Help deciding between boom stands...

[Josiah]

I use Yamaha cymbal arms and a Pearl Icon rack.

I LITERALLY throw my hardware around. In the rolling case, back of a rhino coated truck, 10' drops into the hardware case from the stage, whatever. It get's tossed in. I long ago gave up caring about chrome, I play too much to bother caring that much with out a dedicated support crew.

Yamaha consistently stands up to my abuse. That's my experience. I gig a LOT and I throw my hardware around. It doesn't fail. That's why I love Yamaha.

[bstocky]

The broken stuff I see regularly? Stripped screws, deformed felt washers (Yamaha hold their shape and last forever), chrome flaking off (Taye), rubber feet falling off... the plastic wingnut from Tama eventually breaks (the cymbal chews through it) and the replacements aren't always stocked... seriously, just get Yamaha and forget about it.

edit - I also gigged a lot with Yamaha stands for years and didn't baby them at all. I threw them in a hockey bag and it took over ten years for them to LOOK beat up. They still worked perfectly, they just looked a bit worn.

[kinkymook]

I'm a fan of the Tama Roadpro stuff personally. I've got them surrounding and supporting my Eames shells (Which are heavy as hell) and have used them on the road extensively in 42 of the 50 states, without any failures. Sure, the cymbal will eat thru the plastic over time, but I've got a Yamaha doing the exact same thing right now. Plus, Tama costs considerably less, don't they?

[DSOP]

FTI: Gas line tubing makes an excellent cymbal sleeve, and costs almost nothing.

[bstocky]

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Those little pins can develop play and eventually the whole tilter can fall off. I have one in my bag of broken stuff (I used mine for bashing quarter notes on a cowbell) and I've seen them break during another drummers performance. He hit the cymbal and the end of the boom came flying off.