Help with conga set up.

[conguera2]

I am about to purchase my first set of congas (Pearl Primero Pro Professional Size Conga and Tumba) sometime next week, but as I wrote in my previous post I can't afford stands for them.

I have carpet in my rooms, so I won't be able to play them on the floor without something under them. I was interested in Pearl's reso plates, but I can't afford them. Then I read one of the posts on this site about how someone had gotten scrap wood from their local lumber yard and used it like their own reso plates. I decided to try and do something like that. I couldn't get in contact with any of my local lumber yards, so I tried Home Depot but they didn't have scrap wood. The only wood they did have would end up costing more than the reso plates.

I was beginning to think it was hopeless until I found 4 wooden bookcase shelves in my basement this afternoon. I'm wondering if I could use them to sit my congas on. The only thing I can see that might be a problem is that they're only 12 inches wide, but I could probably piece two together if necessary. I'm not sure how wide the bottom of my congas will be, but I figured it would probably be wider than 12 inches. The shelves are 48 inches long and their depth is a little more than 2/4 inch. If I put two of them together I would have two 24 x 48 inch pieces of wood.

I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on how I can make these shelves work ? Should I cut the shelves to make them shorter ? Thanks in advance for your answers.

[Thebreeze]

I just measured my two pieces of plywood that I use and they measure 18" x 14" . They are about 1/4" thick. These pieces suit my two drums just fine. You can go one step thicker, maybe to 3/8" thick, but I don't think you need to go thicker than that. You can go to OSH ( Orchard Supply Hardware ) stores and they sell pieces of plywood like 2 feet x 4 feet. This way you don't have to buy a whole sheet of it, or if you know someone with some leftover plywood from a project? . Your congas will be no where near 12" in diameter on the bottoms. That's about what you would see on the tops where the heads are. So if you just want to hold on until you get your drums, that 12" wide wood you have might work for your needs and you won't have to spend any more money than you have to.
p.s...I put some duct tape around the edges of my plywood to make them easier to handle.
Hope this helps a little bit.

Will.

[conguera2]

Thanks for the quick reply Thebreeze. I went to OSH.com, but they don't have a store anywhere near me. I think the shelves should work though. The shelves are more than 2/4 inch thick, but I think I can work with them. When something is free it's always easier to make it work. One shelf is 12 inches wide and 48 inches long, so it's a lot longer than I need. My room is pretty small so there's no way I could fit two 48" long shelves on the little bit of floor space I have. Would it make more sense to put both congas on one shelf or cut the shelf in half and have two separate panels ? If I cut the shelf in half I'll have two 12" x 24" panels which seems like it will probably work. Thanks.

[Thebreeze]

I think that you will not need an entire 24" for each piece, but I guess it will be a trial and error thing for you. If you cut them into 24" pieces and don't think you need them that long, just cut them down a little more.
I am sure other forum members will shortly add some of their opinions and then you will have more ideas to think about.

Will.

[alabubba]

Although the wood beneath may be worthwhile at times, its also ok to play on carpet, it is just not as loud as it would be with wood underneath. In fact this may be a good thing depending upon your living situation and how close your neighbors are. Congas can be pretty loud when you are striking them, open tones and slaps in particular. When my wife is home, I am pretty much banished to the far end of the house to practice, drums on carpet and with t shirts over the heads to quiet the drums down even more.

[Mike]

Here is a picture of a selfmade reso-plate someone from this forum made a while ago

or with the LP rubberfeet

[thomas newton]

I am about to purchase my first set of congas (Pearl Primero Pro Professional Size Conga and Tumba) sometime next week, but as I wrote in my previous post I can't afford stands for them.

Um... get cheaper tumbas with stands or haggle.

R.

[goingquinto]

I have some friends who use round waitstaff service trays. If you know someone in restaurant biz, could be really cheap. They also stack into a small space for storage and travel.

[vinnieL]

Goingquinto hit the nail on the head those trays are cheap check and see if you have a restaurant supply store near you.

[conguera2]

I should get my congas sometime next week and I'm going to try the shelves to see if they work. I looked in the phone book and on the internet and was unable to find any restaurant supply stores nearby. I found websites for a few restaurant supply stores, but I couldn't find any trays on the two sites that I entered. I might check more online stores later on. If the shelves don't work my friend might have some plywood that I can use, so I should be able to make this work somehow. Thanks for being so helpful everyone.