Our Story
Our co-founders, Mike Henry and Dave Ely bring over 50 combined years of drum building and repair experience to our company. We have brought our passion for drums and wealth of knowledge to the percussion community. We live by our mantra, “Superior craftsmanship is our standard”.
Meet the Builders
Mike Henry
Co-Founder & Designer
My love for drums started at age 14. My first custom build kit was at age 16, fashioned from coffee cans, coat hangers, rubber bands and and my fathers shop boom handle. My drum teacher also owned a drum shop and I spent many hours setting up, polishing and studying the drum sets at his shop. I loved it and literately slept with the Rogers drum catalog under my pillow. That wonderful environment enabled me to work with customers and learn how to repair and tune drums. I toured all over the United States and Canada with stints in Japan,and Taiwan. Reconnecting with some old band mates, I settled in Houston as a player and teacher. Following in my teacher’s footsteps, I saw an opportunity to open my own retail drum shop, The Percussion Center, which remained active for 27 years. A big part of that business was repairing and building custom drums. Under the name HPCustom Drums, we built 100’s of snare drums and sets for our customers. I am happy to report most of those drums are still out there being played. When I closed the shop, my friend and business partner Dave Ely approached me about taking our mutual love of drums to a higher level and I jumped at the chance to join him as Co-Founder of Houston Drum Company; Handcrafted Drums, built by hand by craftsman who know what a drum must do… sound great!
Dave Ely
Co-Founder & CFO
My passion for drums began when my father enrolled me in 4th grade beginner’s band, purchased a Slingerland snare drum and enrolled me in lessons at the local music store. I continued to play in school bands and into my college years. Growing up in Dayton, Ohio, I was exposed to Dayton’s vibrant music scene in the 60s and 70s and played drums in my older brother’s garage band and for other local performers. I have a passion for drums of that era. Dayton was the one-time home of Rogers Drums and I have a love for Rogers. I recovered and restored a combined set of Cleveland, Dayton and Fullerton shells and Dynasonic snare drum to create the 6-Piece kit of my dreams. That kit won the “Best Vintage Kit” trophy at the Texas Big Beat event. My collection of drums includes the 1965 Slingerland set that my father bought for me in 1967. I worked with Mike Henry at Percussion Center in Houston, Texas for several years as a repair technician and builder for Mike’s HP Custom line of drums. I now bring my expertise and passion to Houston Drum Company as co-founder, builder and CFO.
Talk to us
We are available to answer any questions you my have about improving the sound of your drums with new bearing edges. We can also provide information about upgrading your drums with our re-wrap service or with new hardware. Go to our Contact Us page and we will usually get back with you within 24 hours.