Set Up & Tear Down

[Frank Sanchez]

Hello All-

Just looking for creative ways to shorten the process of setting up and tearing down. Any ideas or suggestions that you find helpful?

Take Care All. F.S.

[Randy walker]

what type of gig?
Less drums would be a start and less cymbals. I use 2 toms, rack tom on a stand wth a cymbal, floor tom on leggs, 1 more stand the can handle up to 3 cymbals if needed, but I mostly use just a ride and 1 crash.

[Vdrummer]

1) Memory locks.
2) Mark your drum carpet where things go.
3) Roadie-at club gigs sometimes fans want to help out and think it's cool to be on the stage. Often, I won't let them pack stuff, but carrying it is fine with me.

[Degas]

Play the flute!!


Sry I had to.

You could also have your girlfriend or wife be your own personal drum roadie....though I hear its not recommended...

[FlamTriplet]

Find an unemployed friend with no car. Have him carry all your stuff and buy him drinks.

[bryan v]

get a YAMAHA HIP GIG!
As long as you use the included hardware and don't add too many xtras, these kits really do a wonderful job tearing down and setting up quickly. they sound great too [img]wink.gif[/img]
bv

[matricks]

Ditto.

[SBdrumz]

The key to me, regardless of what kind of kit you bring, is getting room to work.

Get to the gigs early so you can claim 'stage space' to open your cases. There's nothing more irritating (to me, at least!) than having to jump over bass gear/light cases/monitors/chick singers to get my stuff set up. Also, be nice to those who set up on the stand adjacent to you. Tell them to get their junk out of your way as soon as possible, instead of hanging out and getting a drink or flirting with the bridesmaids!

With my variety band, our guitar player sets up immediately to my left. After the gig, I'll put my cymbals in a bag and wrap up my mics and such. By this time, he'll usually have his guitar cased up and his chords wrapped. I'll usually help him get his rig off the stand, thus giving my room to open up my cases.

Our little system works good for me! I set up a modest 5 pc kit with a ride and a couple of crashes and splashes. I use a snare mic and ddrum triggers for my toms. I'm usually packed up and heading to the van in about 30 mins. Oh yeah, one more thing. Get a good hardware case (like the SKB on mentioned above) with wheels, and get a good hand truck with BIG wheels. This makes schlepping a whole lot easier!

Cheers!
- Scott

[drmaybe66]

That brings up a good point, Scott, can you reccommend a good hand truck or cart that collapses easily and fits into a car/van/SUV with all of the gear?

If not a specific brand/model, even ideas of where to go to find one would be helpful!

[SBdrumz]

I picked up one from Lowe's: Lowe's hand truck

The Rock-N-Roller carts are nice too, but more expensive: www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=home/search/detail/base_pid/699000/. This one packs up a little smaller, which my work better for you if you have less space available in your vehicle.

-Scottx

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ June 06, 2005 01:27 PM: Message edited by: SBdrumz ]</font>