Pat Garvey has been a professional drummer since he was 17.  He has played on over 300 jingles, singles and albums, toured extensively and signed major and independent recording and publishing agreements. Television credits include Jools Holland Show, Channel 4, BBC 1, BBC 2, Sky, MTV UK, MTV Europe, MTV America, ITV, Channel 5, Top of the Pops, CD UK & he also worked on the Cadbury’s Gorilla ad! Pat also works as Head of Drums at the British Institute of Modern Music in Brighton (BIMM). 
His solo album 'Lawless' on The Nindrum Project is released on Groove Monger Music in September 2010.

I wanted to document the making of Pat's kit and also introduce the custom range of Tiki Drums. I have been increasingly asked to build snares and drum kits from my workshop in Sussex, and we are now offering the Tiki Classic Maple Series.


Pat's Spec:
6 ply Keller Maple shells with sound rings
10x8 Tom
12x9 Tom
14x13 Floor Tom
16x16 Floor Tom
20x18 Bass Drum - 8 ply

Black Glass Glitter drum wrap
Chrome Beaver Tail Lugs
30 Degree  rounded bearing edges
Tom suspended on a Opti-mount system

Remo heads, Diplomats batter Ambassador resonant.

Although it is possible to make our own shells we decided to go with Keller as they have an outstanding reputation and knowledge in their field, their engineers and craftsmen specialize in molded plywood, and are constantly developing and testing new technologies in order to continually refine manufacturing techniques. Their craftsmen have been making drum shells for leading makes for over 50 years, such as, DW, Ford Drums, Noonan, Spaun, SJC, Pork Pie to name a few.

Once the shells were chosen it was off to the workshop to cut the shells down. I use a custom jig made especially for cylindrical shells.

The bearing edges are 1" in width and fitted and clamped to individual shells. The rings are bonded well to the shell by wetting the insides of the top edge of both the shell and the sound ring and then a thin layer of wood glue is applied ensuring that the whole surface is coated. I believe that a thin layer of glue is imperative, as too much glue makes the bonding too brittle. Wetting the surface draws the glue into both of the contacted surfaces.

My whole philosophy of building drums is based on great simple methods.
The fit of the sound rings should be so snug its seamless. The bearing edges and rings are
then sanded down to a perfectly smooth finish.

I then applied two coats of Tiki wax to the inside of the shell including the bearing edges and sound rings, this seals in the grain and creates a toughened surface to protect the shells from moisture and also allows a slight hardening of the inner ply.
Once the shells were cut down I started on the sound rings and bearing edges. I believe that sound rings will enable the the shell to come up in pitch whilst still allowing the thin 6 ply shells to have a full body resonance producing a wider tuning range, in essence they are sensitive.  This is achieved through the sound rings have greater surface contact on the drum head providing more warmth to the overall sound.

We Offer both 45 degree and 30 degree or-combination's of both, depending on the customers preference. We have gone for 30 degree bearing edges as this gives the drums more warmth similar to the vintage style.
Pat's inspection of the shells and his fine eye overlooking Preston's craftsmanship. We think he's happy with it.

Pat decided to go for a beautiful Black glass glitter drum wrap for his kit, and the chrome Beaver tail lugs, going for a classic look.

The drums are measured up individually and the wrap is measured to fit each drum, again time, and patience is needed here. Once the wrap is cut it is double checked against the shell to ensure a perfect fit.


Contact adhesive is the applied to the shell and the wrap and once ready the wrap is placed on the shell.

The join of the seams is imperative to get perfect to prevent the wrap de-laminating, all seams are clamped and allowed to completely bond.




Maple bass drum hoops are machined and rounded with a 45 degree inner cut to allow clearance for the bass drum head. Silver Glass Glitter is bonded to the outside of the hoop and all wooden surfaces are sealed with 3 coats of oil and 2 of Carnuba wax.

The Seal of a completed drum the Tiki Badge is installed, these are made by a local company in Brighton who have been making and pressing badges for over 150 years, these have been hand pressed on on a machine dating 1897. Always a stickler for the vintage, I wanted them done by hand. They are all aged using a combination of aging chemicals that provides the unique patination to the brass.


Fresh out of the workshop and awaiting Pats arrival to collect the drums. The Script Logo is inspired by the days of Yesteryear and the classic vintage look.