LUKE'S LUDWIGS GET A "SHOT OF LOVE"

Here is a nice project I have been working on most recently for a friend: restoring this four-piece red-sparkle Ludwig kit for his son Luke.  The set consisted of a 14x22" bass drum, 13" tom, 16" floor tom and this 5x14" Acrolyte snare drum.  This "before" picture of the snare is fairly indicative of the condition of the whole kit: very banged up, very dirty and in dire need of some love and attention.

One major issue with these drums concerned the red-sparkle wrap which was peeling back rather severely on the bass drum and floor tom.  Here's a shot of the floor tom:

Now let me say this about the above problem:  This is why you should never, never, NEVER expose your drums to extreme temperatures.  I'll wager this drumset was left in a hot car or kept in an unair-conditioned garage which caused the wood shell to expand, which caused the wrap to stretch, which eventually "popped" the seam.  You would never subject an expensive violin or even a guitar to such conditions, so the same care and respect should be given to drums.  Always keep them in a place with a stable, moderate temperature and don't take them outside except for very short periods in order to photograph them.....

.....which is what I have done here.  This is a picture of the drums now that they have been cleaned, polished, repaired, reassembled and re-skinned.  I still have some work to do to fully complete this project, but the hard part is over with.  The drums are all clean and pretty and have all new heads on them.  I will provide photos of the final results when the job is done.