3 Best Drum Stick Tapes and Grips

Best Drum Stick Tapes and Grips

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Having drumsticks slip out of your hands can be one of the most frustrating experiences when playing a live gig. If this happens to you often, you should consider getting some drumstick tape to improve your grip.

Some drummers love using stick gripping tape, while others will think it detracts from the natural feel of sticks. Whatever your opinion is, you should at least try using tape to see if it helps. 

In this guide, we’ll take a look at the best drum stick tape for enhancing grip. I’ve compared materials, durability, comfort, and cost to give you my top recommendations.

What Is The Best Drum Stick Tape?

Image Recommended ProductsProduct Features Price
Best premium tape
Meinl Stick & Brush SB502 Stick Wrap
  • 4 Wrap strips and 4 application tapes
  • Comfortable and grippy material
  • Professional look and feel
Best gigging tape
Promark ATWHI Stick Tape - White
  • Generous roll of drumstick wrap
  • Smooth and thin material
  • Excellent value for money
Best budget tape
Ahead Grip Tape - White
  • 2 Wraps for a single pair of sticks
  • Smooth and professional feel
  • Thin material adds little bulk

The Best Drum Stick Tapes Reviewed

Best premium tape

Meinl Stick & Brush Wrap

A high-quality set of strips that add plenty of stability to your sticks. The strips aren’t too thick, so you still get a very natural feel.
Durability
4.0
Comfort
4.5
Materials
4.5
Value
4.0

    Meinl Stick & Brush Wrap Review

    If you want the maximum level of comfort and grip from your drum sticks then you’ve got to take a look at the Meinl Drumstick & Brush Wrap for your sticks! 

    This drum stick tape is more expensive than others on the market, but it includes enough wrap for two pairs of sticks

    The Meinl stick wrap gently hugs your hands as you play, and prevents loss of grip through sweat and fatigue. The wraps feel quite comfortable, which is always the first thing that you want to look for when picking wraps for sticks. 

    Included in the pack you’ll receive 4 wrap strips and 4 application tapes that are easy to apply onto your drum sticks. The material is what makes them comfortable and grippy, without being too sticky and causing unwanted blisters.

    These Meinl drum stick wraps are awesome. They don’t add too much bulk to the stick and they offer a natural performance whilst enhancing your grip. 

    This means that you’re less likely to drop your drumsticks, but they won’t feel too different compared to if you didn’t have any tape on them. This gives a bit of reassurance to drummers that aren’t too keen on using tape due to the sticks getting a bit bulkier. 

    The tapered ends at the end of each wrap makes it easy to achieve a professional look and feel. Tape can often look a bit silly on drumsticks, but these wraps really enhance how your sticks look, in my opinion. 

    The Meinl drum stick tape wins first place as the best drum stick wrap on the market! If you’re happy to pay for these, I’d strongly suggest them as the first option to get. 

    Features:

    • 4 Wrap strips and 4 application tapes
    • Comfortable and grippy material
    • Professional look and feel

    Pros

    • Very comfortable drumstick tape option
    • Looks very professional on your sticks
    • Enough tape for two pairs of ticks

    Cons

    • Most expensive option for this list
    Best gigging tape

    Promark White Drum Stick Tape

    A long roll of drumstick tape that you can use for dozens of drumstick pairs over time. It’s great for gigging drummers that go through sticks often, and the value for money is amazing.
    Durability
    4.0
    Comfort
    4.0
    Materials
    4.0
    Value
    5.0

      Promark White Drum Stick Tape Review

      There are a lot of fantastic drum stick tape options on the market. It’s not an expensive drumming accessory, but it’s certainly a beneficial one for many drummers. 

      Nobody wants to drop their drum sticks live, and using a drumstick grip tape is an effective solution for increasing grip whilst performing.

      The Promark Stick Wrap is a generous roll of classic adhesive tape that is comfortable and helps to keep hands from slipping. The smooth material is wrapped around the sticks and enhances grip and visibility.

      This Promark white stick tape is one of the best drum stick tapes on the market because it offers excellent value for money. You get a lot of mileage out of this roll and it works great.

      With other tape options, you only get enough tape for one or two pairs of sticks. This roll of tape gives you enough for dozens of pairs, making it excellent for drummers that break their sticks quite easily. 

      It’s very normal for professional gigging drummers to go through multiple pairs of sticks in one night, so having a roll of tape like this will be very valuable to them. 

      The drum stick tape is comfortable to hold and is much better than using electrical tape or duct tape to wrap your sticks. If you’re using marching sticks then this is definitely the best tape on the market!

      Features:

      • Generous roll of drumstick wrap
      • Smooth and thin material
      • Excellent value for money

      Pros

      • Good option for gigging drummers, as there’s enough tape for dozens of drumstick pairs
      • Incredible value for money
      • Easy to apply to sticks
      • One of the best options for marching drumsticks

      Cons

      • Not as innovative as other tape options
      Best budget tape

      Ahead Grip Tape White

      One of the more comfortable drumstick tape options. The package includes two wraps for a single pair of sticks, and they enhance the grip significantly.
      Durability
      4.5
      Comfort
      5.0
      Materials
      4.0
      Value
      4.5

        Ahead Grip Tape White Review

        Ahead makes some of the best drumming accessories around, I’m personally a big fan of their products. This black drumstick grip tape is really smooth and comfortable to hold – enhancing grip and also protecting your hands.

        The Ahead Drum Stick Grip offers a long-lasting, comfortable grip and the material is thin which means it doesn’t add too much bulk to the drum sticks.

        This is another tape option that works well for drummers that don’t enjoy that added bulk. You’ll feel a slight bit of thickness on the sticks, but it really isn’t all that much. 

        The stick grip is also very easy to wrap around the stick because the tape locks into place when applying. That makes it convenient for when you need to do it quickly at a gig if that situation ever comes up. 

        I found the Ahead drum stick tape to be more comfortable to hold than some of the other products on the market. The finish is smooth and professional and prevents peeling of any kind.

        If you want to improve your grip and confidence whilst holding drum sticks live on stage then the Ahead stick tape is a great choice. Included are two wraps for a single pair of sticks.

        If you’re someone who goes through multiple pairs of sticks quickly, this may not be the best option for you, as you’ll need to buy dozens of these packs. 

        Features:

        • 2 Wraps for a single pair of sticks
        • Smooth and professional feel
        • Thin material adds little bulk

        Pros

        • An affordable single purchase for one pair of drumsticks
        • One of the most comfortable drumstick tape options
        • Stylish appearance

        Cons

        • Only enough tape included for a single pair of drumsticks

        How to Tape Drum Sticks

        Learning how to wrap drum sticks is really simple. Firstly, you need to decide how much stick tape you wish to use on your sticks. The most popular method is to use one layer of tape, with as little overlap as possible when you wrap the sticks. This means you save tape, and don’t add too much bulk to the drum stick.

        You can either start wrapping the tape at the butt or just underneath the bead of the stick. Wrap the tape around the stick, fully covering the entire smooth surface area of the drum stick as you work your way up or down the drum stick.

        Follow the same pattern until you get to a point where you are satisfied with the level of drum stick tape on your stick. If you are using a roll of drum stick tape you can then cut the tape with scissors for the cleanest finish.

        Push the end of the tape firmly down and ensure it’s all sticking together. There you go, you’re ready to play!

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