Plastic-clad wooden drumstick and method of making

Abstract

A drumstick of improved durability for use with musical instruments such as drums and cymbals includes an elongated wooden core having an elongated, generally cylindrically shaped shaft section, a shorter frusto-conically shaped front section which tapers to a smaller diameter neck, and a short tip section joined to the neck. Formed in the outer cylindrical wall of a central longitudinal portion of the shaft is an elongated, shallow annular groove. A polymer sleeve having greater resistance to rimshot damage than wood is positioned coaxially over the shaft, within the groove. In the preferred method of fabrication, the wooden core is placed in a cavity of an injection mold, and molten fiberglass-filled nylon injected into a first enclosed region surrounding the grooved portion of the shaft, to form the sleeve. Optionally, the cavity may have a second enlarged region surrounding the tip section of the core, the second enlarged region communicating with the first enlarged region. When molten plastic is injected into the mold, the second enlarged region is also filled with liquid plastic, forming a durable striking bead over the tip section of the core. Preferably, the front portion of the tip section has a larger diameter than the neck portion, thereby securely captivating the striking bead when the plastic solidifies.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.