couple shells dyed and finished - almost happy with them

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blueshadow

blueshadow

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Well you can see my sample came out better than the finished product, I think where I went wrong was I didn't sand back as much of the color as I should have. The sample I had sanded several times as I was trying tog perfect my top coat spraying ability and also changed from poly to lacquer, one or the other caused the color to be better I guess. In person they are a closer match I think then in the photo.

More than likely I would only be using the 14 ocasionally with my 16 (which matches the 12 in the photo) or I might sand back the top coat and try to sand back some of the color. Only reason I stopped was the top ply on the 14 seems pretty thin, its a keller vintage maple shell, also had some bad areas leading me to think it should have been a second or cover grade (not mentioned on the ebay add but too late now) or maybe I'll just leave them and get a kick to finish to match which is probably what I'll do. This was mostly a project that started as I needed some shells that I didn't have to worry about if they got stolen from the back of a van if I stayed overnight somewhere with a band...well no band right now so no big hurry.

See what y'all think: (sorry loaded sideways but you get the idea)
 
I think I got too much dye on the 14 in the process of trying to cover some areas that were not accepting the dye. Had one small area that I ended up filling in with magic marker which actually matched up pretty well.

I think I'll put them aside for now, have another set of project shells to work on anyways that are already drilled for hardware and I haven't built myself up yet to drilling :)

Also the sample turned out so well I plan to finish out to use as something, not sure yet. Maybe a popcorn snare or a subwoofer....neither do I need but why not.
 
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Kevin_S said:
They look pretty decent. It's not easy, is it? :)
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No its not nothing really should have changed between my test piece and when I did the 14 but I think I just got too heavy with the blue, should have wiped more with alcohol I guess before I went to top coat. I have it all off right now and trying to get it wiped down some, its getting there.

I tried make them a little more green with amber shellac, that was a mistake :) but I found what I'll use on the interior as it looks like what Ludwig uses. Also have clear shellac that I added some dark blue mixol to test over turquoise candy and it came out nice on my test, when all said and done I'm going to have a mess of shells in blue, which hopefully will somewhat match. If nothing else has given me something to work on.
 
A very difficult job, Chris. I have done that stuff for years - sometimes it goes smooth as silk, and other times I can spend a day hauling the piece out into the sunlight to color check the match. From what I can see, you may have too much navy in relation to turquoise. I believe those were the two tints you were using.

Regardless, you are probably right that the net effect would have been much closer had you continued to wipe back with alcohol, allowing the yellow of the wood to act on the blue.

One of the good things about drums is that, because in their native environment they aren't all facing light in the same way, shifts in shades, tints, and saturation are harder to see. So it is really your choice whether you redo the job. I optimize my time and energy by deciding whether or not I have created the visual illusion I hoped for when I began, not whether I have achieved perfection in an objective sense.

This is a great first attempt, and I'm sure you'll agree that you've learned a lot. Steep learning curve! Whether you rework this one or move on to another, just keep in mind the importance of a disciplined approach to your sample piece, so that you know how to reproduce it exactly when you get on to the real project.
 
well poop...did it up right now... had to sand to get the top coat off and blew threw the grain too much in some areas and now the dye won't go back on and its blotchy...time for plan B.
 
When that happens in plywood, you know you've hit the glue layer. Removing a finish on plywood requires stripping, not sanding. Sorry, I wasn't really paying attention to your method.

What is plan B?
 
Suppose I should have left well enough alone. I didn't even think about that I could use alcohol and a lot of wiping to get the shellac off, would have been better. Oh well too late now I'll put the shell aside for now and either see about salvaging part of it for a snare shell maybe and wrap the other half for another snare shell. There is a custom guy near me that is very reasonable because he's trying to get started as well. I've seen his work and he's pretty good so I might have him cut this down into a few snare shells. Learning and moving on.
 
...I still have the 8x12 to work on and will finish it out to use with an existing 14x14 and 14x18 that semi-match, this one will also semi-match but a little better I think than the 8x12 I've been using and I've put down the sand paper!

Wait til you see me drill it for lugs!
 
blueshadow said:
Suppose I should have left well enough alone. I didn't even think about that I could use alcohol and a lot of wiping to get the shellac off, would have been better. Oh well too late now I'll put the shell aside for now and either see about salvaging part of it for a snare shell maybe and wrap the other half for another snare shell. There is a custom guy near me that is very reasonable because he's trying to get started as well. I've seen his work and he's pretty good so I might have him cut this down into a few snare shells. Learning and moving on.
Click to expand...
Yes, shellac is very forgiving that way. It can be removed, repaired, refreshed with alcohol. Interesting options going forward. Good luck!
 
Blueshadow,
A little trick they use in furniture factories and the cabinet shop I used to work in is to add about 1/2 oz of stain or dye per quart of lacquer and spray that over the sand through areas and maybe onto the shell that doesn't match. its sort of a way to spray on stain. its also a great way to do fades!
hope that helps
Lane!
 
Looks pretty darn good from here. I'm getting ready to do the same thing to a 14" tom for a Tama birch kit in Dark Cherry fade.

Did you use lacquer sanding sealer prior to staining/dying the drums? What did you seal the stain/dye with after you applied it to the shell? Did you use nitrocellulose lacquer as a top coat?

Thanks and good job!
 
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