Kick Pedal Reinforcement - photos inside

[Tarzanman]

I am one of the lucky folks to have received a completely functional bundle.

However, after reading about many broken kick pedals (and noticing that my kick pedal flexes when I press it down from the top part) I decided to reinforce it because:

• It *is* plastic... and plastic that bends visibly for each stomp will eventually develop small internal cracks that will worsen with use (and likely crack, if not break)

• I am in the midst of progressing to songs with 16th beats... which means I will be double-tapping (toe-heel) the kick which will put a lot of stress on it.

• Altering it as I have done won't have any bad effects on how I use it.

Basically, I had little to lose from the modification and potentially a lot to gain. The linked photos show how I reinforced it. I used two 1" wide x 1/8" thick pieces of zinc that I cut (and filed down to get rid of sharp edges) from a strip I got at home depot (aluminum was available, but it is a softer metal which would not have offered as much stiffness/reinforcement).

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick1.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick2.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick3.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick4.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick5.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee40/Tzankick/kick6.jpg

After disassembling the pedal (unscrewing the orange part from the top of the pedal) I used four tapered head machine screws and nuts to fasten the two zinc plates. The tricky part was lining up the holes to drill them, and then drilling out larger recessed openings on the top so that the tapered-head screws would fit flush with the metal plates (that way they don't dig into my foot when I play barefoot or in socks).

My fix seems to be a success....the pedal doesn't feel any different to play (except that the metal is a little bit chilly when I play barefoot), and the pedal no longer flexes when the pedal is pressed.

In my taking the pedal apart, I did notice that the kick is operated via a magnet & magnetic sensor (the magnet is located under the orange plastic piece). I used a philips head hex bit to unscrew the four screws on the orange part.

If you decide to try this, make sure you have a way to cut the metal to size and line up the metal to make sure everything is drilled properly.

[Nikali3990]

I think you just killed ur warranty but good job.....hopefully it wont mess up on ya

[mastergamer1231]

cool thing

[Tarzanman]

I think you just killed ur warranty but good job.....hopefully it wont mess up on ya

Hopefully I won't need the warranty on the kick at all with this preemptive fix

[LZ_Reborn]

Looks pretty sturdy, but I would'nt try it myself, I'm not that crafty I'm afraid I mess it up in the process.

[Tarzanman]

Yeah, well check this thread where this guy has video of his pedal breaking mid-song

http://community.rockband.com/vbforum/showthread.php?t=11390

Exactly what I am trying to avoid.

[pmpboarder]

I actually checked today, and mine is already starting to crack. It scared me, so I took my shoe off. I might try your idea, as I'm now about halfway through the expert solo tour on drums. Also, this could be a fix after the pedal breaks, too! So, I might just wait until that happens. Thanks!

[AddictedtoKaos]

doesn't help... its inevitable. Especially once you get into the more difficult songs or start playing medium - expert. You have to be kicking so fast that its hard to control how much pressure/weight you are applying.

I feel, as do many, they made the kick pedal too cheap. It should have been solid plastic.

[Brine]

I actually checked today, and mine is already starting to crack. It scared me...

Dude, i checked mine and mine is also Cracked. there's flex marks on the right side and on the left side is where is starting to crack ( i use the right foot )... i wish they would have made a Sensor pad and made it a cheap Kick pedal....then i could use my tama...=/

-Brine

[Twitch1977]

doesn't help... its inevitable.

I disagree with this completely. The only reason the pedal breaks is because the plastic flexes when it is pushed down. With the two metal plates he has screwed on it will prevent any bending when the pedal is pushed which in turn will prevent it from breaking.

(At least the cracking in the middle that he's trying to prevent. It could, of course, break at say the pin at the base of the pedal that joins it to the 'frame' which I would imagine is the second most likely point it would break.)

I agree that pretty much all the bass pedals will at some point snap roughly where the spring is. Pushing it down with your hand you can see the horrible flexing the plastic on the pedal does. The key to preventing this is reinforcing it so it doesn't bend or flex at all when it is pushed.

T

[Foghatiu]

Just buy another bass pedal on-line. Cut the end piece off and splice it with the original pedal. Then you have an effective double bass and you won't have to kick as fast.

Peace....

Rock band needs Dream Theatre

[Highlandlassie]

That repair is permanant.

The warranty is irrelevant.

I would rather have a pedal that lasts forever than a steady stream of under engineered crap from China.

http://www.fullspeedfishing.com/gallery/data/500/medium/P1010268.JPG

[JerWA]

The problem is that replacing the pedal only isn't likely to be a permanent fix (sooner or later the base is going to go too, probably at the hinge pin). I guess it depends on how long you intend to play, and if breakage is your only concern.

Nothing against pedal reinforce mods, it's definitely a good idea, and some of the newer ones look segsy. But I'm not even a drummer and I'm looking for something with smoother action, adjustable spring rates, and something approaching an actual rebound.

Have you spent any time looking at the base and seeing if there's a way to reinforce it as well as the pedal?

As for splicing, that won't work. The switches are activated as long as they are tripped (it's magnetic). That means that if you're holding down one pedal, the system would never see the 2nd one trip. People are working on various fixes for that, if you're actually interested in a double pedal setup hehe.

[vsTerminus]

that looks like a solid fix to me.

I saw mine start to crack, so I immediately ordered a Woodrock, and splited the pedal using a CDR. I cracked it in half and duct taped one half to the top and the other to the botom of the pedal.

Held together pretty well. Lasted all weekend, and finally snapped today, but the CD is holding strong and the pedal is still usable. My Woodrock should be here within a couple days.