Please tell me what´s important "breaking in" a new Djembe

[Sdready]

Hello Everybody

I tried a search in the forum but wasn´t very successful.
In a few days I´ll get my first Djembe that´s actually new. My old one was a used-buy and I also never had to reskin a Djembe and then deal with the new skin...

So what are important things? Do´s and Don´ts?

Thank you^^ have a good day!
Sdready

[michi]

Most important thing is to play it. The vibration helps everything to settle into place. Bring it up to pitch gradually, over a few days, pulling a few diamonds each time, and playing in between in each tuning session.

Cheers,

Michi.

[Waraba]

Store it in the most temperature-neutral places in your home. Do not leave it exposed to direct sunlight, or next to a heater. Heat tightens the skin and may pop it. Avoid water. If drops of water fall on the skin, take a sponge or a damp paper towel and moisten the entire skin to even out the tension, then allow to air-dry. Otherwise you may develop swiss-cheese-like holes in the skin.

My experience coincides with Michi with tightening gradually; I am even more conservative, tightening 1 or a few diamonds at a time on a WEEKLY basis. Avoid slamming the bass too hard when the skin is still new.

Enjoy! Do you have a teacher? A dance class to play along with?

[Djembe-nerd]

Just a question on the other side of this discussion,

DSD/Wula or other shops don't do this breaking in. You choose a shell, they skin it and ship you in 3-7 days. And when they send you the djembes they are screaming.

So is this breaking in a little exxaxxerated. I know from talking to these guys that some of the skins pop while they are tightening it, but they tighten it anyway with another skin, so considering that the method and technique is right, IS poping or not poping more dependent on the skin than duration.

[michi]

It's not about the skin breaking. It's about things finding their final resting place. When the drum has just been skinned, things haven't moved into their final position yet. The rope still stretches, the skin still stretches, the rings move a tiny fraction. And things don't stretch by the same amount everywhere. Especially the skin stretches by different amounts across the spine and along the spine. The rings don't move evenly either because of that: at right angles to the spine, they will flex more than in line with the spine.

By tightening things over a few days, you don't force things quite as much and allow everything to settle in a bit. I don't think it's essential do do this. But, with my drums, I find that things sound a little better if I don't do too much at once, and the skins seem to last longer as well.

Cheers,

Michi.

[Sdready]

Thank you so much for the info I will make sure to play it and to be careful with the tightening...
Uh good to know about not slamming the bass too hard!

can´t wait for it to be in the mail...

@ Waraba: Well unfortunately I have no more teacher right now, I´m studying and now, near the end, my savings are gone and it takes most of my money. (university fee, books etc.) I´ll be done by june/july 2011 and after that I´ll be back to the drumming lessons once a week.
I´m drumming with a drum circle (not just jamming around, we practise traditional rhythms) at work every thursday and every now and then with some friends. We basically play Malinke rhythms and I practise what I was taught by my teacher.

@ Djembe-Nerd.... I´m no native speaker... so I´m sorry I dont get this: "And when they send you the djembes they are screaming" ?

Have a good day!
Sdready

edit: Michi, you wrote, the skin doesn´t stretch the same amount everywhere... which I find logical, since skin is a natural product... what about that: at times I see Djembes with rings that are not ..uh... even? I mean you can see the rings going down a little further on one side than on the other side.
Is that a problem? Bad for the skin or the sound?

[Dugafola]

It's not about the skin breaking. It's about things finding their final resting place. When the drum has just been skinned, things haven't moved into their final position yet. The rope still stretches, the skin still stretches, the rings move a tiny fraction. And things don't stretch by the same amount everywhere. Especially the skin stretches by different amounts across the spine and along the spine. The rings don't move evenly either because of that: at right angles to the spine, they will flex more than in line with the spine.

By tightening things over a few days, you don't force things quite as much and allow everything to settle in a bit. I don't think it's essential do do this. But, with my drums, I find that things sound a little better if I don't do too much at once, and the skins seem to last longer as well.

Cheers,

Michi.

i'll give my thoughts on the DSD way and the MIchi way. I prescribe to the Michi way more or less.

you can tune fresh skin up to "scream" a la DSD, but when it plays in, it'll end up losing more pitch than a drum tuned up the Michi way and for all the reasons listed in this thread. i find that rope stretch, both the verts and the hitch knots, need to settle in order to get a really good tune on a drum. that's why i'll normally take out all knots after a month or so and re-pull everything. that usually sets everything up so all i have to do is add knots or bang with a mallet to get it up to a pitch i like.

if i'm reusing rope and rings, then it may or may not need to get re-pulled depending on how clean my initial dry pulls go.

another tip, if you store your drum in a case, make sure you crack the zipper.

[michi]

another tip, if you store your drum in a case, make sure you crack the zipper.

That one is new to me. Why do that? Only if the drum is new, or always?

Cheers,

Michi.

[e2c]

Yes, I'm curious as to the reason for that myself.

(From someone who has had to put frame drums in sealed plastic bags in the winter, along with a tiny bit of damp sponge - to keep them from twisting up like pretzels!)

[freefeet]

I'm a tune a bit a time person also. The first drum i ever tuned i did the quick way and the skin popped big time as i pulled a hitch.

When one pulls a hitch it doesn't necessarily put all that tension over the bearing edge, a fair bit of that tension can actually be left between the bearing edge and the rings, so i feel it's important to play the drum a while between hitches to allow the vibrations in the skin to transmit the tension of the hitch over the bearing edge fully before attempting the next hitch - especially when the skin is getting near to full tune because the tension in the skin will have more friction on the bearing edge at that stage and the tension won't transmit over it to the rest of the skin as easily.

Also ensure that the bearing edge is polished to 600 grit and waxed before attempting to tune the drum. If you're not sure ask the seller, if they don't know then take the skin off and ensure the bearing edge is level and polished before going any further.

I also think it's a really good excuse to own more than one good drum, especially if you have to explain your expensive purchases to a spouse... "Honestly darling, I need one drum to play while the other is slowly tuned up!"

[Sdready]

HAHAHA thats a good one (although I am the spouse myself... ) but now I DO have to explain why I need two drums and even get a third one (which is a shell only, it is a gift to practise skinning)...

The seller made the drum himself (did the finishing and skinning) so he should know. I will ask him about that.
As far as I know the drum will be send tuned... as far as tuning is possible with a new skin. From that stage on I will handle the drum as you all advised... as the pitch goes down I will slowly tighten the skin and give it time... It´s a spechial skin so I really don´t want to mess with it (you´ll see that on the picture right away...)

Have a good day!
Sdready

[Djembe-nerd]

Michi/Duga,

I have always used the slow tuning or your way to tune them. I am happy with the results. I put the question to get more answers to my doubts This way makes perfect sense. DUga answered that with the pitch explaination.

@ Djembe-Nerd.... I´m no native speaker... so I´m sorry I dont get this: "And when they send you the djembes they are screaming" ?

screaming means they are tuned high pitch, almost fully tightened to lead djembe tension.

I headed up my new Wula shell last weekend and pictures are soon coming on the Axe thread.

talking of having 2 djembes, I now have 5. Deal with spouse, if I buy a drum, buy something of similar value for you

[Tom]

Some of you may have noticed that we ship our drums fully tuned, but usually with only on or two diamonds. We pull the verticals on our djembes three times over a two week or longer period in order to bring the drum up slowly, and to get all of the stretch out. This way you will never need to re-pull the verticals, and under normal circumstances you will never reach three rows of diamonds. Also, the drum can sometimes be played for up to a year without reaching a full row of diamonds. A drum that is not pulled until the stretch is mostly played out will eventually lead to problems.

[Waraba]

So is this breaking in a little exxaxxerated.

I fully and wholeheartedly acknowledge that on my end it's exaggerated.

[Waraba]

Also ensure that the bearing edge is polished to 600 grit and waxed before attempting to tune the drum.

Waxed? With what?

I also think it's a really good excuse to own more than one good drum, especially if you have to explain your expensive purchases to a spouse... "Honestly darling, I need one drum to play while the other is slowly tuned up!"

Abdoul Doumbia says you need three djembes at all times: one that's being broken in, one that's seasoned for playing, and a third that's dead.