The Slingerland Gene Krupa Radio King Snare Drum

Here is Part 2 of my Drum Maintenance series. In this series I demonstrate the different percussion instruments I own and how I fix and maintain them.

Time stamps
0:00 Drum discussion
20:19 Drum on the kit

In this video I show you how to fix/adjust the clam shell strainers on a Slingerland Gene Krupa Radio King Snare Drum. These strainers are troublesome for several reasons. They need to be setup just right so that you can turn the snares completely off. The inside nuts that hold the strainer on the drum are prone to becoming loose. Also, the handle of this throw-off is prone to breaking or bending. I talk about these problems in this video as well as give you advice on how to tune the drum. I also play the drum with a full kit so you can appreciate its unique sound.

The shell of this drum is one piece steam bent maple and it's a drum I use quite often because of it's ultra dry sound. It is by far the driest sounding wood drum I own making it a valuable voice in a snare drum collection. An old Radio King with all of it's original parts is a pretty dark sounding drum which some people do not like (I love it) but it's an older sounding voice that you should know about and have at your disposal.


If you want to skip all of my endless talking and hear the drum first you can skip ahead to around 20:19.

The other equipment I am using for this video consists of: Doc Sweeney Stave Drums in African Olive wood 20"x 16" Bass Drum Toms: 10"x 8", 12"x 8", 14"x 14 floor tom. Cymbals are: Sabian Jack DeJohnette 20" Ride Wuhan 20" Lion Cymbal Paiste Traditional 16" and 17" thin crashes Sabian HH 13" Regular Hi-Hats Sabian 12" AA Mini Hats . Heads on toms are Remo Pinstripes on toms Bass drum is an Aquarian Power stroke 1 head. Microphones are a AKG C24 stereo overhead and an Shure Beta 52 on the Bass drum.