Finding a Shell

Painting the Shell

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Where to Get Shells

I buy most of my drumshells from Anderson International Trading. They are Keller custom drumshells made for drumkits. For a 1.6 shaku katsugi, I bought a 40cm (16") diameter by 50cm (20") shell. This size is not listed on the website, but you can ask for any dimensions up to 60cm (24") deep and 71cm (28") in diameter. I buy different thicknesses depending on the type of drum. A katsugi is 5- or 6-ply. A daibyoshi is a 10-ply shell.

The Keller shells are made of maple, a hardwood, while Japanese drums are often made of less-dense cypress (hinoki). The difference in density is made up for by the Keller being about half the thickness. This comes close to approximating the sound of a original katsugi.

Another alternative is to buy a wooden Brazilian bass drum (surdo). The dimensions of a 16" surdo shell are exactly the same as for a 1.6 shaku katsugi. Just pull all the metal tuning gear and heads off the surdo and you will have a lightweight, good-sounding katsugi body. Because the thinner shell vibrates more freely, the sound is more resonate than the Kellers.

The surdo at right is a Contemporanea. This has the right depth (50cm or 20"). Some 16" surdos are 60cm (24") deep. For sources of these drums, check the "Supplier" page of my surdo website, Surdo Suppliers. At far right is an okedo with the very same shell.

There is a big advantage to working within standard drumshell dimensions. The surdo shell and custom shells are of exactly the same specifications. I can interchange them at any time.

To the right is another example. The heads in this shot are the same ones as above. I found a shorter 40cm (16") deep drumshell while browsing a new drum store in my area. The diameter is the same, but the depth 10cm (4") shorter. I later made a new pair of heads and created an additional okedô with this shell. Until then, when I wanted a more compact okedô, I could change the heads from one shell to another in about 30 minutes.

There are many options for painting your drum. Traditionally, Japanese katsugi and other okedo were natural wood color or lacquered black. Today, you can find okedo in any color of the rainbow and then some. I was determined to have a particular shade of red for my first katsugi. I finally found a beautiful color by Benjamin Moore called "Ruby Red". It is an oil-based enamal. The results are on the main page.

My daibyôshi is just enameled black. Unlike the red katsugi, I used spray paint. Likewise, I used a deep red spray for the ôkatsugi. The brown drum was stained with a rich Minwax mahogany color. The blonde drum is the stock color for Contemporanea wooden surdos.