Gibraltar Practice Drum Pad with Leg Strap

Before a show or on the road this pad allows you to warm up when you don't have space.

The image shown on the product's page doesn't look like the product that I received. The rubber of the pad is less than a 1/8 of an inch, not nearly as thick as I wished. If I could go back in time, I probably would've bought Steve Smith's Backstage pad although it's 3x the cost. Despite this, I find that I practice a lot more because of this pad and that is most important.

I purchased this pad as a replacement to my original Practapad (not sure if I spelled that correctly) knee pad that was lost when my cat or a kid knocked the thing off of my table and into the trash can, unbeknownst to me... Ooops... Strap-on kneepads are my absolute favorite method of warming up and practicing. You can strap the thing on pretty much anytime and anywhere and get a fairly good workout when you need it. That being said, it was imperative that I replaced my lost pad. There are many great things about this pad. My old pad merely had two long straps with Velcro on them to secure the pad to my leg. Over many years, the Velcro began to wear out, thus the effectiveness and tightness of the fastening was diminished. This pad has a much more secure system, with a quasi-buckle that the straps pass through and then double back with Velcro for a much tighter and secure fit. I really like this design, compared to my other, and this is a very nice improvement. My biggest beef, which is why I only give it three stars, is that I am not nearly as keen with the surface material, or thickness, as compared to my old pad. I use larger sticks when I use this, such as 2Bs, and as I strike the pad, it almost feels like the bead of the stick penetrates through the rubber and strikes the plastic below the rubber. This gives each stroke a bit more of a clanky feel, with less bounce as a result. It is hard to tell whether this is from the kind of material on the pad, or the thickness of the pad itself. The rubber may be a bit thinner on this pad. I do find that this takes away from the feel of the pad and is a distraction. Although, not a dealbreaker, I do miss my old pad greatly, considering the amount of time that I use these things. I still use this current pad, and I think it is a good product, but I don't find it as pleasing to use as the former. I thought this would be a worthy consideration for both manufacture and future product users. I still recommend the pad!

I work from home on the phone and have a lot of downtime between calls. I purchased this practice pad so that I can easily practice rudiments on my downtime and it's perfect for that. It's a lot better than playing on a pad that slides around on surfaces, and I like that it's sturdily attached to my leg so I have less fumbling around. True, it has a small, hard bouncy surface that is super easy to play, but one still gets sticking practice and conditioning and endurance building from it. In the past I always had trouble positioning practice pads at a height that was good for me, but the positioning of this pad is very comfortable for me (the height of my leg is right where it needs to be). I know that this item is going to vastly improve my skills and endurance, as I'll be able to practice for many hours while working. It'd also be great for taking to gigs and practicing in the van of in front of the t.v. I have to say this is one of the most useful music accessories I've ever purchased.

This pad is good because of the small size and it's easier to use in tight places. It's also built well and is light. The problem is that it felt like playing on a tight marching snare with 5A or 5B sized sticks. I don't feel you can warm up properly with this pad. It seems like I was using too much effort in stick control because of the hard bounce. But try with different sized sticks and form your own opinion.