Broken Kick Drum Pedal

[plankeye]

My son suffered the dreaded snapped-in-half kick drum pedal yesterday. So I went out and bought some wood and made my own (see pic). I was wondering what the interest level would be in this type of fix. I know not everybody has the tools handy to make something like this, so I thought it might be something I could make and sell for a reasonable price. I guarantee that it won't break. Let me know what you think and how much you think it would be worth. The pedal in the pic isn't finished actually. I plan on doing more rounding and paint it.

[High_School_Legend]

I'd definitely buy one if I hadn't already signed up for my replacement. :(

[thegame696911]

Wow, thats some nice work..... I bet when its finished that's gonna look some good. I don't have my Rock Band yet (coming this week) but when I do, I would be interested.

[mastergamer1231]

i would be intrested, but it would suck to have splinters in the middle of the song and then keep jamming on them...

that would hurt
lol

[thegame696911]

i would be intrested, but it would suck to have splinters in the middle of the song and then keep jamming on them...

that would hurt
lol

Once there's a clear coat on there, it will be like a hardwood floor. No splinters. :)

[Chris_Gonzalez]

i would be intrested, but it would suck to have splinters in the middle of the song and then keep jamming on them...

that would hurt
lol

Yeah.

And I play barefooted (usually), and the grooves in the plastic bass pedal give me some traction so my foot doesn't slide while I'm playing. I'd be afraid of using your bass pedal because I don't play with shoes, but it's a good idea. You could also offer the service of moding an actual bass pedal to work with the game. I would totally go for that.

[steelcurtain187]

I am definitely interested! Let me know if you do sell any. If its reasonable, I will take one :)

[alexnyc]

looks just like the one i made from hdpe the other day.

[plankeye]

I made this out of poplar wood, which has a very fine grain, so even if I didn't finish it, it wouldn't give any splinters. We've played on it in socks and it doesn't slip at all. I figure if anybody wants slip resistance, they can use skateboard grip tape or sandpaper or rubber glued on the top.

No problem if you've already ordered your replacement, you could just swap out for this anyway. If the replacements are the same, they're going to break anyway.

[bonehead95]

My kick pedal was DOA (reed switch was always closed) and I submitted an RMA claim back on Nov 21 (hopefully they will get around to replacing it). I stink at drumming, but with out the pedal, even songs on easy fail. Growing tired of waiting for the replacement, I finally went out and spent around $7 to make something to hold me over. Using a 3/8" push button and 1/8 mono plug from Radio Shack, and then an outlet box and metal face plate from home Depot, I created the ugly foot pedal below. I filled the box with pennies just to give it some weight to hold it still. The only thing I would change would be to get a bigger button, maybe like 1" diameter like on arcade cabinets.

Anyway, I just wanted to share my little project in case there are other desperate people out in the world that are pulling out their hair waiting on the replacement.

[TreoRock_]

So you will be selling a piece of wood to replace the plastic piece that breaks? Is it easy to replace? How do you do that? How much would you sell it for?
Thanks,

Al

[plankeye]

I have yet to decide on how much to charge. It depends on how fast I can make these things and how much the materials cost. Yes, it will be a piece of wood with all of the necessary holes and drilling, etc. It is very easy to replace, I will also provide instructions. I don't have any made other than the original yet, but I will post when I have some available.

[Aphex]

I think it'd be awesome of you to offer the instructions on how to make one free of charge but then sell premade ones for those that are lazy or can't do it themselves. I wouldn't pay for one myself but as someone who likes to mod my gaming equipment having a set of instructions to make one of these would be a sweet alternative to my current kick pedal, which isn't broken. Just a thought.

[TreoRock_]

Also, I don't know about everybody else, but it would look better if the piece was black to match the whole thing. Could you paint it black?

[davidshek]

Also, I don't know about everybody else, but it would look better if the piece was black to match the whole thing. Could you paint it black?

I see a wood pedal and I want it painted black...
I wanna see it painted... painted black!
Black as night, black as coal!
I wanna see the sun blotted out from the sky,
I wanna see it painted, painted, painted, painted black!

Yeah!

(sorry, I couldn't help myself!)

[plankeye]

Yes, I plan to paint it black. I'll post a pic when I get that done. I have to do that thing called "work" now though. I'll also work on a plan for those wanting to make their own.

[Ex7r3m3r]

the pin at the bottom is that just pushed through? nothing holding it in place am i right?

[weisguy119]

I'd pay $10 + reasonable shipping for one, if mine breaks.

[plankeye]

Yes, the pin pushes in from the left side (looking down on the pedal from behind it). The head of the pin is bigger, so it's pretty easy to tell. It takes a pretty good wacking with a hammer to get it out, because the end of the pin is knurled.

[plankeye]

Hey guys,

I've got my pedals in production!
If you are interested in purchasing one,
go to:
http://www.woodrockpedals.com (http://www.woodrockpedals.com)

~ Chris

[plankeye]

I am selling them now at www.woodrockpedals.com

[Chuggalot]

Just checked out the site and the pedals look nice. I was pretty dismayed when I felt the plastic pedal starting to bow under my foot last week during the extremely feverish 2nd solo section of Green Grass & High Tides. It technically hasn't "snapped" yet but there is a nice large crack about half way up on either side of the pedal now so I'm sure it's coming.

My concern is this... Obviously this will void the warranty for the pedal(but make it considerably sturdier).

Has anyone purchased one of these yet? If so, how easy was the mod to install? I don't want to void my warranty & then jack up the install. :)

Edit - The other question was for the poster...what kind of turnaround time should we expect if we order a black pedal?

[CENACHAINGANG54]

My concern is this... Obviously this will void the warranty for the pedal(but make it considerably sturdier).

Has anyone purchased one of these yet? If so, how easy was the mod to install? I don't want to void my warranty & then jack up the install. :)

Edit - The other question was for the poster...what kind of turnaround time should we expect if we order a black pedal?[/QUOTE]

I have bought one and received it today (12/17/07) First off the install is very easy. If you follow the instructions to the letter that he gives on his site, it should take you no longer than 5 or 10 min. The other thing is this pedal is TOTALLY AWESOME!!! If you have read some of the earlier post of this thread, there are a bunch of idiots stating that his price is to high, or poplar is the cheapest wood you can buy, or that the pedal will bend and break. Well THEY ARE IDIOTS AND KNOW NOTHING!! Take it from me man I would not lie to you! PlankEye has put some time into this pedal! The holes for the screws, the rubber feet, and the spring is dead on! It is as easy as just placing it and screwing! The pedal is very thick and very comfortable. There is not a bending point anywhere in this pedal!! This pedal is not going to break! So my ultimate test was to play a couple of my favorite songs that is very heavy on the bass pedal to see how it would feel and respond. So I played Welcome Home and Foreplay/Longtime. For one before the WoodRockPedal, my pedal did not want to register. So if you watch my video of Foreplay/Longtime, I tell you that I am going to fail out because my pedal would not register the quick notes in the beginning. Well with this pedal went through it and did not skip a beat! You can stomp on this pedal until your heart is content and it is not breaking! Your play will improve knowing that you have a pedal beneath your feet that you do not have to worry about cracking! The other thing was people were saying there would be splinters. The pedal is as smooth as silk! I have played with songs on and no snags! I have played barefoot and felt nothing! If you were smart you would buy this pedal! I know there is another one that is metal but it attaches to the plastic pedal and to me this is not good enough. This is a total replacement. As far as the warranty goes you are not going to need it with this. But if you do you can just remove the wood pedal and put the plastic foot back on it and the magnet in it and sent it back and attach the wood one to you new one. If you were smart you would buy this pedal even if yours is not cracked or has started cracking yet, it will. I went through 4 of them before this! I will be making a you tube video in hopes to get him some more exposure because this is an AWESOME PRODUCT!!!

[Xerosnake90]

Wow, above poster sounds like one of those product marketers acting like it's super awesome so he can get some cash XD

The petal looks freaking sweet bro, I gotta =] Unfortunately I don't have the money to get one just in case right now, don't have the game yet either. But maybe in the future I'll need one =]

[CENACHAINGANG54]

Wow, above poster sounds like one of those product marketers acting like it's super awesome so he can get some cash XD

The petal looks freaking sweet bro, I gotta =] Unfortunately I don't have the money to get one just in case right now, don't have the game yet either. But maybe in the future I'll need one =]

No I am not getting paid. Just telling the truth and giving credit where credit is due!:D

[PHiNiX]

i dont know about this wood thing

i think metal is the way to go

wood dosent sound like it would take the test of time

[Quinarvy]

Looks nice, when I get the game if my pedal breaks I'll probably buy one.

[PHiNiX]

there is a guy who has created metal plates to screw onto the kick pedal. i would think that this would stand up to the test of time better then wood

[RayRay]

99.9 percent of all kick pedal breaks happen between the base and the pressure point right before the spring.

You can ask for a warranty replacement if you want but most likley you will get exactly the same type pedal in return which will break again.

I understand everyone is out to make money be creating a fix for this plauge of a problem.

My question to you is why would you pay someone to fix something you can do in less than10 min.

Here.. is exactly what you do..

Knock the retaining pin out with a Nail and Hammer.
Couple of taps will make it slide right out.

Take the two broken parts of the pedal and fit them back together. Now trace with a pen or pencil on a old Hard Back/ Cover book you no longer need or want.
Make two trace copies one on the front cover one on the back cover. Cut these templates out with a utility knife or shop scicors depending on thickness of the cover.

Grab some duct tape and make a foot pedal sandwich with the two templates. The original footpedal should be in the middle. You'll notice the underneath part of the pedal has a grove that fits the Sring. youll need to cut around that to make a tight fit. Duct tape the crap out of your new pedal. Insert the retaining pin back through the hindge.

There you go a brand new pedal that wont break.

Your money buy one if you want.. My cost.. .10 cents worth of duct tape.
Old book = not figured into cost.. lol i didnt read it or buy it in the first place.

[Chuggalot]

I was thinking of doing something similar to the book covers idea, but decided I'd rather not have my pedal covered in duct tape. These pedals look nicely constructed, sturdy, and not tacky.

As it relates to the metal plate covers...I looked at those too, but I believe I prefer the wood to the diamond plate. :)

I'd work up an alternative for myself but I lack the time and the drive to do so. I'd rather just pay for someone else's fix & install it. hehe

I'll be ordering one of these tonight. After it is received/installed I will post a more objective review on it here, as that last reviewer seemed a bit on the "I'm the little brother of Plankeye" side. :)

[PHiNiX]

you can tottally tell that almost everyone of the posts in this forum is spam

[Keebler]

Why does it have to be "wood pedal" or "reinforcing diamond metal plate?" Why not both? Why not attach the metal plate to the wood pedal?

[PHiNiX]

wood is a bad way to go, it wears down no matter how hard the wood is

[Keebler]

Dude, any material wears down over time. What is your objection to wood? You realize there are hundreds of varieties of wood, each with a different density, hardness, and strength?

Wood is stronger than you think (it's at least much stronger than plastic). Why do you think they still build houses out of wood?

[PHiNiX]

are you trying to advertise this product


do you put your foot against the plank of wood holding your house up and start kicking it to the beat of dont fear the reaper ( i didnt think so)

[Keebler]

You just made absolutely no sense.

I'm not trying to advertise anything, but I'm trying to find out why you're acting like such a noob and have something against wood. Try to remember here. The pedals being shipped with the game are made of a thin layer of plastic. PLASTIC.

[PHiNiX]

maybe its because i dont like breaking warranty especially if my stuff breaks they send you a new one for free

and if i really wanted a better pedal i wouldnt buy a cut plank of wood

id get one of those digital kick pedals which do work

[zolon]

Don't feed the troll.

On subject of new pedal, has anyone looked into converting a REAL drum pedal to work with this game?

I am thinking about pulling one of my old pedals out of the storage room and doing this, but if some one has already done it, I would like to know their experience.

Thanks.

[Ldog12395]

it has been done
http://rockband.scorehero.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1692

[PHiNiX]

i have seen that

thats a great idea

i bit expensive though

but all in all a good mod

[Keebler]

maybe its because i dont like breaking warranty especially if my stuff breaks they send you a new one for free

1.) How is replacing the pedal with a piece of wood any worse than drilling holes into your broken pedal to attach a metal plate? For your information, attaching a metal plate (i.e. reinforcing it) is said by EA NOT to void your warranty. So I don't see how replacing it with a wood version would void your warranty.

2.) Guess what? If your pedal breaks, they're gonna send you the exact same one. No reinforcements have been made to it and it's likely to break just as easily as the first one did! What's the point of going through this process any more than you have to?

[zolon]

it has been done
http://rockband.scorehero.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1692

Thanks for the link. I don't know why it just didn't dawn on me it's a simple switch.

And Keebler, stop feeding the troll. :P

[guitarguy316]

why are you arguing? we get the point, you sell wood ones, if someone wants one, theyll come to you. now shutup and stop posting about it

[PHiNiX]

1.) How is replacing the pedal with a piece of wood any worse than drilling holes into your broken pedal to attach a metal plate? For your information, attaching a metal plate (i.e. reinforcing it) is said by EA NOT to void your warranty. So I don't see how replacing it with a wood version would void your warranty.

2.) Guess what? If your pedal breaks, they're gonna send you the exact same one. No reinforcements have been made to it and it's likely to break just as easily as the first one did! What's the point of going through this process any more than you have to?


i seriously think that your a friend of the creator


your right it is voiding the warrenty but guess what


if they send you another pedal ( ITS COVERED FOR 60 DAYS FROM DAY OF SHIPMENT)

so i guess i dont have to worry about that

[CENACHAINGANG54]

I was thinking of doing something similar to the book covers idea, but decided I'd rather not have my pedal covered in duct tape. These pedals look nicely constructed, sturdy, and not tacky.

As it relates to the metal plate covers...I looked at those too, but I believe I prefer the wood to the diamond plate. :)

I'd work up an alternative for myself but I lack the time and the drive to do so. I'd rather just pay for someone else's fix & install it. hehe

I'll be ordering one of these tonight. After it is received/installed I will post a more objective review on it here, as that last reviewer seemed a bit on the "I'm the little brother of Plankeye" side. :)

First off you and everyone else can GET THE HELL OF MY BACK! Now everyone wanted to know how the pedal worked and I told ya!! The point is that people was sitting here flaming this guy for nothing! Being that I am a pro drummer and know something about how a bass pedal is suppose to work and feel, this has been the best pedal to buy! I bought this in lew of using my DW5000 series pedal! I am not the only one singing the praises of PlankEye. Problem is that people will not speak up and I will! I have not met the man, I do not personally know him. I will say through this experience and his great customer service, I consider him a friend and told him I would do what I could to help promote him! Take this game for instance. How many people have you told that this game is awesome? How many people have something to do with RB in there sig line? Well that is advertisement which is the same thing I am doing for this pedal because it works like the creator said it would! So don't jump on my back because I came to the aid of a person who was doing something to make all of our experience with RB better, and others could find nothing but bad and negative things to say about him!!!

[J_Chuggalot]

LOL Whoa...talk about an outburst. SIMMAH DOW NAH, CENACHAINGANG54! If you read my previous posts, I've been nothing but civil. I think you should talk to your doc about upping your dosage if you are getting this stressed out about forum trolls, bro. :D

Now for the real reason I'm here. #1, Obviously lost my original login name due to the new website. YAY for upgrades!!!

#2 - My review on the pedal itself.

I got the pedal today @ work & installed it in minutes once I got home. Biggest issue I had was with the screws not wanting to thread in the holes on the pedal. Easy fix...just took a small nail, drove it down a few mm, and then threaded the screws easily.

I've played with the new pedal for 4 hours straight now, and I love it. It feels SOOOOO much sturdier than the original and seemed to have the same amount of spring tension as the original. I expected the tension to be different due to a different thickness of pedal, but it seems identical. I've had zero issues with the pedal registering hits and have played through GG&HT, Enter Sandman, & Foreplay/Long Time on Hard with zero issues(and a heck of a lot less fatigue since I didn't have to worry about the cracks in my old pedal!)

In addition...the unfinished pedal is smooth, splinter free, and felt comfortable playing in a sock or barefoot with no slippage. Another perk to the unfinished pedal is that now i'm considering painting it. You can paint anything you'd like on it... Ex Girlfriend's picture, children playing, homeless people... Basically anything you'd like to kick repeatedly for hours on end. :D

In summation, EXCELLENT craftsmanship, Plankeye. Love the pedal and will be recommending it to all my friends.

[plankeye]

J_Chuggalot...
Thanks for the descriptive review! I love your idea of painting the pedal with "stompable" images. :-) LOL Nice touch!
Sorry about the screws. I make the holes smallish, to prevent stripping.

Plankeye

[AMartin56]

I had a bit of trouble with the screws as well, but not THAT much trouble. :) Not your fault that the supplied screws are flat rather than having sharp tips.

The new pedal gives me confidence to start playing heel up. My ankles thank you in advance...

A friend of mine in town ordered one this week and I'm passing on your website to everyone else I know that has bought the game. Being in Austin TX it only took a day to arrive (even with the holidays!) after I got the Paypal shipping notice so it's much better than waiting on EA. :)

[tbradshaw]

It's getting a little flamey in here, for what's essentially an advertisement thread. The pedals look very nice and the link to the official website in the creator's signature block should provide sufficient advertisement from here on out.