DrumDrTom - Hand drum repair, restoration and sales

Tabla Repair

Tabla hand drum.
There's still life in that tabla!

If every strap of your tabla's tasma is stretched over a gatta, and your gattas are pounded as far down as they will go, but all you can get out of your drum is an uninspiring dud, it's time to contact the tabla repair experts at DrumDrTom!

Sooner or later, the rawhide lacing (tasma) that holds your tabla drum together and applies the tension that makes your drums playable will stretch. When this happens, it's time to pull the slack and tune your tabla.

Tabla tuning is what we do!

On the other hand, if the puddi, tasma or kundal need to be replaced, the drum must be taken apart and reconstructed. In other words, it takes the same amount of work to fix a damaged head, strap or counter ring, though not necessarily the same material costs (There are rare occassions when the tasma can be patched without having to take the tabla apart).

Maybe your syahi has developed an annoying buzz. Don't you hate that? Or you were doing some fine-tuning and got a little careless with the hammer. You really gotta hate that! Even worse, an ex-good-buddy spilled his beer on your drum head and ruined the syahi. REALLY gotta hate THAT!

Hey, maybe your drum's head lived a long, full life and died a natural death. Sooner or later, tabla drum heads die.

The point is . . . you need your tabla repaired.

DrumDrTom rebuilds tablas from scratch. We'll recondition the shell, repairing any cracks and flaws such as a chipped or uneven bearing edge, find the best possible head and tasma for it, then put it all together for you. If you prefer, you can provide the materials yourself, and let us worry about the tabla repair.

Either way, when we are done, your tabla will look and sound better than new!

Tabla repair is what we do!

So why buy a new tabla, when our loving care will make your beloved old friend better than new? (Look below for examples of what you can expect from our tabla repair experts.)

For a no obligation, free consultation call or text us at +1 (831) 428-6626, email us or fill out a contact form.

We're located in Santa Cruz, CA, easiliy accessible to anyone in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Jose/Silicon Valley, the Salinas Valley and the Monterey Bay, but don't worry if you're outside of these areas; we have years of shipping experience. Many of our customers ship their ailing drums to us, and we ship their restored tablas back.

Con mucho gusto hablamos Español!
On Duty: Dr. Tom (The Drum Doctor)
Tabla Repair Histories

Tabla Dayan Head Replacement

Rahul's dayan has lost its head to a natural death, and it wasn't a very subtle death.

Torn tabla drum head. A tabla dayan with a torn head. A tabla dayan with a damaged pudi.

The first step is to disassemble the drum. Here' the shell.

The shell of a tabla (dayan).
Knot on the outside of a tabla shell. knot on the inside of a tabla shell.

This tabla shell had no cracks, but it did have a knot that created a leak which had to be repaired. Here's a look from without and within.

The leak was carefully sealed and the drum reassembled with a fresh new head.

Brand new tabla pudi.

At 5 1/4", the drum was tuned to C#.

Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell.

Rahul was thrilled:

I've received the drum, and it looks and sounds amazing. Thanks again, I'll definitely be referring you to my friends.

Rahul

Tabla Set Restoration

Peter has decided to take up the tabla where he left off years ago. The problem is that his tabla needs a lot of TLC.

A tabla set with damaged pudis and tasmas. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with a broken straps and damaged drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with a broken straps and damaged drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with ripped pudis and old, worn straps.

The drum heads are gonners and the straps are no longer drum worthy. They'll have to be replaced as well. Luckily, that's what we do at The Drum Doctor.

We replace the tasmas and pudis and tune the 5 1/2" dayan to C#.

A tabla dayan and tabla bayan just repaired. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with new tasmas and fresh drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan just repaired. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan just repaired.

Now go for it Peter!

Dayan Rescued From Scrap Heap

Tabla dayan with a broken strap.

Azadul was about to scrap his old tabla dayan. The tasma had snapped.

But that was not all. There were cracks on the shell that made Azadul think it was time to buy a new tabla. Click on the thumbnail and you can see one of them.

So he went ahead and ordered his new tabla, but in the meantime heard of The Drum Doctor and decided to send us the drum for repairs.

Slight knick on a tabla dayan pudi. Tabla dayan.

We found that the pudi was well used and had a couple of knicks, but decided it was drumworthy still.

Obviously, the tasma had to be replaced, so the drum was disassembled.

Tabla dayan shell with three cracks.

Once the tabla was disassebled, we found three significant cracks.

Close up of a crack on the shell of a tabla dayan.

The crack on the left was long but shallow and not of real concern.

Even so, the crack would be sealed.

A long, deep crack on the shell of a tabla dayan.

The crack on the right was long and deep and really gory looking. It looked as if Azadul had gotten fed up with having to tune his drum and had taken an axe to it.

We would definitely seal this crack as well.

Cose up of a crack from the inside of a tabla dayan shell.

The crack in the middle was the one that seemed the least threatening of the three, but we knew from experience this was the crack that posed the real threat. You see, the other cracks were centered at the base of the shell, which is solid wood, but this crack was at the chamber of the shell.

This crack penetrated the shell through and through, and we would seal it with the utmost care.

Once the integrity of the shell was established, we remounted the drum head with a fresh kundal and tuned it to perfection. The drum had voulume, sustain and perfect pitch.

Tabla drum head. Tabla dayan with fresh strap. Tabla dayan sporting a new kundal. Freshly tuned and newly strapped tabla dayan.

Dear Dr. Tom,

I wanted to let you know how happy I am with the amazing work you did on my tabla! It has couple of major cracks and I was about to throw it away! Then I ordered a new tabla from Delhi but decided to send the old one to you to keep as a spare. When I received the tabla and played I was totally shocked at the sound quality! It is better than when it was new.

I can't see the cracks and the now it plays beautifully. Actually I like it more than my new Maharaja tabla! Thank you so much.

Thanks,

Azad, Texas

Siddharth's Tabla Troubles Solved

Tabla dayan with the puddi pulled unevenly.

Sid has tried to rehead his dayan but just can't get it to sound right. If you click on the thumbnail for a better look, you'll see that the pudi has been pulled unevenly and is leaning to one side. A well tuned tabla will tend to have a pudi that's pulled evenly around the bearing edge.

The lopsided kundal (counter ring) on a tabla.

A closer examination reveals that the kundal is also pulled disproportionally to that same side. A well tuned tabla will tend to have a nice round kundal, rather than lopsided such as this one.

Bearing edge of tabla dayan shell that needs to be levelled.

But the examination is not over. We disassemble the drum and find that the bearing edge is not quite level. This could affect the drum's tuning and must be repaired.

The first thing we do is level the bearing edge to make sure that puddi will fit perfectly on the shell, then find the perfect drum head for this shell. We're now ready to reassemble the dayan.

Tabla dayan with a new puddi. Tabla dayan with the puddi pulled evenly. Tabla dayan with a new drum head. Tabla dayan with brand new pudi.

Sid was very pleased. Notice how the drum head sits evenly all the way around the bearing edge.

Jeff's Dayan Fully Restored

Elizabeth is a music instructor at Front Range Community College in Colorado and asked us to repair her student's tabla dayan.

Tabla dayan with the pudi torn off. Tabla dayan that needs a new drum head and strap. Tabla dayan that needs to be completely reconstructed.

The shell was in good shape but the head was a gonner. Only a close inspections revealed that the strap also had to be replaced.

Very well then, a complete reconstruction it is.

Professor Kerr asked us to spare no expense. She expected the best from this drum, so she accepted the expense.

Tabla dayan with a new strap and puddi. Tabla dayan with all new parts. Tabla dayan that's been completely repaired.

Professor Kerr was not disappointed.

Received tabla today - Excellent job - it sounds great!

Elizabeth Kerr (Front Range Community College)

Tabla Set Repair

Leonard's tabla is in serious need of attention. Both drum heads must be replaced, the tasma on the dayan is broken and the bayan is dented.

A tabla set with damaged pudis and strap. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with a broken strap and damaged drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan that need repair. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with ripped pudis and strap.

The first thing to do is disassemble the drums and give each component a thorough examination. Each component must be drum worthy or either be repaired or replaced.

A dent on the shell of a tabla bayan.

The shell of the bayan has several dents such as this one here. While these dents will have little or no effect on the sound of the drum, they are unsightly, and we might as well repair them while we have the chance.

So we take out the dents, replace the drum heads and strap and end up with a fully restored tabla.

A tabla set with new pudis and strap. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with a new tasma and fresh drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan newly repaired. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with fresh pudis and strap.

Tabla Bayan Restored

Devan plays tabla and, as Executive Director of the Center For Music By People With Disabilities, has a great interest getting this tabla bayan back in working order.

Large hole in the pudi of a tabla dayan. Tabla bayan that needs a new drum head. Tabla bayan that needs to have the pudi replaced.

This would be a straightforward case. The drum head would be replaced. Well, not quite that straightforward. You see, Devan lives in a very dry climate and The Drum Doctor is located near the coast, where the climate is not so dry. The drum would have to be tuned low so as to allow for the increased tension that would result from the return to Devan's dry climate.

Feel free to reread that.

A new pudi on a tabla bayan. Tabla bayan with a fresh drum head. Tabla bayan that's just been repaired.

Devan shared his thoughts after the return of his bayan.

Dear Dr. Tom,

The drum arrived safely.

Perfect craftsmanship! Thank you and congratulations! . . . We are glad we have discovered a superb doctor for our instruments. We will recommend you to other tabla enthusiasts in our area . . . .

All the best,

Devan Kartha (Executive Director, Center For Music By People With Disabilities)

Tabla Restoration

An old, worn tabla head (puddi).

The pudi (puddi) on Siddhartha's dayan was old, worn and tired and sounded like it. This was a case of a tabla head dying from natural causes.

It was time to retire this faithful old friend and replace it with a new, more vibrant drum head, so Sid turned to DrumDrTom for help.

The shell of a tabla (dayan).

The drum was disassembled. Here' the shell.

Upon close inspection, several cracks were found on the shell. Three of them at the base. These are fairly typical and only the large one was of real concern.

Crack at the base of a tabla shell. Crack at the base of a tabla shell. Large crack at the base of a tabla shell.

What really concerned us were the cracks at the bearing edge that ran all the way through the shell.

Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell.

These not only threatened to eventually tear the shell apart, they degraded the voice of drum and demanded immediate attention.

Brand new tabla pudi.

Once the cracks were repaired, the tabla was reassembled with a fresh new pudi. Here's what it looks like.

This drum has a 5 1/2" head, so we tuned it to C#, as is fairly typical for a dayan of this size. And tuned it. And tuned it. And tuned it . . . When the dayan was finally shipped back Sid, the drum had been tuned half a dozen times, since the new head and tasma kept stretching and stretching and stretching . . .

Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell. Crack on the bearing edge of a tabla shell.

But it was worth all the effort. When we were done, the tabla sounded even better than it looked. Well defined notes and a great sustain.

Two Dayans Repaired

Devan was so happy with the work we did on his tabla bayan that it wasn't long before he sent us two dayans to rebuild for him. He sent us the shells and gattas. We'd mount fresh drumheads and straps.

A tabla shell. A tabla dayan shell.

After discussing with Devan the key he was likely to use on each of the dayans we got to work.

A tabla dayan with new strap and drum head. A tabla dayan with newly replaced pudi and tasma. A tabla dayan with new pudi and tasma.

Because Devan resides where the humidity is often very low, we tuned these drums lower than we normally would have. As you probably know, low humidity causes drum skins to shrink and tighten.

Here's a look at the second dayan.

A tabla dayan shell with newly mounted drum head and strap.

Devan had praised our previous work for him, but this time he felt compelled to tell his friends and colleaglues about the good work we do. He wrote:

Hello, Dr.
Tom, I am going to send the following letter either by e-mail or by regular mail to the following people who know me and are either players of tabla-s, or sellers of tabla-s or are repairers of other instruments who might have people ask them for recommendations. . .

Dear Friends:
I recently had two right hand tabla-s and one left hand drum re-headed by Dr. Tom of DrumDrTom, at https://local.yahoo.com/info-140871519-the-drum-doctor-aptos?csz=Aptos%2C+CA&stx=Music

He did an excellent job and returned the drums promptly and securely. He followed up the process by calling me to set up a key for the drum and advised me with expertise. His charge was reasonable. I was eager to add a gratuity to his charge because of the high quality service.

I highly recommend Dr. Tom for any tabla work you might need done in the future.

Devan Kartha (Missoula, MT)

Tabla Bayan & Tabla Dayan Repair

Perry has decided to collect drums from all over the world - and learn to play them. He acquired the following tabla and asked DrumDrTom to restore it to playing condition.

A tabla set with torn drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with torn pudis. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with a damaged pudi. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with ripped puddis.

Obviously, the set needs new a pair of pudis, and we'll have to take a close look at the tasma to make sure they're reusable. In fact we'll give the tabla a complete examination to make sure every one of its components is sound, and give the set a thorough cleaning in the process.

After a thorough examination, we decided that the straps could stand one more round, so we replaced only the drum heads.

A tabla set with new drum heads. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with fresh pudis. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with new puddis. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with new drum heads.

With a 5 inch head, we tuned this tabla to D# and let it sit for a day, then re-tuned it one more time. The next day the tabla had settled where we had left it, so we knew it was ready for its new home.

Now comes the REALLY hard part - Perry has to learn to play these lovelies.

Tabla Pudi Repair

Kevin's dayan blew it's top. As we know by now, tablas will do that.

Torn tabla drum head. A tabla dayan with a torn head. A tabla dayan with a damaged pudi.

The drum shell was perfect and the strap was intact, no apparent issues whatsoever. This appeared to be the elusive, dreamed-about, easy job.

The drum head was mounted and it tuned just fine. Sounded great!

Tabla dayan with a new drum head. Tabla drum sporting a new pudi. Tabla dayan with a new pudi.

Pretty easy on the eyes too.

The thing is that every time the drum was checked before shipping it had to be tightened again. And again and again and again, until we realized that the kundal (counter ring) had snapped! That's why the drum would tune temporarily but gradually loosen again.

Our easy dream job had to be taken apart again. Luckily, the kundal had snapped at the very end, so we were able to reuse it. By this time, we knew the drum so well it was actually pretty easy to reassemble it into perfect form.

Voila!

Tabla dayan with a new pudi.

Some months later, Kevin felt compelled to thank The Drum Doctor:

Hi Dr. Tom. Thanks for the work on my tabla (Some months ago). It still hasn't gone out of tune!

Kevin Williams

If Kevin only knew.

Tabla Duggi Head Replacement

The right hand drum of the tabla tends to need its puddi replaced more often than the duggi, or bayan. Sooner or later, however, the left hand drum will also need to be replaced.

Torn tabla duggi drum head. A tabla bayan with a torn head. A tabla bayan with a damaged pudi. A tabla bayan with a damaged pudi.

The process of replacing the drum head on a bayan is very similar to the process on a dayan. Since most bayan shells are made of metal these days, repairing cracks and leaky knots is not an issue. What's more likely to happen to a duggi shell is for it to get dented.

Tabla bayan with a new drum head. Tabla bayan with a new drum head. Tabla bayan with a new pudi. Tabla bayan with a new pudi.

This duggi has no such issues, and we were able to replace the drum head with little trouble. Relatively little trouble. The tasma is on the thin side and actually snapped twice. Luckily the breaks were quite near each other, and we were able to add a nice piece of strap to patch things up.

Everything worked out fine.

Calcutta Pudi On Bayan

We had mounted a Calcutta pudi on Jeff's dayan some months earlier, and he was so happy with the results that he now sent us a bayan to rehead.

Damaged tabla bayan drum head with patches. Tabla duggi with a pudi that needs to be replaced. Tabla bayan with a damaged drum head.

Jeff had tried to extend the drumhead's life with some patches, but realized he needed our help. As with his dayan, Jeff specifically requested a Calcutta pudi for his tabla bayan. The strap was in good shape, so we just needed to order the drum head.

Calcutta drum head newly mounted on a tabla bayan. Tabla duggi with a new Calcutta pudi. Tabla bayan with a fresh Calcutta drum head.

The Bayan looked great and sounded even better.

Dr Tom.

Just got the new drum - looks great! sounds great! Thank you so much! Keep in touch if you happen to find a beautiful abandoned dayan.

Jeff Goldberg (Fort Collins, CO)

Tabla Dayan Pudi Replacement

Johns teaches tabla at a respected school in Boston, so he needs his drums to be in top form. As you can see below, the puddi on this tabla has got a few too many miles on it. The syahi has begun to crumble.

Torn tabla dayan drum head. A tabla dayan's pudi with damaged syahi. A tabla dayan with a damaged pudi. A tabla dayan with a damaged pudi.

As is The Drum Doctor's practice, the shell is thoroughly inspected after the drum is disassembled to make sure it's worthy of a fresh drum head. Here's what we found.

A knot on the outer surface of a tabla shell. A look at the same knot from the inside of the tabla shell. A knot on the outer surface of the shell of a tabla dayan. A look at the same knot from the inside of the tabla shell.

You get a look at two knots on the shell from the outside and the inside. I you take a really good look at the inner view of the first knot, you can actually see a bit of daylight (In the middle of the knot, about two thirds of the way down). These knots must be completely sealed before we proceed.

Tabla dayan with a new drum head. A tabla dayan's pudi with a whole syahi. A tabla dayan with a new pudi. A tabla dayan with a fresh pudi.

This tabla dayan is now ready to return to its distinguished service.

New Pudi For Tabla Dayan

John Paul is an accomplished professional percussionist who plays the tabla, along with many other percussion instruments. He sent us his dayan to have the pudi replaced.

Damaged tabla dayan drum head. Tabla with a pudi that needs to be replaced. Tabla dayan with a damaged drumhead. Tabla dayan with a damaged pudi.

At first sight this drumhead might seem to be completely intact, other than the string sometimes added to enhance the sustain having come loose.

Damaged tabla bayan drum head with patches.

But on closer inspection it can be seen that the syahi has begun to fall apart. Time to replace this pudi all right.

That's what we're here for! So we get right to it.

Brand new tabla dayan drum head. Tabla dayan with a pudi that has been replaced. Tabla ddayan with a new drumhead. Tabla dayan with a brand new drum head.

Great results! Pleasing to the eye as well as the ear.

Hello Dr. Tom,

I received my tabla the other day and I wanted you to know how happy and impressed I am with your work. The Drum sounds and looks fantastic! I will be sending more Drums your way! I appreciate your help and work! Very happy customer!

John Paul Moser (Barrington IL)

Steve's Dahina Restored

Steve's dahina suddenly stopped singing. It just seemed to loose it's voice one day for no apparent reason. Everything seemed fine as far as he could tell. It's not as if the climate had suddenly become temendously humid, and there was no visible damage to the drum.

Tablas are notorious for needing constant tuning and over time the drum head and lacing stretch and need to be retightened or they will drop in pitch, but they don't generally turn into absolute duds over night. We suggested there might be damage to the maidan he just couldn't see. You see, tabla pudis have three layers of skins, with the maidan the most critical of the three and situated between the other two layers.

Steve agreed to send us his tabla for repair.

Torn maidan of a tabla dayan drum head.

Once the dahina arrived we confirmed that indeed the drum would not utter even a sour note and the skin seemd intact upon superficial inspection. A close examination however, revealed that our supicions were correct. The maidan had torn away from the gajara.

Here we have pulled out the torn section from between the chat and bharti so it can be seen.

Mystery solved. To work.

New and just mounted tabla dayan drum head. A dahina sporting a brand new pudi. A tabla dayan with a newly installed drumhead. A dahina with a brand new drum head.

Once we ascertained what the problem was this became a routine case of head replacement. The gratitude of our happy clients, however, never becomes routine.

Dr. Tom,

The dahina arrived today just in time to miss the remnant rain from Hurricane Irma, and the new head looks and sounds great! Can't believe how quickly you were able to repair it. Thanks a million, and I'll definitely be recommending you to my tabla-playing friends!

Steve Barnhart (Lewisville, NC)

Stephen's Tabla Gets A Fresh Pudi And Tasma

Stephen also teaches at a university and had several tablas that need their puddis replaced.

Torn tabla dayan drum head. A tabla dayan's pudi with damaged syahi. A tabla dayan with a damaged pudi.

This is one of them.

Obviously, it needs a new drum head, but after disassembling, cleaning and thoroughly examining all of the components we discover that the tasma is on the thin side and quite worn on a couple of spots. The best thing is to go with a fresh strap, as well as the pudi.

Tabla dayan with a new drum head and strap. A tabla dayan's pudi with a whole syahi and new tasma. A tabla dayan with a new pudi and tasma.

Better than new!

A tabla dayan with a new pudi and tasma.

Dayan's Kundal Snaps

Lizette waited months for her tabla dayan to have its pudi replaced. Six months to be precise. So when the drum suddenly went slack and out of tune soon after she FINALLY got it back, her heart dropped.

Obviously, Lizette had taken her tabla to someone other than The Drum Doctor for that initial repair. She corrected that mistake by sending us her dayan to repair whatever had gone wrong.

Damaged tabla dayan drum.. Tabla with a kundal that needs to be replaced.

It was immediatley obvious to us that the kundal, the counter ring at the base of the drum, had snapped.

The good news is that the fix is easy and, assuming the pudi and tasma are drum worthy, will require no investment in new parts. The bad news is that replacing the kundal takes exactly the same amount of time and effort as replacing the drumhead or strap. The drum must be completely disassembled and reassembled.

Oh well, let's just get to it. Three days later, not six months like the previous repair tech had taken, we presented Lizette with her fully recovered dayan.

Brand new tabla dayan drumhead. Tabla dayan with a kundal that has been replaced. Tabla dayan with a new kundal. Tabla dayan with a brand new counter ring.
Closeup of the new counter ring on a tabla dayan.

We made sure the counter ring we replaced would not suffer the same consequences, using several layers of thick, strong camel lace. Notice how nice and round and evenly spaced the ring is (a good indication of how well tuned the drum is).

Lizette was grateful for our timely work, low cost and, most of all, the results!

Dear Dr. Tom,

Just wanted to say a million thanks for repairing my drum! I received it a few days ago. I can see the excellent work you did with the lacing - truly appreciate having my dayan back, completely repaired and sounding excellent!

Cheers,

Lizette Lim (Berkely, CA)

Tabla Restoration

David's tabla needs to be completely restored.

A look at the old heads of a tabla dayan and bayan. A tabla set with old and damaged parts. A tabla daya and baya that had their skins and lacing replaced. A tabla set that need new pudis and tasmas.

The lacing and drumheads all needed to be replaced. The lacing on the dayan is leather rather than rawhide. That's unusual, and rather than hope it's going to hold up, we're going to replace it with good rawhide we know we can trust.

A look at the new heads of a tabla dayan and bayan. A tabla set with all new parts. A tabla daya and baya that had their skins and lacing replaced. A tabla set with new pudis and tasmas.

New pudi and tasma for the baya. New pudi and tasma for the daya. Not easy to tell it's the same tabla.

One More Dayan Repaired

One more tabla dayan that clearly needs a new pudi.

Torn tabla dayan drum head. Damaged tabla dayan pudi. Tabla dayan with ripped drumhead. Tabla dayan with damaged drum head.

Once we take the drum apart and take a closer look it becomes clear that the lacing must also be replaced. We're pretty sure that the strap now on the tabla would snap in the process. Even if it held up during the reheading, we couldn't trust it to hold up for long after returning the drum home.

It's decided that the dayan will be completely rebuilt.

New tabla dayan drum head. Brand new tabla dayan pudi. Tabla dayan with new lacing and drumhead. Tabla dayan with new strap and pudi.

The additional cost of replacing the strap is easily worth it. The fully restored tabla looks great and sounds even better. And we rest easy knowing the drum will perform reliably for a good long time.

Hey Tom, been meaning to tell you my drum sounds great. Very stable and that’s cool.

All the Best

Tyrone Mitchell (Schenectady, NY)

Another Tabla Dayan Repaired

Here's another tabla dayan that needs a new pudi. The tasma looks fine, but we'll take a closer look once we've taken the drum apart.

Ripped tabla dayan drum head. A tabla dayan's pudi with torn syahi. A tabla dayan with a ripped pudi. A tabla dayan with a broken pudi.

The lacing is fine, as we suspected, but the shell is going to need some help.

A tabla dayan shell with a severe crack. A view of the crack from the inside of the shell.

This crack cuts through the shell and runs its entire length. It's not as visible from the outside because it's been painted over, but it's quite clear from the inside.

A long crack on the shell of a tabla dayan. The crack runs all the to the inside of the tabla shell.

The same can be said of this second crack.

If we are going to fix this drum correctly, we'll first have to thoroughly seal these cracks. This will ensure the integrity of the shell and the drum's voice.

Ripped tabla dayan drum head. A tabla dayan's pudi with torn syahi. A tabla dayan with a ripped pudi. A tabla dayan with a broken pudi.

Consider it done!

Tabla Head Replacement

Raj has a beautiful tabla set that needs new pudis. He didn't tell us how his brand new tabla could get so damaged, and we figured it was better to leave that alone. He tried fixing his drums with tape, but that wasn't about to work.

Damaged pudis of a tabla dayan and bayan taped up. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan in need of repair. A tabla set tha needs to be fixed. A tabla set needing repair.

The straps were drum worthy and could be reused, but there was one other detail we'd be addressing before mounting the new drum heads.

Large dents on the shell of a tabla bayan.

The bayan's shell has some dents that we'll take out before proceeding with the head replacement.

Once the dents have been fixed it then just becomes a matter of mounting some good tabla skins and tuning the set.

A look at the new heads of a tabla dayan and bayan. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan just repaired. A tabla set fully resoted. A tabla set with new pudis ready to play.

Raj's tabla is now beautiful to behold and beautiful to be heard. ;)

Greetings Dr. Tom;

The tabla is perfect & you did a marvelous job repairing & replace(ing) the skin(s). Thanks so much again & please be well & be safe . . .

Raj Durbal (Palm Coast, FL)

A Tabla Set Gets Alot Of Fixing

Greg's tabla needs a lot of help.

A look at the damaged heads of a tabla dayan and bayan. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan that need repair. A tabla set in need of repair.
A tear on the pudi of a tabla dayan.

The bayan's pudi is blown out. The dayan's pudi just seems aged but a closer look reveals a tear.

The tasma of a tabla dayan has been spliced together.

At some point, the dayan's strap snapped and was spliced together again. It will have to be replaced as well.

So we know from the initial inpection that both drum heads and the dayan's strap will have to be replaced. Let's give this tabla a thorough examination.

A dent on the shell of a tabla bayan.

The bayan shell has a couple of dents. This is a minor problem but it won't be overlooked.

A cracked tabla dayan shell. Close look from inside at the crack on the shell of a tabla dayan.

The Dayan shell has a crack that runs through the shell. Look closely and you'll see the light shine through.

The misformed bearing edge of a tabla dayan. A poorly shaped bearing edge of a tabla dayan.

But even more troubling is the deformed bearing edge. It's critical that the pudi be a good fit for the dayan and set evenly on the bearing edge. It's hard to imagine this dayan ever tuned well.

The bearing edge must be levelled, the crack sealed and the dents taken out before we mount the new strap and drum heads.

A tabla set with new drum heads and strap. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan that have had their pudis and tasma replaced. A tabla dayan and bayan that have been replaced.

It took a lot of work to get this tabla back in shape, but it was worth it.

Adventures of Raj's Dayan

Raj sent his tabla dayan to have the skin replaced. At first sight there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with this drum.

A tabla dayan's drumhead. A dahina drum. A tabla dayan. A dahina hand drum.
A close look at the syahi of a tabla dayan's drum head that has glue on it.

A close look allows us to see that the syahi is covered with glue. Raj tried to silence an annoying rattle and ended up silencing the drumhead for good.

Partially removed strap attached to the counter ring at the bottom of a tabla.

Once we begin to disassemble the drum so as to replace the pudi we find that the strap should be replaced as well. This strap is in two pieces. Here we see three of the four ends still attached.

That's a minor issue compared to what we find next. More alarming is the damage to the shell.

Gouge and crack on the bearing edge of a dayan's shell. Badly gouged and cracked bearing edge of a tablas shell.

The bearing edge is gouged and severely cracked. These must be repaired before even thinking of mounting a new drumhead.

Hairline crack on the shell of a tabla dayan.

Less alarming but still in need of attention is the hairline crack.

Has there ever been just a straight forward head replacement? Must we always have these unexpected challenges? Apparently so.

Undiscouraged, we carry on.

Freshly mounted tabla dayan drum head. A dahina with a brand new pudi and strap. A tabla dayan with freshly installed drumhead and lacing. A dahina with a brand new drum head and strap.

I'd sincerely like to Thank You for the job well done! I love the sound this Tabla is producing.

Keep up the good work!

Raj Lakhanpal (Simi Valley, CA)

Another Tabla Set Repaired

Here's a tabla set that's seen a lot of action.

A tabla set with damaged pudis on both drums. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with damaged drum heads. A tabla dayan with a chipped siyahi and tabla bayan with a ripped pudi. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with damaged pudis.

The bayan's pudi is completely gone and the siyahi of the dayan's pudi has begun to disintegrate and buzz horribly.

The tabla must have new heads.

A tabla dayan and tabla bayan newly repaired. A tabla dayan and tabla bayan with fresh drum heads. A tabla dayan and bayan just repaired. A tabla set with new pudis.

That's what we're here for!

Miraculous Dayan Restoration

Large cracks on the shell of a tabla dayan showing through the lacing.

Ted has a tabla that's still pretty new, but the drum shell of the dayan has developed some terrible splits.

No, the drum was not dropped from a 10th story window or run over by a truck. The cracks developed naturally, as if the wood was not fully cured before the shell was carved.

The shell of a tabla dayan with enormous cracks running through it.

The extent of the splitting becomes clear once the drum is disassembled.

Light shining through the crack at the bottom of a tabla dayan shell. The inside of a tabla shell with daylight showing through large splits.

These are not superficial cracks. Daylight shines through where the shell has split apart.

A close look at the large cracks on a tabla dayan's shell.

These are gaping cracks that cover the full length of the shell. It's surprising that it even ocurred to anyone that this could be fixed.

It's a good thing Ted did think we might be able to fix his broken tabla, because we could.

And we did.

A tabla dayan with repaired shell fully reassembled. A tabla dayan that had large cracks in the shell fully repaired. Reassembled tabla dayan that had large splits in the shell repaired. The tabla pudi of a dayan that had the shell repaired.

The drum head and lacing were in good shape, so we were able to remount them on the repaired shell. Once the dayan was once again tuned she sang like a bird, only better than before.

Hi! Received the drum yesterday... It sounds better than when new!!

Thanks so much for your patience and wonderful craftsmanship!!! !

Ted Smith (Santa Barbara, CA)

Tabla Dayan Reheaded

Heron is a percussionist and has a variety of drums. The skins on his drums must be replaced periodically. Sometimes the need arises simultaneously for some of his drums. Heron brought a djembe and this dayan to get their skins replaced.

Torn tabla dayan drum head. Ripped tabla dayan skin. Tabla dayan with a torn drum head. Tabla dayan with a ripped pudi.

The lacing seems fine, and there's no obvious damage to the shell, no cracks or wood knots that may need to be sealed. We'll take a closer look once the drum is disassembled and also inspect the bearing edge, which is so critical to the drum's performance. Once we've confirmed that all parts are drum worthy we'll proceed with skinning this tabla.

A new tabla dayan drum head. A new tabla dayan drum pudi. A tabla dayan with a new drum head. A tabla dayan drum with a brand new pudi.

The dayan recovered completely and is ringing like a bell. Now on to the djembe.

Bayan Syahi Disintegrating

A closeup of the syahi of a tabla pudi that's been smeared with super glue and black nail polish.

John has been trying to treat the disintegrating syahi of his bayan with superglue and black nail polish.

Not only has his technique failed to prevent the syahi from shedding more fagments, he has applied enough gunk to his drumhead that it's been muted. The drum has lost its voice.

Other than the syahi, the table bayan seems fine. The drumhead is otherwise intact and not too old. The strap looks solid, and there's nothing wrong with the shell.

The pudi of a tabla bayan with the syahi smeared with super glue and black nail polish. A tabla bayan with a pudi that has a damaged syahi. Perfectly fine tabla bayan except for the syahi on the drumhead.

John hoped we could just replace the syahi. This is a fairly common request but not one we can satisfy. Once the syahi is ruined, the drumhead must be replaced. Luckily, that's one request we can definitely satisfy!

A beautiful new pudi on a tabla bayan. Beautiful new drumhead on a tabla bayan. A tabla bayan sporting a brand new pudi.

With a beautiful new pudi, John's bayan is now perfect, even the syahi!

Hey Tom,

I've taken a few days to break the new head in and it sounds impeccable!

John Flaherty (Louisville, KY)

Tabla Set Restored

This poor tabla looks to have suffered abuse and neglect.

Old and damaged tabla drum heads. Set of tablas with damaged pudis. Old, dented tabla set with damaged parts. Set of old tablas in need of repair.

It would cross few minds that this tabla has much music still to make.

Granted, the shells need much work. The lacing is shot. And the drum heads must be replaced.

So we'll work on the shells and replace the lacing and pudis.

New drum heads on old tabla set. Old set of tablas with new pudis and straps. Old tablas looking almost like new. Set of old tablas with repaired shells and new parts.

Yes, that is the same tabla.

Never give up on your old friend.

Tabla Dayan Restoration

Ingrid sent us her tabla dayan for repair. The drum still plays, but there are issues.

Tabla dayan drum head. A tabla dayan in need of repair. A tabla dayan with a damaged syahi and spliced strap. A knot on the lacing of a tabla dayan.

The skin is intact but the syahi has begun to disintegrate.

The damaged syahi of a tabla (dayan).
Spliced lacing of a tabla.

At some point the strap snapped and had to be spliced back together. We'll replace the strap as well as the pudi.

A brand new tabla pudi freshly mounted. A tabla dayan with a new pudi mounted with a new tasma. A tabla dahina with a brand new drum head and lacing. A new drum head and strap on a tabla daya.

With a new drumhead and lacing, Ingrid's tabla dayan looks and sounds so much better!

Tabla Restoration

Bob's tabla has been falling apart for some time now. He's been patching it up as well as he's able, but he really should have brought his tabla to Dr. Tom long ago.

Old tabla drum heads with patched syahi. Tabla set with damaged pudis. Old, dented tabla set needing new parts. Set of old tablas in serious need of repair.

The syahi on both drums has been falling apart and the straps have had it as well. This tabla is ready for the full treatment. New heads, new lacing and who knows what all else.

The dented shell of a tabla bayan.

That's what all else. The bayan's shell is badly dented and needs a serious cleaning. We'll take care of that before mounting the new lacing and drumhead.

Once both shells are drum worthy and we've got all necessary parts on hand, it's time to reassemble the drums.

Brand new tabla drum heads. Set of tablas with new pudis. Tabla set with new parts. Set of old tablas fully repaired.

That worked out very nicely and worth all the time and effort.

Chew Toy Dayan

Did you dog confuse your tabla with his chew toy? We don't ask that question just to be cute. Dogs do indeed use innocent drums as chew toys. Witness Robert's tabla dayan:

Tabla dayan with damaged lacing and pudi. A tabla dayan in serous need of repair. A tabla dayan with a damaged syahi and strap. A tabla with chewed up pudi and strap.

The dog chewed up the pudi and a good portion of the lacing as well. He's probably lucky he didn't eat the syahi. Or did he know?

At least he left the shell and tuning blocks intact. That leaves us enough to work with. We can rebuild Robert's tabla dayan.

A brand new tabla pudi freshly mounted with new lacing. A tabla dayan drum with a new pudi mounted with a new tasma. A tabla dahina with brand new drum head and lacing. A new drum head and lacing on a tabla daya.

Robert's dayan is better than new! Now this little drum must learn to bite back. Or hide real well. ; )