Just like a baseball glove or pair of boots, drum heads must be broken in if they are to perform their best. Sure, there's nothing wrong with slapping one on and torquing it down. You can get a tone and even tune it, but are you getting the best tone? And how long will it stay tuned?

Seating the drum head forms a crucial bond between the metal crimp ring and the hoop. More importantly, the head is formed to the shell's bearing edge in such a way that tuning is easier, lasts longer, and sounds better.

Before looking at the seating process, I want to point out the importance of cleaning the bearing edge and inspecting it for wear or dents. A clean dry cloth can be used to wipe off the shell and edge. You would be surprised at how easy dust, dirt, and grime can get between the head and shell.

If you discover dents in the edge, stop what you're doing and let out a long scream. After that you can relax and deal with it by getting a drum shop to re-cut the bearing edge. If you don't have a local drum shop that can do it, there are many drum builders who provide this service. My friend Mark Ross at MRP Custom Drums will be happy to guide you through the process.

Seating a new drum head is easy to do. The problem is what method should you use? There are probably quite a few creative tricks people have tried, but only two methods have been accepted as the standard practice. Let's take a look at each:

Once you have cleaned the shell/bearing edge, place the head, hoop and tnesion back on. Tighten the tension rods by hand until they are even all the way around.

Proceed to tighten the rods with drum key. Most drummers use the cross method to avoid pulling the head unevenly. You're looking for the wrinkles to go away, for the head to "sing a note", and the head at each tension rod to have a similiar pitch when tapped.

Now, place the drum on the floor (if it's not already there), and put the palm of your hand in the middle of the head, place your other hand on top (just like giving "CPR"). Press down with your weight so that the seating process can take place. How do you know it's happening? You 'should' hear some stretching, popping, and crackling plastic.

You'll have to use your judgement at this point on how long to press. In general, the "snap, crackle, pop" should quieten down.

When done, loosen the head it wrinkles, get up and run around the drum seven times. If you don't fall over you can proceed to tune it as normal to the desired pitch.