VISION VX Tom Plies Cracking

[Megyalila Ballad]

Dear all,

I was maintaining my drums today and noticed a fissure between the inner second and third plies on the resonant side of my 8” tom.
This is very disconcerting to see. I am wondering whether the drum will start to fall apart sooner or later.
I am the only owner of this drum and it has only ever been at home on my set.

Is this expected to happen to drums made by Pearl? Has anyone experienced the same or similar issues? Is this drum part of a ‘bad’ batch?
I have attached a picture of the inner label, if perhaps someone can verify the answer to the latter-most question.

I am aware Pearl stands behind its ‘Lifetime Warranty’, so I want to know what can be done about this.

I hope someone can resolve this issue.

[Mountain]

Dear all,

I was maintaining my drums today and noticed a fissure between the inner second and third plies on the resonant side of my 8” tom.
This is very disconcerting to see. I am wondering whether the drum will start to fall apart sooner or later.
I am the only owner of this drum and it has only ever been at home on my set.

Is this expected to happen to drums made by Pearl? Has anyone experienced the same or similar issues? Is this drum part of a ‘bad’ batch?
I have attached a picture of the inner label, if perhaps someone can verify the answer to the latter-most question.

I am aware Pearl stands behind its ‘Lifetime Warranty’, so I want to know what can be done about this.

I hope someone can resolve this issue.

I don't think it looks bad enough to worry about. You can fill that in very easily.

[quicksticks]

I agree. I have the same thing on some of my Masters toms. It’s just the scarf joint. Some wood filler will take care of that or you can leave it alone. It won’t get bigger.

[Eric]

Looks like there is damage to a portion of that part of the shell.
The drum didn’t get dropped or stood on ? I see gaps and ply
separation in a few spots. Can we get a close up please.

[Megyalila Ballad]

I don't think it looks bad enough to worry about. You can fill that in very easily.

I agree. I have the same thing on some of my Masters toms. It’s just the scarf joint. Some wood filler will take care of that or you can leave it alone. It won’t get bigger.

Thank you for the suggestions. I will consider that as a potential solution.

[Megyalila Ballad]

Looks like there is damage to a portion of that part of the shell.
The drum didn’t get dropped or stood on ? I see gaps and ply
separation in a few spots. Can we get a close up please.

Thank you for the keen eye.
Never: It’s been treated like a gem. Always securely on my set.

Here are the same images cropped and in full resolution. I will take more from different angles during daylight.
Let me know where you would like me to close up on the drum and I will upload those ASAP.

[Mountain]

Thank you for the keen eye.
Never: It’s been treated like a gem. Always securely on my set.

Here are the same images cropped and in full resolution. I will take more from different angles during daylight.
Let me know where you would like me to close up on the drum and I will upload those ASAP.

Looks like possibly the bearing edge is damaged to the left of the split or is that just the joints coming together? Hard to tell in the photo.

[Megyalila Ballad]

Looks like possibly the bearing edge is damaged to the left of the split or is that just the joints coming together? Hard to tell in the photo.

I have never noticed as I have been away from the drums for some time, but yes, there is some funny business going on in that area. The scarf joint is flawed/damaged from the factory where it meets the bearing edge, there is gaping hole, the joint seems have been cut prematurely, and some sort of ply-strip seems to have been glued over the joint to cover a flaw in the shell's external ply. I wouldn't be surprised if this manufacturing flaw in the shell's integrity is what caused the crack over time.

Additionally, one of the plies is simply full of holes. Not sure what quality of raw materials was used in this batch or the VX range. Moreover, I was maintaining my 10" and 12" Vision VX toms as well and all three drums have bent shells when placed on a flat surface (yes, I confirm the surface is flat).

I am late a few years in saying this, and perhaps I am generalising, unlucky, or simply ignorant, but it seems the QC on this product line was rubbish back when it had its run. I know these were produced in Pearl's China factory, but I don't think that's any reason for a compromise in production quality. I don't have experience with other drums, hence I have no benchmark to measure Pearl's quality against; but these flaws are not something I would expect from the brand name so many passionate drummers and artists swear by. I am really disappointed to see such negligence and flaws in manufacturing from Pearl.

Is this expected to happen with drums at this price range despite wearing the Pearl badge?
Does the Taiwan factory have similar QC issues? Do the higher end drums face the same problems? Offset/unbalanced shells? Plies cracking? Bad/flawed raw materials?

Here are some close-ups on the crack and resonant side bearing edges.

[Cheez_Whiz]

I have never noticed as I have been away from the drums for some time, but yes, there is some funny business going on in that area. The scarf joint is flawed/damaged from the factory where it meets the bearing edge, there is gaping hole, the joint seems have been cut prematurely, and some sort of ply-strip seems to have been glued over the joint to cover a flaw in the shell's external ply. I wouldn't be surprised if this manufacturing flaw in the shell's integrity is what caused the crack over time.

Additionally, one of the plies is simply full of holes. Not sure what quality of raw materials was used in this batch or the VX range. Moreover, I was maintaining my 10" and 12" Vision VX toms as well and all three drums have bent shells when placed on a flat surface (yes, I confirm the surface is flat).

I am late a few years in saying this, and perhaps I am generalising, unlucky, or simply ignorant, but it seems the QC on this product line was rubbish back when it had its run. I know these were produced in Pearl's China factory, but I don't think that's any reason for a compromise in production quality. I don't have experience with other drums, hence I have no benchmark to measure Pearl's quality against; but these flaws are not something I would expect from the brand name so many passionate drummers and artists swear by. I am really disappointed to see such negligence and flaws in manufacturing from Pearl.

Is this expected to happen with drums at this price range despite wearing the Pearl badge?
Does the Taiwan factory have similar QC issues? Do the higher end drums face the same problems? Offset/unbalanced shells? Plies cracking? Bad/flawed raw materials?

Here are some close-ups on the crack and resonant side bearing edges.

You're completely overreacting to an issue with a mid-level kit.

You neglected to post the images.

[Megyalila Ballad]

Crack and bearing edge.

[Megyalila Ballad]

Holes in ply.

[Megyalila Ballad]

Close up of scarf joint.

[Megyalila Ballad]

You're completely overreacting to an issue with a mid-level kit.

You neglected to post the images.

Thank you for your message. Bear with me as my internet is slow.

As mentioned, “I don’t have experience with other drums”, hence I do not have a basis to compare with.
Not knowing anything else to compare with, to me it is generally a matter of principle. If such QC issues prevail in the lower-mid end, what is not to say that such issues arise in the higher end of the spectrum?

I ask because I do not know. Also, the community’s feedback and experiences will help me in making a decision regarding a potential future blind purchase.

Thanks for your patience.

[RushDrums24]

A few things worth mentioning:

How old is the drum?
Did you own it from brand new? (if so was it bought from a shop? Ebay?)
Have you changed heads on it before and noticed anything odd?

That should help narrow the issue down. Especially now the Vision has been discontinued for a few years, so the drum clearly has aged a bit. Anything could've happened to it in its lifetime. It will also help Al (the Admin at Pearl US on here) come to a resolution if needed.

[quicksticks]

After seeing the last picture, there’s more going on there than just a gap from a scarf seam. You said you are the original owner, so I have to ask, how did you miss this all these years? Anyway, something is clearly not right. I’d be interested in seeing what Pearl thinks.