Ludwig Atlas Mount Bracket

I played professionally 3-4 nights a week from 1978 -2016 and I still play 50 professional jobs a year. When I was 19 I never gave a thought to the weight of my gear but as the years went by lightening the load became as important as using the proper equipment for whatever type of music I'm hired to play. The atlas mounts are by no means light but they are lighter than suspension mounts and offer greater flexibility in positioning. I used the Atlas Arch mount on a 24" Vistalite bass drum that I didn't have the nerve to drill for a tom mount and also for a bass drum mounted cymbal holder. The arch itself, while somewhat heavy is lighter, removable and sturdier than a separate stand for a tom. And the cymbal holder is far lighter than a separate boom stand that I needed to get the ride cymbal close enough for comfort. Since the mounts are adjustable I bought extras to use for cymbal holders on some Gretsch drums so whichever drum set I use the hardware bags are lighter.(tip-get some inexpensive softball bat bags to separate stands into lighter loads rather than one big heavy hardware case). Well done Ludwig, this is truly a solution to a problem that actually exists-ridiculously heavy stands and mounts.

I like this mount. I used it to put my ride onto my bass drum shell. The only caveat unwound make Is, if your shell is thin, and your cymbal is heavy, you might want to add a second mount to hold either end of the rod you use to secure the ride cymbal.

These mounts can be used instead of the Rim mounts on any type of tom. They enhance the resonance of the drum and are very easy to install. After months of looking without success for an 8 hole 12" tom rim mount, I decided to give these a try on a set I restored. The result is an amazing sound, without using too much space. I definitely recommend them for high end shells.

The Ludwig ATLAS mount is one of those products where you say "why didn't anyone think of this sooner??". I installed it onto a 12" Gretsch Renown rack tom and it was a perfect replacement for the Gretsch lug. The mounting bolts adjust to the hole pattern on the drum and unless you have a DW kit with their different thread pattern, the existing tension rod worked perfectly. Mounted, the tom has just as much resonance as the RIMS mount, if not more. The only drawback that I can think of is the fact that even though the ATLAS mount is much smaller than the Gretsch RIMS mount that came with the drum (no metal band wrapping around the drum), the wingnut on the ATLAS mount sticks out just as far as the original RIMS mount + mounting bracket did. Luckily I already use a drum bag that accommodated the RIMS mount so it fit into my bag, but anyone who isn't used to the extra hardware sticking out that far from the drum may have to get a new case/bag for their drum, especially if you install more than one (on a floor tom or bass drum, etc..). I am curious to see the rest of the ATLAS line, like the cymbal arms that can mount off of a floor tom or bass drum. Ludwig really hit it out of the park with this little gem.