Setup & Adjustment Tutorial
Instructional and Review by Jim Toscano
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Assembly & Adjustment Tips
Stage 1: Foundation
After getting everything out of the box, the first step is to adjust the center beater assembly. Do not attach anything to bass drum yet.
• Make sure the shackles on top of the springs are all tightened to the same position.
• On the end of the drive shafts where the spring shackles attach, there are small rectangular notches to use as a reference to line them all up.
• Keep in mind that the springs should be attached at the bottom, but not tightened.
• Think of it like finger-tightening lugs on a snare drum before the tuning process. Having a consistent foundation while setting up the pedal is crucial to keep everything balanced as you move forward.
After following those steps for the center section, the pedals are next.
• Set the pedals next to each other so you can compare and line up the angle of the drive shafts. You want the flat part of shafts in same position. Tighten top of spring shackles.
Once that’s all finished, it’s time to move to stage two.
Stage 2: Putting it All Together
Since all the springs are attached and at baseline tension, it’s time to add the beaters, tighten the springs, and finally attach the drive rods.
• Make sure the beater mounts are adjusted to the same angle by lining up the holes in the mount. Then add the beaters to the mounts.
• Don’t worry about the angle of the beater just yet, as it will be affected when the springs are brought up to tension. The result should leave the beaters resting around 45 degrees away from the bass drum head.
An easy trick to test how evenly adjusted the beaters are, is to pull them back and release at the same time. If they swing back and forth together, that means you’re on the right track.
Now it’s time to tighten the springs.
• For the center mount keep the springs slightly tighter than on the pedals, around 10-20 half-turns of the bottom bolt. That’s to keep the rebound of the beater consistent and reacting properly.
• When it comes to the pedals, set the springs to around 5-15 half-turns of the bottom bolt. This preserves a relaxed and controlled feel, and a proper footboard height.
• Now add the drive rods connecting pedals to center beater.
Once pedal is completely assembled, attach center beater to bass drum hoop.
IMPORTANT: Always make sure that your bass drum is level. The front and back drum hoops should both be approximately 1” off the floor. This keeps beaters striking the drumhead at a 90-degree angle. Do not have front hoop higher or lower than back hoop.
• Move pedals to your natural foot position and adjust length of drive rods if necessary. Do not “kink” rod joints more than a 30-degree angle.
Stage 3: Trial & Error
At this point, it’s a process of trial and error to reach your desired feel. There are a few key aspects to keep in mind for this stage.
• Number one, make uniform adjustments. As this is a symmetrical pedal, the goal is to keep both the right and left sides feeling balanced. Whenever an adjustment needs to be made, make sure it is done evenly on both sides of the pedal.
• Number two, adjust the pedal units and center mount separately.
For example, if you’d like the pedal to feel tighter or looser, only adjust the springs on the individual pedal units. And if you like the feel of the pedals but are having trouble with the beaters, only adjust the springs on the center mount. Think of them as individual parts working together, not as one whole unit.
• Number three, make small adjustments.
Making small adjustments will help you keep track of where you are in the process, help you undo mistakes, and the result will be a more finely tuned pedal.
• Finally, it’s all about patience.
When dealing with a pedal that has so many moving parts and can be fine-tuned to such a degree, it is easy to get overwhelmed. So, take your time, get away from the pedal and come back to it if you need to. It’ll all be worth it when your pedal feels exactly the way you want it. Using this process will create a pedal that is fine-tuned by, and for yourself.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to info@offsetpedal.com