you'll get more sound out of the hi hat without hitting as hard. That should reduce stick wear a little bit and usually sounds better.
Stroman
Diamond Member
Playing at the edge of the hi-hat with the shank of the stick. It's perfectly normal.
Larry
"Uncle Larry"
Congratulations, you did it!
If I were to diagnose, I'd say that wear pattern is mostly from the hi hat.
Unless you bashride the ride a lot. If you're playing Till Tuesday...I'm guessing it's from the hi hat.
Check and make sure you aren't holding your sticks too tight. Your fingers are the shock absorbers. If the stick is mashed up against the palm, like holding a hammer, then the fingers can't absorb the shock. That will cause problems down the road. Look into this sooner rather than later. Hey I could be totally wrong, but it won't hurt to analyze your grip to be on the safe side since you're fairly new at this. Learning a bad technique could be worse than not playing at all. Shock absorption using the fingers..that's the goal. Don't let the shock transmit into your wrists and forearms through the palms. Use the fingers like springs to absorb the shocks.
I can't believe that stick didn't break earlier, judging from the surviving stick.
As a PSA, VF uses a 6% moisture content for their sticks. As per the furniture manufacturing industry.
Vater uses an 11% moisture content for their sticks, as per the striking tool industry. Which makes more sense, considering that we definitely do strike things with them.
The result is that Vater sticks last twice as long as VF. All while maintaining the same balance feel as VF, important.
Former VF user here.
If I were to diagnose, I'd say that wear pattern is mostly from the hi hat.
Unless you bashride the ride a lot. If you're playing Till Tuesday...I'm guessing it's from the hi hat.
Check and make sure you aren't holding your sticks too tight. Your fingers are the shock absorbers. If the stick is mashed up against the palm, like holding a hammer, then the fingers can't absorb the shock. That will cause problems down the road. Look into this sooner rather than later. Hey I could be totally wrong, but it won't hurt to analyze your grip to be on the safe side since you're fairly new at this. Learning a bad technique could be worse than not playing at all. Shock absorption using the fingers..that's the goal. Don't let the shock transmit into your wrists and forearms through the palms. Use the fingers like springs to absorb the shocks.
I can't believe that stick didn't break earlier, judging from the surviving stick.
As a PSA, VF uses a 6% moisture content for their sticks. As per the furniture manufacturing industry.
Vater uses an 11% moisture content for their sticks, as per the striking tool industry. Which makes more sense, considering that we definitely do strike things with them.
The result is that Vater sticks last twice as long as VF. All while maintaining the same balance feel as VF, important.
Former VF user here.
Last edited:
Auspicious
Silver Member
forums are great it's like submitting data to a quantum computer.