How to Replace a Drum Head

You hit the drum and then—splat—your drum stick goes right through. Sometimes it just starts sounding dead. Either way, you’re gong to want to replace the head.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• A drum head
• A tuning key

1. Determine if the head needs to be replaced. If there’s a hole in it, this is a no brainer. If the white coating of the head is battered away or if there is a slight bubbling effect, it’s time to change the heads. If you don’t, they’re probably going to break soon anyway.
2. Figure out what sort of heads you want—if you’re not going to replace the same head as before. Rock drummers often use pinstripes—this can be a more generic sound but they’re easier to tune. White-coated heads have a warmer sound and clear heads tend to have more of a ring. You’re going to want to have the same heads for the toms and a different head for the snare.
3. Remove the drum head. Alternate between the tension screws. Think of a clock—loosen 12 o’clock, then 6, then 9, then, 3, etc. Don’t do one next to the other because this can put strain on the wood.
4. See if inside needs any cleaning. Use a slightly damp cloth to clean out the inside of the drum.
5. Replace the new drum head. Repeat step 4 by alternating the tuning pegs across from each other in a criss-cross pattern.
6. Tune the drum according to taste—tighter means higher pitched. Too loose and you could risk breaking the head again. Tuning takes some time—make sure each section around the tuning peg is equal with no loose patches.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure that you tighten each side of the drum equally—i.e. don’t tighten one part of the drum head very tight. Do each peg a little at a time. Count how many times you turn each peg.