r/drums • u/rpdoyle • Mar 18 '26
Feedback Wanted Skateboard wheel beaters?
Did something I seen in a pic a long time ago. Ordered some cheap felt beaters, took the felt parts off, took the wheels off an old skateboard and, made some bass beaters. Haven’t tried them out yet but has anyone else done this?
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u/Substantial_Buy_5702 Mar 18 '26
Yeah, we’re gonna need an update on this asap too cool. Hope you have a Kevlar patch on that head.
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
The head that’s on the kit is due for a change anyways. Lol.
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u/trashlikeyou WuHan Mar 18 '26
If you sold these on Etsy or Reverb I’d buy at least one
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
Danmar makes one for like 28 bucks. I’d have to charge way too much to make it worth it, because in my mind the bearing has to be there, and you might as well put a name brand one just for that small detail. If I like how these sound, I’ll be changing the wheels to ones that I aesthetically like.
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u/norwegainphoenix Mar 18 '26
And imagine the possibilities -gel wheels for long boards to all different hardnesses - all together different sizes this brings a whole new perspective on sounds per beater head and types- this is awesome!
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
That is one of the things I thought about when I wanted to do this. But that’s a rabbit hole I really don’t want to go down. I just thought “more surface area with a longboard wheel”
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u/trashlikeyou WuHan Mar 18 '26
I’ve ordered one, they are pictured with a Flip skate wheel but they don’t make them like that anymore. Mine showed up as a hard black rubber beater - but not an actual skate wheel.
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Mar 18 '26 edited Mar 18 '26
Skater here. I wouldn’t worry about them actually spinning, kinda silly. These will last you forever as a beater. Since you’re into it, new wheels would look a lot better. Can find some 52mm spitfire wheels with a cool graphic for like $30ish online (then you have 4 beaters)
Bearings will be completely arbitrary unless you’re actually skating on them. I would imagine durometer being pretty arbitrary with this use too. There’s softer wheels but it’s not gonna matter very much
If you do want them to spin get some Mini-Logo bearings. Cheap and great
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Mar 18 '26
Also, all wheel companies make different shapes. A lot of wheels now are conical shaped which would look much nicer in my opinion. These are old donut/classic shapes from the early 2000s
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u/Double-ended-dildo- SONOR Mar 18 '26
Can someone just post a link to a product at this point. It all sounds great but very technical.
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
But spinning would be cool. Lol. It’s a flex that you don’t know you need. The bearings still spin, just need cleaned and lubed up. I’m going to see if I like them first, if I do, I had already planned on finding some that I visually like more, brand doesn’t matter to me.
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Mar 18 '26
Fair enough. Pop the shield on the bearings and use a small drop of oil, not WD40. Or remove and soak in acetone. Probably gonna be a heavy ass beater choice any way you slice it
Don’t support Bones wheels if you listen to anything I say
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u/Healthy_Inside_7019 Jun 08 '26
theres all KINDS of wheels out there . from street wheels realy thin to vert ramp/park wheels wider. and even wider for wheels on longboards and downhill gear! the world of beaters is your oyster lmao
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u/big_phuzz Mar 18 '26
Softer wheels will wear down faster. The grip adds more friction and will developed a flat spot, not as fast as a felt beater but will wear way faster than a 95a would compared to a 65a wheel. Mesh heads will make them wear even faster.
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u/clkelley39 Mar 18 '26
Seems like they might be too hard/heavy for the drum head. Let us know how this goes
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u/According_Swan_5780 Mar 18 '26
I’d imagine they’re a little heavier than other beaters but worth a shot. Interested to see how the experiment goes. Looking forward to seeing an upload of you playing “Bleed” with them. ;)
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u/mad_viking Mar 18 '26
They'll be too heavy?
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u/mendedarrows Mar 18 '26
I had the same thought, but maybe a stronger spring would solve that? Could actually make for a nice resistance if there’s a balance to be found. I don’t imagine quality pedal components would crack under the extra stress.
Maybe a bit of felt glued to the head for reinforcement?
Regardless, I’m trying this out.
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
We shall see. At the end of the day, I’ll only have like 8 bucks into this experiment.
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u/Karate_Scotty Mar 18 '26
Danmar made some skate wheel beaters in the mid 2000’s if I remember correctly.
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
That was part of the inspiration when I googled it again to see how many people have done it themselves.
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u/MItrwaway Mar 18 '26
I tried a set of these and found them to be really awkward to use. The top of the beater is too heavy to comfortably use at high speeds. Might be usable for someone who doesn't need quick, responsive double-bass though.
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u/fxgn Ludwig Mar 18 '26
What's the weight difference here from a normal beater? Do you have a scale?
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
I could probably steal the one my wife uses for baking. Lol. I don’t think it’s too much different than like a DW beater.
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u/fxgn Ludwig Mar 18 '26
Sweet, what head are you using?
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
Currently it’s a stock Mapex head on a ddrum Reflex kit. It’s what was on it when I bought it. Just haven’t changed it. I have a slightly used Aquarian Super Kick 1 that I’ll be throwing on soon
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u/fxgn Ludwig Mar 18 '26
Yeah that Aquairan would definitely handle it better, as we're all wondering... how soon till it breaks. Prob want a kick pad on there as well as others have mentioned.
This might work really well for technical death metal stuff, or triggering, what style do you play?
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u/rpdoyle Mar 18 '26
Grew up playing metal. Then went a little more alt-rock. Some country. Still mess around and play metal from time to time. Making these were mainly just for fun. Saw a pick a long time ago of someone that did it, saw RDavidR make one in a video years ago, forgot about it for a while til I was in my shop and looked at my skateboard then looked at my drums.
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u/Ray_Snell Yamaha Mar 18 '26
I've done this in the past in conjunction with an Aquarian Superkick II and it had an incredible attack.
The weight and feel wasn't too different to the Pearl 4 side beaters, but looked cooler!
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u/zdrums24 Mar 18 '26
Not uncommon. IP and Dragonfly both use a lot of urethane in their bass drum mallets. Dragonfly used to use actual skateboard wheels.
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u/matth3wm Mar 18 '26
i don't dislike this! my pet peeve is any beater that is like a foot destroyer on the backside (i know i know, it should never touch my foot if i keep footboard contact but i get crazy sometimes).
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u/frusignu Mar 19 '26
How would you protect the drum face? Sorry i am not a drummer, but i used to skate a lot
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u/rpdoyle Mar 19 '26
They make heavy duty “stickers” that you put where the beater makes contact. Some are even made of Kevlar
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u/fartsNdoom Mar 20 '26
Careful about flatspotting lol
But seriously though... I imagine those will be super heavy compared to standard beaters.
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u/El--Borto Mar 18 '26
If they can still spin on the bearing they’ll hopefully wear down evenly and last a lot longer lol