James Walker
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Mar 18 2002
Posts: 1283
Loc: Connecticut
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I've got a rather nondescript 18" A Zildjian crash, which I've owned for over twenty years, and long story short, it never gets used - and with a crack having formed off of the center hole, the resale value was virtually nil.
So, I decided to try my hand at rehammering.
I didn't think to make a proper "before" sound file, but here's a snippet I was able to find in my files:
http://www.malletjazz.com/cymbals/reworked_18az/reworked_18az_before.mp3
Not bad, but nothing extraordinary.
A few hammering sessions later (over the course of almost two weeks, with fair amounts of down time inbetween to allow the metal to rest and recover), and I've ended up with this:
http://www.malletjazz.com/cymbals/reworked_18az/reworked_18az_06.mp3
All the really little hammering? That's my humble contribution to the equation.
I haven't figured yet if I like it - sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. I need to live with it a bit more, and (ideally) get it on a gig or two. I don't have much experience with 18" rides, so I don't really have a frame of reference - I can't tell if it's a crashable ride, a rideable crash, or what. It's interesting, tho - and I guess that, since I didn't totally destroy the cymbal, it's OK for a first try. 
Edited by James Walker (Wed Oct 14 2009 06:44 PM)
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awfulldrummer
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Jun 26 2007
Posts: 984
Loc: the internet
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James i think the cymbal sounds much better now, i just don't like the bell sound. i wouldn't have had the guts to hammer it myself! i love that you do this.
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James Walker
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Mar 18 2002
Posts: 1283
Loc: Connecticut
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Thanks!
I agree - the bell sound is the achilles heel of this cymbal as it currently stands. For an "anvil" when hammering, I'm using an old vise I've got on my workbench, since putting together a proper anvil for cymbal work can be a bit pricey. I've figured out how to use the anvil as a solid backing when hammering the top and bottom, but the bell eludes me. I've hammered the inside of the bell a little bit, but I don't have anything for backing that would fit snugly and securely against the inside of the bell.
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moderator, mallet forum
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Foursticks
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Feb 19 2003
Posts: 1015
Loc: California
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James,
FWIW, I like the ride sound better on the reworked version of the cymbal. However, I don't much care for the crash sound on either the before or after versions, so if it was my cymbal and I had the huevos to beat on it with a hammer and it came out like yours, I would use it strictly as a ride. But that's just me. (Thanks for sharing the results of your experiments. I find them very interesting.)
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James Walker
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Mar 18 2002
Posts: 1283
Loc: Connecticut
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The more I play it, the more I'm viewing the post-hammering version as a ride, not a crash. The decay is just a bit too quick for my tastes, at least for such a large cymbal, to suit my tastes in crashes. Now, in a jazz ride context, I like the crash, for that same reason - it gets out of the way, doesn't muddy the waters for the actual ride pattern.
This has been a fun little experiment, but I don't know if I'll continue hammering cymbals. Putting together a proper anvil, and modifying hammers to suit the task, may be a little bit above my pay grade at the moment. I was just curious to see what the results would be, working with the tools I have at hand.
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moderator, mallet forum
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awfulldrummer
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Jun 26 2007
Posts: 984
Loc: the internet
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James, for the bell you need a leather bag filled with lead.
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awfulldrummer
Tiger Talk Pro
Reged: Jun 26 2007
Posts: 984
Loc: the internet
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OR, maybe you could carve out a bell shape in a log and use that as a base to hammer the bell.
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