Just out of curiosity,

Do any of you guys find that shell thickness has a bearing on the tuning RANGE of a drum?

Also, would having the mounting hardware attached to the shell have a bearing on this?

There are a ton of factors that affect pitch/resonance/etc. Thickness is definitely one of them- thin shells resonate more, thicker shells emphasize the attack and higher harmonics.

The more hardware you have in direct contact in the drum, the less the shell is allowed to resonate. Mounting hardware, lugs, and even rims affect this (die cast, being significantly heavier than flanged, place more weight on the shell, leading to a more "focused" sound).

Bearing edges also are a significant factor on tuning range. Those razor sharp double 45's that are pretty much the industry standard lend to easier tuning but also increase drum resonance; it's pretty ironic that most people spend thousands of dollars to get the most resonant drums they can find, only to slap on two ply heads and kill all of that resonance they just paid for!

bearing edges can make your drum vary like night and day, I love old vintage drums where lets say old gretsch or slingerland had more of a rounded bearing edge, making the tone full and round sounding. Taye is trying to produce that on taye tourpros, Also on Yamaha definitives I believe. Also the pearl Virgil Donati snare offers a sharp bearing edge on the bottom of the snare drum (resonant side) and a rounded edge on the batter side. Totally unique idea.

There's a pretty good discussion of the subject here:
http://www.drumsmylife.com/viewtopic.php?t=878








_________________

I posted this on a comment for another discussion on drum tuning. Its a good site to help with the right sound for your drums.
http://www.drummingweb.com/technique.htm
I am big on Keller drum shells. Most factories can give you that sharp edge, or even that rounded edge like the old companies use to do. If you like that long lasting ring "resonation" then go with the sharp edge and thinner shell. The more rounded edge and thinker the shell, the less resonation you get.








_________________
Pearl SMX Kit(stays at home), Tama Star Classic Kit(Gig kit 1) , Roland V drums Kit(stays at home), Hand Made cocktail kit(gig kit 2), 1 Ludwig kit( stays in bands practice room). Over 20 cymbals total.