Drum shell custom bearing edges?

I’m getting some Keller shells in a few days and I didn’t want to waste the extra cash on having them do bearing edges – that probably sounds stupid, I know, but I’m short on cash. I understand the format of a bearing a bearing edge, or at least my ideal one – two 45 degree angles with more on the inside and a thin but not weak axle. This might sound ridiculous, but is there any way I could SAND down some bearing edges? I’ve read up on several articles about bearing edges, and it seems that sanding them down – not taking into account the exact, precise niches of quality that may be lost, like slightly different angles – would be a perfectly viable option on a budget. My plan is to simply use sandpaper and a clay vessel spinner – if this isn’t a good idea, which I doubt it is, could you tell me, in detail, why, what the consequences would be, etc? Thanks.

oh. my. god.

Take a drum with 6 or 8 lugs. tune the drum. Now completely remove one tension rod, leaving the others in tune. Now hit the drum.

That’s the sound it will make, with bad bearing edges. It’s not a “waste of money” for a company to do edges for you. In fact, drummaker
charges only like $8 a drum extra to do edges.

Bearing edges need to be flat. Meaning, after the edges are done, and you lay the drum on something truly flat (like a slab of machined granite, not glass table top, not hardwood floor, not concrete in garage) there won’t be any light coming through the bottom of the shell and the shell doesn’t wobble.

Bearing edges also have to have the same angle. the same angle dictates where on the edge, the actual “axle” or edge that touches the head sits. You don’t want that to be diffferent throughout the shell because on some parts it will hit the collar onthe head, and on some parts it hits the flat portion of the head.

The edge you mentioned is a double 45. Most companies use a razor sharp Double 45 right in the middle of the shell thickness. I like to flatten that edge slightly but I love the double 45 too.

For the sake of the drums, do not do your edges with sandpaper on a spinning clay vessel thing. You need a flat router table and a flat slab of machined granite. Hell if you’re that much strapped for cash then ship me your shells I’ll do them for free if you pay for the two way shipping. I’ll do whatever shell you want and they’ll be polished.

Do you have all the other hardware for the drum set? Lugs, hoops, etc? You do realize that that stuff costs at least 2x more than the shells.

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