Hi autopilot,

I work for Hewlett Packard in the wide format division.

HP manufactures printers that print practically on everything from a roll.

It wouldn't be to hard to print and match a mod orange (or any other pattern) on a semi-hard PVC. It would be advisable however to apply a UV resistant lamination over the printed surface to protect against abrasion and sunlight.

It'll last for decades.

The tricky part however is a good digital photo capture to start from,...

With all printers there's a golden rule,... garbage in,... garbage out !

Attached an examples of the printer in question.

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c02239147&lang=en&cc=us&taskId=101&prodSeriesId=4159136&prodTypeId=18972

Now we are getting somewhere. I can take a high quality pictures of the current wrap on my drums - no problem. Using photoshop, I can 'mend' several pictures together into one large file. Then, with Adobe Illustrator, the camera's jpeg format can be converted to a vector file. At 300 dpi, the file would be suitable for high-quality printing. Next, find a local printer with these capabilities. In all, the project will likely take no more than 20 hours and cost no more than say $250.... Hmmm Could I sell the file and/or printed wrap??? I see a side business developing here. Once the vector file is created, it could easily be re-colored to match nearly any level of drum-fade. Would there be a market for reproduction faded wrap?

I have done this. Take it to Staples or somebody and have them print out your file on heavy card stock and then have it laminated. It actually looks good and from more than 12" away very hard to tell the difference. Use the 'fake wrap' hoop on the batter side.

Affordable route until a more reasonably priced hoop comes along.

John

iam one that cant wait till the next one comes around i like to complete my set asap so id spend the do, re, me, it all will balance out then again you could wait for ever for another to come along

Your'e overthinking it, just needs a high res pic of his current wrap and have it repeated to the length needed, no need for vector art on a color printer that prints pixels.

Story of my life

Indeed no need for vectorizing, just have it repeated in length using Photoshop.

I would avoid printing it on card stock or any other paper based substrate as paper or carton is not resistant to humidity or other environmental changes.

I would recommend using PVC or another plastic.

You probably all remember the Keith Moon "pictures of Lily" reissue kit from a couple of years ago. I know the company who did those kits. The visuals were printed on a self-adhesive vinyl and over- laminated to protect.

They do a whole bunch of custom-work on drums,... (Iron Maiden, Kaiser Chiefs, etc...)

The tricky part will be to match the exact color,... doable but not easy.

The colors on a computer screen (RGB) will never look the same once reproduced (CMYK). Whoever does the printing, they would need a sample of the real mod orange to color match.

I don't know. I'd just buy the hoop. Yeah, it's overpriced but it's not a million dollars either. Who cares if you got the kit for cheap. If one somewhat overpriced hoop makes it complete and keeps it original, it all evens out in the end. I try not to get hung up on the, "This part costs half what I payed for the whole drumset!" Nine times out of ten, I bought the thing in the first place because it was such a great deal. I've certainly spent more for less and I'm not rich. Seriously, a nice UK Beatles album costs more than this hoop, and it's cool. I'd jump on it and get back to business. A high quality printout on a repro hoop ain't gonna hit the spot when you know that hoop is out there looking for your drum. Time screwing around with Photoshop and having a printer run off 5 different samples in different shades in order to pick the least inferior isn't exactly free.

Ain't nothin' like the real thing bay-bay...