would you buy cymbals with scallop repair?

Hi, does anyone have any experience of ‘repaired’ cymbals? See you get different types of repairs, scallop, dog bone etc.

I’ve found a used crash I might buy, its nice and affordable, but has a scallop repair. Any thoughts?

Jmo, I would not. A repaired cymbal is still a broken cymbal. Unless it's very cheap, $20 or so, and has a unique sound that you really like I would stay away.
Repaired cymbals can sound good and last though. If I had to I'd rather have a scalloped cymbal than a radial crack repair. A repaired, heavier ride would be safer bet than a thin crash.

Cymbal in question is a zildjian avendis, and is roughly 1/8th of the price of a new one. The repair looks, good, nice and smooth.

Just don't know if it alters the sound in any way (haven't tested it!)

For $20 sure, otherwise no. I bought a cracked Paiste once for cheap and the crack went nowhere, still going strong. But I was lucky.
I'd buy scalloped, where only a coin-size piece on edge was cut out, but would never buy anything where the entire circumference of the cymbal was removed to cut down say an 18 to a 16. One sees a lot of that too.

I refuse to buy other peoples junk.

I agree with that in theory, but it may be a way of getting an otherwise decent cymbal on a budget..

If the cut out is an inch deep or less and is rounded off I would consider it. Any cut out much deeper than an inch, or anything with straight cuts and sharp edges (a 'pizza' style cut out) I would avoid.

Buying any damaged cymbal is a gamble. I've bought 3 with small cracks. because they were cheap, and I wanted to see how it would work out if I repaired them myself. An 18" crash with a small edge crack gave up the ghost within a few months - the crack just continued even though I carefully cut out a round section from the edge and sanded it smooth, A 16" crash with a similar repair is still good some 5 years later, and a 12" china splash that I cut out a round 'ozone' style hole in the bow is still intact but sounds like shit - it sounded better before I cut it, for some reason cutting out the hole made it sound like I'd plastered it with 3lbs of tape. I don't use it because it sounds crap so I can't comment on life expectancy - but I suspect it wouldn't last long if I played it regularly.

If the cymbal is dirt cheap and you are willing to accept that it may not last long it may be worth a gamble, but don't expect it to sound the same as an unmodified cymbal - you may get lucky, but I suspect the odds are less than 50/50.

I wouldn't. Just about any amount of material removed from the edge is going to change the sound and add a China-like trashy element to the sound. The deeper into the cymbal the cut goes, the more pronounced the effect is.

With the staggering number of non-broken A. Zildjian cymbals out there in the used market for reasonable prices, I really don't see the appeal of buying a broken one just to save a couple bucks. Even if you buy it and find the sound acceptable, you'll still end up wanting a non-broken one eventually anyway, so why buy something twice?

Stroker said:

I refuse to buy other peoples junk.

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I feel the same way---if the repair was successful why are are they selling it?

hippy chip said:

I feel the same way---if the repair was successful why are are they selling it?

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My sentiment exactly, HC.

To the OP.

Save your money and invest in something worthwhile.

Thanks for the replies! The guy is selling loads of drum gear (not just this repaired cymbal) so I’m not worried he’s selling specifically because its broken.

However, I do think after a while I would end up wanting a cymbal without a chunk removed from it!

I have successfully repaired lots of expensive cymbals. I am fortunate in having worked with metal over many years when I was young. Although like all of you not a metallurgist or a physicist.
if you can repair a $700 cymbal (one you could never afford), and experience the wonderful sounds of that one and many others, why woold you deny someone that experience. Yo can argue whether the resulting distortion is 10 per cent or 20 per cent, I’ll just enjoy giving some cymbals a second life and enjoy the incredible sounds.

I have bought a three with edge cracks and scalloped them myself. They all had flea bites too which I smoothed off.

The Izmir 20” I got for around 50. Its my main ride so I must like it.

The paiste 602 22" I rarely use. The cymbal isn't right for me but cost me 80 so wasn't a painful miss purchase. I should sell it to a rock drummer.

I have paiste sound edge 14" with a couple of >1" edge cracks side by side on the top hat. They were under 100. I haven't scalloped them yet. They sound good and the cracks haven't grown. I don't take them out much as I'm worried they might get dropped.

I had a 16" Turkish Zildjian with bad spidering that sounded great. It was destroyed in a botched repair by a specialist metal worker. I should've repaired it myself.

My gut feeling is that small scallop repairs make minimal difference to cymbal sound. Even with pronounced spidering, a cymbal will still keep it's character. Keyholing is not a problem

I feel a bit queasy about lateral cracks or multiple edge cracks. Maybe it's a sign of being walloped? I agree with @opentune that cymbals with a diameter reduction without re-lathing are clangers.

Don’t forget to drill a small hole at the END of the cracks to stop them from getting bigger. cheers Peter

Nothing wrong with lateral cracks. If the cymbal is like a solid ride no need to slot the crack it won’t chatter but again you need to drill a small hole at each end. Look carefully and always make sure you are at the END of the crack. Cheers.
i have repaired $700 dollar cymbal with a lateral crack which I did slot. It was the most beautiful cymbal that I (and others) would never have been able to enjoy/afford.

I would not buy a repaired cymbal. In fact, I am planning to buy no more cymbals. Peace and goodwill.

I’d have to REALLY like a cymbal to buy one with a repair or damage. But, the chances of me liking a cymbal, in general, are pretty slim, so I hardly ever take the opportunity to check one out.

I would prefer not to but if it still sounds really good or you don’t want to spend much it’s fine.

In Aus a crash that would normally sell for $300 used would sell for $50-$80 if it was repaired.

I bought this pre-serial number Paiste 602 22 inch ride with a repair and it's probably the best sounding ride cymbal I have and I have a lot of ride cymbals.

I won't buy any cymbal without playing it first - not just a tink-tink-tink-smash in a store. I want to play it. The same would go for a cracked cymbal. But if the price was less than the cost of dinner at a restaurant, I might jump.

I've got an old 10"/25 cm Zildijian K splash with a 2"/50 mm radial crack just outside the bell. I drilled the ends and it's still going strong. Sounds good to my ears, but I like splashes.