Sticks

Recently switched to the david garabaldi sticks and found an old pair of weckl evolution sticks and tried those again and realised that the garabaldi stick is no good for me anymore. i dont like anything too thick but need something with a bit more weight so im not doing all the work!

i am a traditional grip player and i just wondered what u other orthadox players use stick wise? the weckl one feels great but im not sure if i can live with the gloss put on them (if u start to sweat....ther're hopeless!) wot is that stuff and why is it only him that has it put on his sticks?

Personally, I'm happy with my good old Vic 7a's. Whether I'm playing with a 20 piece big band, a jazz trio or a pop group, I find these an excellent weight. Anything else just seems either too light or too big and thick for me. If I want to play really loud, I keep the same stick and leather it a bit more!!
Actually. your comments about 'signature' sticks is an interesting one. I remember when EVERYONE at one time or another had a pair of the first Weckl sticks.
Hey... what do we think of the new emoticons? Fuse will no doubt be going to town on them!!! [img]graemlins/sure.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/grrr.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/cry_smile.gif[/img]

I can't seem to use anything smaller than a 5B. Right now I'm using a SilverFox 5B that I think is called the Phee? It's slightly bigger 5B.

The only small stick that I really like is the Erskine Ride stick. For quiet gigs or light Jazz I use those. They feel great for some reason to me even though they're much smaller than what I'd typically use.

I don't have a big knowledge on sticks but......

Neither Vater(Akira Jimbo Model) or Vic Firth(Stew C.model among others) work out for me. Vic Firth sticks are brittle and break easy, while alot of Vater's I have used have been bent like bows.

Aheads aren't bad sticks(yes they are worth a fortune and shatter my drumheads in a hearbeat!) , but Ill take them over Vaters anyday of the week. The only downside for me was the metal handle and how it ripped up the inside of my fingers. When I hold my stick in my right hand, it threads between my index and middle finger. I mostly do this when I'm playing on my ride and like to work syncopated patterns or work between my bell and bow so that I have that extra flick into the bell. I ended up having to get gloves, but I felt too much like Jacko or something [img]graemlins/sure.gif[/img]

Pro Mark(especially Carter Beauford's) are the great as well...They have more variety, more types and feels of sticks, and they are damn near close to unbreakable...Even the hickory. The Oak sticks are just bastard [img]cool.gif[/img]

I've been trying a practice routine, mostly in front of the tube at night, that involves playing with huge Corp Master stick from Firth (actually love them now) and then moving downward--similar to guys lifting weights. Not sure why I am actually doing this, but I like change a lot.

On the kit, Virgil's Vater model has a great balance and feel. I love my broken Pro Mark Rods (the dowels never last month than three weeks)but the base of the rod had such a solid feel...of course, almost no rebound, but I like the sound and feel from time to time, especially during ballads.

Always in search of the killer stick and snare sound!!! A great time to be a drummer.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ May 17, 2003 11:13 PM: Message edited by: PocketPlayer ]</font>

my main deal is a balanced stick. in the last 4-5 years, i keep going to slightly heavier sticks: 1st weckl, gadd sticks or the firth SD10 / swinger...then chambers / porcaro sticks, then vater fusion...now i am thinking of the vic firth SD9, the driver which is pretty well balanced and they feel light. the vater piccolo is no slouch, either.

i find that as well........the vic firth break so easily....they feel like they are made of paper, however the advantage of the weckl ones being glossed is that they last a lot longer.

when i used to use zildjian sticks they seemed to hold up for longer too and as for vater and pro-mark, not all drum shops have a decent enough selection. can't find lang or donati's sticks??

what wood is the toughest, hickory, maple, oak???

I've found that vic firth is the best company in matching their sticks. After a long time marching drum corps using Ralph Hardimon's and Jim Casella's... for kit playing I always seem to gravitate to 5A's. I'm always trying different sticks behind the kit but the 5A's just seem to be the most versatile for me.

Try Wembley drum center Louie for a good range on Vaters sticks.
I'd say Oak is the strongest but the shock through them made me go back to Hickory.

I decided to give my 2 cents on the subject matter... In the rehabilitation process coming back from hand surgery, I made it my task to find a stick that wouldn't be so hard on the hands, and likewise preferably not having me doing all of the work. Having played drums for over 16 years and havning been exposed to a great number of different brands, sizes etc, I came to the conclusion that the best route would be to go by way of Tony Williams, Kenwood Dennard,Thomas Lang and many others, and choose a bigger stick for my current drumming endeavours.

After looking around a bit I found that the most supremely balanced, comfortable and durable stick for my needs is the Vater Assault model... It's simply a marvel of drumstick engineering, and when A-B-ing it with other sticks (I've previously favoured either 5B or 3A models, I've never felt comfortable using small sticks..) it was hands down the best one...

Having played large sticks in my metal induced teens, I thought that it would strain the hands... but not so, when used correctly, it's definitely the way to go... (for me at least...)

I urge you to give upsizing a chance, you might be surprised at how easy and effortless drumming becomes...

Hey PocketPlayer, I was interested in trying out the Donati sticks, but the tips look like the old Hakim tips, which put divots in my tom heads. Do you have that problem with those sticks?

Is there such a stick that has the weight of a 5A but the feel of a 5B or something in between perhaps? Been looking for a model for light years..... Suggestions?

went to a drum shop to try some new sticks and saw the donati sticks.....very big.....but then i saw the shedder's, the ones that lang uses......how does someone of his technical ability and finesse play with those.....its not as if hes a death metal player......some people do say that bigger sticks do the work but that is ridiculous!

and whats with those Akira Jimbo sticks......its like someone at the factory had to sneeze on each one!

Well, as I stated before, I'm using the Donati stick and it works great for me... I've also tried the Shedder (Lang) model, and it's ok, but I prefer the Donati one...
And regarding dents and divots on the heads; I don't get those either using the Donati stick...

But that might just be a matter of how you hit the drums rather than being solely dependent on what stick you're using...

The only let-down with the Donati stick, is the way the ride cymbal sounds...It lends itself to pop/rock/fusion playing, and I would never dream of using it on a acoustic jazz gig...

Phil,

I was looking for the same thing. For the weight of a 5A but the feel of a 5B you might want to try the Firth Heritage 5B (if they still exist). They are made of maple and are much lighter than hickory.

Andy

Louie, take a piece of sandpaper to those Weckl sticks you like, you'd be surprised how the leftover surface grit helps in holding onto them.

For myself I've got to have Regal Tip 2Bs with plastic tips. Their 2B differs slightly from Vater's, Vic's, etc. I wrap electrician's tape around the entire shoulder of the stick for slightly added weight. Since I always break sticks right under the bead this makes them longer-lived too.

On jam nights at the local hang there's no arguing over whose sticks belong to whom either.

I personally used smaller sticks years ago, played with Pro-Mark for years. But I really had a hard time getting use to them and it was hard on my hands after awhile. Then later went to a bigger stick upon reading that some of the guys with extreme technique used them and they said it actually was easier using them than a smaller stick so I went to the Vater Shedder which Donati use to use before he had his own model.

I really liked the shedder, nice feel, pretty darn balanced and fairly sturdy. Now I am using Virgil's model and concur with Burzmali and Pocket it is a great stick, in the long run I think the bigger sticks have their advantages but they do cut through more that is for sure so got to watch it when playing the lighter stuff.

Regards kirk

ProMark 721 is a cross between the 5a and 5b, hickory.