LP Classic II Bongos With Chrome Hardware Natural

I just received these Bongos. I selected them because they were LP, were the traditional head sizes (larger than other Bongos I was considering) and the finish on them look really nice. I have never played the bongos before, so I had to do a little research about selecting these, as well as how to care for and play them. When I opened the box, I noticed they were packaged very well. It was detuned, which is what I expected. It came with a small cloth case which includes a rubber coated wrench (which is actually a little too big for the lugs) some lug oil, and a small product catalog, which was dated 2011. The heads were like a cotton white, and felt very dry. I removed the lugs, cleaned them, then used the oil on the threads. I tuned them up, and the sounded OK. It took me some time to be able to get some decent tones out of them. Then, I got some tanning oil, that had coconut oil, lanolin, and vitamin e in it, removed the heads, and applied a light coat to both sides of the heads, as well as the rim of the shell. I reinstalled them, tuned them up, and now they are really responsive. They are no longer cotton white, they are a little translucent now. Much better. The chrome looks very nice on the hardware. The threads at the bottom of the lugs come with plastic threaded covers, which is a very nice feature. I would highly recommend these. They are well built, sound great (when the heads are conditioned) and are easily tunable. Quality components, and a beautiful finish.

I bought these bongos two yeas ago, and have gotten a ton of use out of them. With some practice, you will find that you can produce a wide range of sounds from these. While I enjoy using these in traditional Latin music, I have found even more use for them in other genres. For instance, I sat in with a jazz band one night, and playe all night with a kit drummer and several horns and bass. I did not have to use a mic, even though all the horns were miced. People in the very back of the room complimented the sound of the bongos! I took these to an acoustic rock gig, and kept the hemra (large drum) tuned fairly low, and played drum kit patterns. These bongos held it all together, and I never had to set up or tear down a kit! Perfect for latin, or acoustic coffee shop type scenes, or anytime travel sized percussion is needed!