bringing out my old vistalites

[hardcore guy]

when i was 13 years old, my dad bought me my first set. it was a used EIGHT PEICE solid black ludwig vistalite set. since then i've been through a few crappy sets, pearl export, sonor force 2001 and now i think i'm ready to bring the vistalites back. i've actually sold all the vistalites expect my 18" floor tom, the 24" bass and the supra-phonic snare that i've kept using all these years. while cleaning them up, i've noticed that the bearing edges look very inconsistent. is it worth it to have them re-cut? if so, who can do it and how much do services like this cost? i live in fresno, california right now, a place with limited supplies of all things regarding a music or art culture.

also, does anyone else have any experience with ludwig vistalites? i honestly can't remember how they sound. i was a new drummer who had no idea how to tune them and the heads that came with them i'm sure were years old so i probably never had them sounding very good. i'm listening to my "the song remains the same" 2xlp right now to try to get a feel for a vistalite set. but i'm sure bonham could make a cardboad box set sound good.

[Dr ZEE]

Originally Posted by hardcore guy

been through a few crappy sets, pearl export, sonor force 2001 ... .

what exactly is so 'crappy' about these sets? Not top of the hill, I guess... but those could be set-up/tuned nicely and played well.

Originally Posted by hardcore guy

... while cleaning them up, i've noticed that the bearing edges look very inconsistent.

Could you somehow describe what do you mean by "inconsistent"?

interesting stuff...

/respects

[mikeh]

I never owned Vistilites (played on a few) but I did own Fibes from 1973 through about 1980 which were in the same vein.

Vistilites were very loud drums (sharp projection) with an over abundance of highs and mid highs and not enough lows. They are good live drums since they can really cut though the mix (we did not mic drums all that much back in the late 60s early 70s) - but they do not record easy (takes a fair amount of work & proper tuning to avoid harmonics and dial in enough low end "warmth").

Yeah, I know Bonham played Vistilite - and we all know how great his recorded drums sound, but he recorded in huge great sounding rooms with a great engineer.

Having the bearing edge redone can be a little tricky - I can't recommend anyone in your area, but I'm sure some phone calls would get you answers. I had to get a Fibes drum repaired back in 1976 and it took forever to find someone who knew what they were doing. I would try to put new heads on and see what tuning problems you have before you commit to any work.

[hardcore guy]

ok ok, sorry if i knocked those sets. i've played them for years and i've just never been happy with them.

by inconsistent i mean that some areas of the edges are wider or more narrow than others.

[Dr ZEE]

Originally Posted by hardcore guy

ok ok, sorry if i knocked those sets. i've played them for years and i've just never been happy with them.

by inconsistent i mean that some areas of the edges are wider or more narrow than others.

Does it look like it is a result of wood aging? I am just trying to imagine what it's like. Also... does it really effect the performance/sound at all... or is it so bad, that heads would not 'lay even' .... Maybe you could use hand tools to smoothen the edges?

I was searching around trying to find something on the net. kind of hard to find anything specific. I've found forum where it looks like guys are blah-blahing about vintage drums and stuff. maybe you can get more specific help/advice there in case if here nobody have personal experience with your drums or how do deal with your 'problem'. Here's the link to the forum. i've found: Drum Center Forum - Vintage Drums

[Farview]

Originally Posted by Dr ZEE

Does it look like it is a result of wood aging?

Vistalites have acrylic shells. No wood.

Originally Posted by mikeh

Yeah, I know Bonham played Vistilite - and we all know how great his recorded drums sound, but he recorded in huge great sounding rooms with a great engineer.

Bonham recorded with the maple kit. The Vistalites were for live.

[Tim Brown]

Originally Posted by mikeh

Yeah, I know Bonham played Vistilite - and we all know how great his recorded drums sound, but he recorded in huge great sounding rooms with a great engineer.

Ahh, but Bonham never used the Vistalites in the studio. He said they looked great, but sounded like crap. he recorded with generally 3 kits, a Maple kit that he first got as an endorsement, a Green Sparkle kit, and a Stainless Steel kit. All were pretty much the same exact set up, but the toms sizes varied depending upon the venue.


The edges on the Vistalites were sometimes inconsistent. I had a set of them and I loved them, but I would never go back to them.
I don't see the point in owning a set of Vistalites that you can't see through - that's their gimmick - they were "clear".


Save your money and either buy a new set or build a new set. (by going to the Drum Supply House link in my signature)



Tim

[Tim Brown]

Originally Posted by Farview

Vistalites have acrylic shells. No wood.



Bonham recorded with the maple kit. The Vistalites were for live.

Dang. Beat me to it! LOL




Tim

[Dr ZEE]

Originally Posted by Farview

Vistalites have acrylic shells. No wood.
.

hah .... arghhhhhh, dummy me. they are 'forever young' ... no aged sweetness, nothing to restore.

[hardcore guy]

i know he never recorded in the studio with them. to me, they sound pretty damn good live though. i just listened to "the song remains the same" live recording today and the drum solo on moby dick is superb. and i've heard they're freakin loud which is good in my case since i play in a band with 2 bass full stacks and my drums are un-miked. i have no idea if these inconsistencies make any difference on how they sound, when i played them i was a new drummer with bad ears, bad skills, bad tuning and old heads.

i had to order the heads because the local drum shop didn't have the sizes i needed. once i get them, i'll find out. i'm going to be using an evans eq3 on the bass and a g2 clear on the floor tom. the drum shop dude was telling me that he has a stainless steel set and like the vistalites, they don't really resonate, they just ring. so i think the eq3 and g2 clear will work pretty well. i'm just curious as to what to expect. i've heard a lot of drummers swear by the sound of vistalites.

[mikeh]

Well, I've learned something new - since I was under the misconception that Bonham may have recorded some material with the Vistilites. I could never in my heart believe that he did - simply because I knew how harsh sounding they could be.

I'm relieved to know that those recorded sounds were mainly maple - It all makes so much more sense!