Drummerists – stick advice if you will

My 17yr old son has been drumming for a few years now and has recently formed a band. Ever since he started he has gone through drumsticks like there is no tomorrow and nothing he or his drum tutor has tried with him has stopped him breaking sticks. My question is does anyone have any experience of the Vic Firth Titan Carbon drumsticks? Have seen youtube clips of how good they sound etc but cannot find any info as to the longevity. Any tips/pointers/experiences welcome before I shell out 50 notes.

Better just buying a bunch of whatever size he’s happiest with imho. 5b’s for me. Can pick them up for around 30 squids for the diosen on eBay.

Just did a quick ebay search and there are other carbon sticks for cheaper than 50 (including the titans).

Edit: techra carbon sticks for just a nit more than store bought wooden sticks must be worth a test.

I used promark 2b hickory. Never snapped a stick with them. Snapped a load of cymbals mind, but never sticks.

I just picked up some 5B nylon-tipped Oak sticks from Stagg. the nylon tips are loose and I’ve broken one of the sticks already, but I can see that is because of my sticking technique using the shoulder on the cymbal edge. Not sure if that helps but as above, you can get sticks for reasonable money if you shop around. I got some really crappy wood tipped 5bs for practice for about £8 for 6 pairs!

I’m afraid I can’t offer experience, but unless the carbons are specifically marketed as being less breakable, it sounds like an expensive experiment. I’d go for the lads favourite brand in bulk personally. Sticks are there to be broken 🙂

Is breaking sticks common? He seems to get through at least a pair a month and he hasnt started gigging yet!!

I’m no drummer aside from playing Rock Band on the Xbox but,

Is breaking sticks not preferable to having stronger sticks and breaking drums instead?

Would those mute pad things help whilst practising perhaps?

I’d say a pair a month is on the high side, but certainly not unheard of.
For reference, I play rock, precisely 12hrs a month on a ‘real’ acoustic kit, and I break sticks maybe every two months. (The rest of my practice is on an electronic kit which is easier on sticks)
And I take fresh sticks to every gig because of the likelihood of breakage.

Ever since he started he has gone through drumsticks like there is no tomorrow and nothing he or his drum tutor has tried with him has stopped him breaking sticks.

1: How often does he play? Wear and tear on sticks,
2: What music is he playing? How hard is he hitting stuff,
3: In a studio with his mates? Everything turned up to 11(also see 2).

I use promark sticks in Japanese oak. These are a harder wood than American Hickory and the like, and tend to splinter rather than snap like Hickory. Of course, this is entirely dependant on the style of playing.

I haven’t broken any sticks for ages, mainly due to my more sedate style of playing these days.

Can I also suggest he wears earplugs if he is not already.

As above, I always wear earplugs. I also have a stickbag with several pairs of sticks that I hang from the floor tom. A pair each month is more than I get through, but not unbelievable

Can you still get the ahead sticks with a metal core like Lars (at least) used to use? I always wanted some because I was young and stupid, but I hardly ever break sticks. When I was playing a lot I used vic firth 3a nylon tips, they’ve got a thicker shoulder so wear quite slowly.

I’ve tried some carbon sticks at about £20/pair and i did find they last longer than standard hickory. If you buy signature sticks at £12/pair then £20 is reasonable for the extra life. I used to use heavy sticks but i’ve now switched to 7AN – for faster patterns it’s easier to move a thinner, lighter stick, and for playing live, volume isn’t an issue if the kit is mic’d up

I’m by no means a heavy player, but have been really impressed with Carbosticks over the years. Not a fan of the Ahead sticks, they sounded rubbish.

No experience with Carbosticks, sorry, but it does sound like there’s a technique issue if he’s “going through sticks like no tomorrow”!

I tend to wear sticks out on rims/cymbals rather than break them until there’s a narrow waist which then snaps.

I can go a year easily between pairs, and I play un-mic’d in a rock covers band, so it is do-able. IMO buying heavier/more resilient sticks simply means greater risk of damage to the cymbals and heads.

I’d suggest having a lesson with someone else to check your lad’s technique, as it may not be immediately apparent to his current teacher. Finding a good teacher (and I’m not for one minute suggesting his current one isn’t!) can really make a difference – I suffered badly from tendonitis but one lesson with someone changed my technique and practically cured it.

I’d also echo trying thinner sticks – if there’s less mass coming down, it may flex rather than break. By way of reference I use 5A’s (from the sadly now defunct Trueline brand) having reached those by way of E’s and 7A’s (I needed to go thicker to be heard when playing with a 19-piece big band unmic’d!).

I tend to wear sticks out on rims/cymbals rather than break them until there’s a narrow waist which then snaps.

Me too

Currently he uses 5b vic firth with nylon tips, he always wears ear defenders and has an acoustic kit. I am no drummer but I think he hits things hard but his drum tutor says he is ok, maybe he plays differently there to home. There is a bit of jamming with mates and band practice at 11 but as above, he always ear defenders. His band are currently playing rock covers including ‘Look good on the dance floor’ Arctic Monkeys, ‘American Idiot’ Green Day and similar tunes to those.

I tend to wear sticks out on rims/cymbals rather than break them until there’s a narrow waist which then snaps

Similar thing happens to my lad and he is currently practising approx 1.5hrs every weekday and 2-3hrs per day at weekends so doing 12-13hrs a week.

I practice with the band once a week (two bands) 2-3 hours at a time. I can go for months without breaking any sticks and then break 3 or 4 in a single session due to the wear on the shoulder. So then i go buy a few more pairs and the cycle starts again.

I guess if i bought one pair a week and rotated them i’d probably break one or two sticks a session, every session. Wear n tear, innit?

why not ask his teacher to go to one of his gigs? offer to drive and buy him beer, could be useful to spot techniques that are varying away from the tutorial environment

also – get him to buy his own sticks ! he’ll magically get more duration out of them 😀

also – get him to buy his own sticks ! he’ll magically get more duration out of them

mmmmm, sounds like a plan 😆

He should buy his own.sticks. Then he’ll calm down and develop a more fluid sounding style rather than smashing the stuffing out of his kit 😉

When I first started I was given a set of ancient Premier ‘E’ sticks by my old man. They tapered from about the equivalent of a modern 7A to the width of a chopstick at the tip. Looking back, I still can’t believe I managed most of school and a number of gigs with them. I think I still had them at uni and they finally gave up the ghost with the big band!