The Amber Vistalites...again.

A wise man once said you can't polish a turd. While it's true, you sure can give it hell trying.

Let me back up a second. The 12" and 13" rack toms finally have heads as of a few days ago. Those drums sprang to life when they were finished. Though you can still see the spider webs and whatnot, they really look a million times better than they did when I brought them home. I still need to put badges on them, but I'm saving that for another time.

Now, the bass drum...ugh, what a mess. I'd already put in a few hours on it and frankly it wasn't looking much better. Tonight, I decided to give it a last go. Really, I don't feel like I had anything to lose except for the fact I'd bought all the extra parts I needed to finish it. I prefer to look at that more as incentive.

Three hours later and, well, I'm really shocked at the difference. Yes, there are still numerous problems with that drum. There's still a funky grime in the shell I don't think anything but sanding will take out. There are still numerous scratches and I've done the best I can with that.

The lugs aren't so hot either. No amount of Brasso in the world will replace pitted chrome plating. I also discovered my favorite what were they thinking thing about this kit. Someone cut the ends off some of the swivel nuts so they don't come out of the lug casing. Why? I couldn't begin to guess.

Anyway, while this bass isn't going to win any awards, the difference again is night and day. Once I got the hardware on, it really ended up looking like a drum I won't be embarrassed to be sitting behind. I'm actually quite proud of how good it came out.

Now I need heads and it's done. Very cool stuff.

So, I should mention I won an eBay auction tonight an soon I will have an 18" floor tom to match. It's almost sad in a way that the red Vistas are quickly being phased out. I really dig the red. It's a cool color and less common than the amber. But the ambers are something I've always wanted and it's all just kind of falling into my lap. I still need a 16" floor tom to really complete this kit.

Well, that's all for now.