Welcome to Cymbal Craftsman®
by Paul Francis

The Finest Individually Crafted, Hand-Made Cymbals
Available Anywhere in the World Today.

With over 37 years of experience in designing and making cymbals at the world’s largest cymbal company, I have now gone solo and created my own line of cymbals.

My vision in creating Cymbal Craftsman® cymbals was for the reintroduction of the original individual cymbal crafting techniques which have long been abandoned by several of the major cymbal companies owing to the demands of high-volume mass cymbal production.

Why do cymbals today sound and feel so different from those made in the 50s and 60s, and even early 70s? It’s simple…mass production! Is it more painstaking, more expensive, and takes longer for me to individually make cymbals using these older techniques? Yes! Can you hear and feel the difference? Absolutely!

All Cymbal Craftsman® cymbals are hand-crafted in small batches at my shop in Hanover, Massachusetts.

Cymbal Craftsman® cymbals include the following series

Craftsman Dark Vintage

These cymbals are the more jazzier
sounds you would associate with
hand hammered cymbals.

Craftsman Dark Modern

These are hand hammered with a more
contemporary dark sound that are complex,
modern dark sound that include the
Dual finish, Stellar and Dry models.

Craftsman EAK

These are hammered and lathed
similarly to the early style American
dark style cymbal from the early 1980’s.

Craftsman Bright Modern

The bright models harken back to the
cymbal sounds of the 1960’s thru today.
These are the classic rock and
roll cymbal sound.

Craftsman Bright Vintage

This is a series that will be coming soon.
These cymbals will be hammered and
lathed similarly to the cymbals made in
the 1940’s/1950’s and are associated
with early jazz, R&B and the birth of Rock
n Roll music reminiscent of the Motown,
Sun Studios and Stax cymbal sounds.

Finishes

All Cymbal craftsman cymbals are
available in Traditional, Brilliant or Patina
finishes at no extra charge. (Split the finish)

Rivets

Rivet installation is also available
at no extra charge.

Here’s a little more About Me

I’ve been playing drums for 47 years and I’ve been making cymbals for 37 years. I started learning cymbal making in 1988 and worked for the oldest and largest cymbal maker in North America for 32 years.

25 of the 32 years working for that company, I headed up the R&D department where I designed new cymbal series and models and worked with the worlds leading drum artists. Please check out the “Artists I’ve Worked With” page to get an idea of the cymbals I designed with them and what I learned from working with such a diverse group of drummers.

In 2022 I started my own cymbal company Cymbal Craftsman® Cymbals and began my independent cymbal making journey in my home garage.

Why should you buy a Cymbal Craftsman® cymbal?

You will be purchasing an individually hand-crafted musical instrument utilizing traditional cymbal making methods along with my decades of cymbal making experience and attention to detail. You can now get a level of craftsmanship and service that, in the past, was only reserved for the most famous drummers in the world.

All models are hand hammered and hand lathed by me.

Welcome to Cymbal Craftsman® by Paul Francis

The Finest Individually Crafted, Hand-Made Cymbals Available Anywhere in the World Today.