to all drummers what kit set up have you got and what music are you in to  and whats the best way of cleaning?
816851
I play a 7 pc, double bass set of Tama Swingstars. Deepwell concert toms. 12", 13", 16" Toms and 2, 22" kicks.\n\nI use nothing BUT Zildjian cymbals. I have far too many to list here ranging from 8" splashs, to 21" Chinas.\n\nI use a mild non-abrasive soap and water on my drum shells. I like to use one of those shammois (water absorbant towels) that are used on cars... as it will absorb ALL the excess water THEN I treat the shell with a VERY light coat of a polish like (Lemon Pledge)... some shells can handle this and some cannot... Honestly I'd suggest you check out the Pearl web site for suggested cleaning agents for the Export series. \n\nI use Brasso brand brass cleaner on my cymbals. (LOTS of elbow grease BUT worth the effort). try NOT to touch the cymbals after ya clean them as the oils from your hands/skin will eventually tarnish the brass.  A good thorough cleaning will last a long time (perhaps as long as 6 months)... depending on how much you actually handle the cymbals and what type environment you keep them in. IF you choke them a lot with yer hands during performances... you should touch-up clean at least once a week. The key is to keep those oils from yer hands OFF of them.\n\nI use brilliant finish cymbals so the brasso REALLY brings out the shine for me... Consider that IF you're using say an Earth tone type finish OR some other non-shiny type cymbal.. the brasso won't work to shine the cymbal to a high sheen.... just things to consider.... IF you have one or some of these type non-shiny cymbals... I'd suggest you look at the cymbals makers web site and see what they suggest you use to clean them with.\n\nUnderstand that the tarnish won't seriously detract from the overall tonal qualities of the cymbal it just looks bad. \n\nAlso WD-40 is a great pedal/stand treatment. Will allow the stands to remain smooth during set-up and teardown for a long time... and eliminate squeaks from pedals and yer seat.\n\nOh yeah... and to hear the kind of music I'm into you can hear me play at www.myspace.com/jwoo10\n\nI record my drums in my home studio and make music using my computer and the internet by collaborating with musicians from all over the world.
503529
You should be very careful with your drum.  You don't want it to be stretched too tight, or unevenly tuned.\n\nUsually drums are pretty flexible, but it's best to be careful.\n\nAs far as tuning, the point to which you tune depends on your preferences and the situation you're in.  Personally I think lower tunings sound better and give you more options.\n\nTuning:  Start anywhere, tune in small increments (maybe start with something you percieve to be 1/8in.), then jump directly accross the drum to the tuner opposite the one you just turned, then go to the tuner to the left of the one you started with and repeat the process.  \n\nDiagram at link. (sorry for the confusion.)
1030256
cool, i play the drums too. make sure u have the wrench type thing with you. the tuning is more of a personal preference. tune each of the mounted toms 1 whole step apart and the floor tom 1 and a half steps below the lower mounted tom. the snare should have a nice snap to it so you can adjust how far the chains are from the bottom head. make the distance as small as possible. the bass should rattle your windows. make i muffled by stuffing a pillow in it.
975589
knitting needles\noven gloves\nwashing-up liquid\nnew mop
69374
Get it really clean 1 time and then just do a little by little every day and then you won't have to spend a large amount of time on it. Cleaning sucks I know.
352903
clean it. take out the little circular sphere thing and clean it.
1030824
I would go with the snare if you intend to be a professional drummer after drum corps and school. The discipline and practice it takes to master the rudiments and develop serious snare chops will give you all the talent you need to play anything percussion related later on.
205052
The drums are my fav musical instrument to play and to hear, there is something about playing the drums that gives you such a rush.. hard to describe unless your a drummer
871526
You can try building a sound isolating drum riser. There are commercial product s available:\nhttp://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_platfoam/sound_isolation_platfoam.asp\nOr you can try styrofoam or similar (and cheaper) alternatives.
315655
Get a can of stripeze....careful when using tho...highly flammable. follow instructions and do it outdoors. DONT bead or sand blast them! If you do you will never get the polished look back! Rinse them good. Get some simichrome polish or other type of polishing compound. Be ready to use some elbow grease...you might want to buy a buffing disk for your electric drill.
928938
First get your equipment out of you bag as quickly as possible after playing and hang them or lay them out somewhere that air can get at them (outside is best if you have a bolcony etc) so that they dry and the bacteria doesn't grow.  If they still stink too much for you after that you can mix rubbing alcohol with water (somewhere around 10% alcohol is good) and spray that on the inside of the gear as you lay it out, this kills the bateria even faster as well and the alcohol will evaporate right out.  I also like to wear under armour under my pads as it keeps some of the sweat from soaking into them and is easy to wash.
208711
http://www.drumlib.com/supp/prod/ephedra_01.htm
437426
Well, here's my two cents: VACUUM\n\noops...sorry, I mean TENET\n\n:)\n\nTake care\n\nPeace
13731
You could either buy an instructional book, CD or DVD. or do what I did let myself go on the set and teach yourself. Teaching yourself gives you your own drum personality and makes it fun to try and make up beats of your own. Also listen to music while on your drumset. Since most songs these days are 4/4 time it should be easy to figure out a beat.\n\nHOPE I HELPED!
430390
YEEHAW! I have played drums all my life (seriously) and I think the rush of pounding away on something, but still being able to make wonderful (and frikkin sweet) music is one of the highlights of percussion.\n\nHere are my favorite tab sites:\n\n* http://www.mxtabs.net/drumtabs.php\n* http://911tabs.com/drum_tabs\n* http://www.angelfire.com/ny/drummerboy2001/tabs.html#a\n* http://www.tabworldonline.com/drums/
607885
steel drums\n\nhttp://www.toucans.net/Toc/makePan.html   (making one)
369446
Rub some baby oil on it and massage it till it's clean