What kind of sticks do you use?

Addressing the classic drum clinic question once again. In 2019, under the sway of our friend in Berlin, Michael Griener, after about 10 years of using the Vic Firth SD-11 Slammer (a maple 5B) or the VF SD-4 Combo (the universal standard jazz stick), I began looking into some very light hickory sticks. 

I had been put off of hickory by the brutal sound of the heavier Vic Firth models I used in the 80s. The lighter models get a stronger attack while not moving too much mass— I can get the dynamic sound I want without playing too loud. And the maple sticks, I felt, were producing too much body and not enough attack. 

I tried a number of other things, and was surprised that other sticks with similar specifications don't work very well for me. Vater's 500 Bebop model is almost the same size as the Swing Classic below, and I just couldn't hang with them. 

Here's what I'm using now— these all handle very well. I like to have a little stick and a regular stick in my stick bag:  

Regal Tip 7A Nylon Tip - 15" x .520"
Several years ago I saw that the pianist George Colligan (also a drummer) had some in his stick bag, so I bought a set, and finally started using them. They're an order of magnitude smaller than anything I ever used before. The nylon tips sound disgusting, but they do project.  

Naturally, I can't get them any more, because the Regal company is having some kind of inter-family squabble, which has resulted in them not producing any drum sticks. Apparently someone with a controlling interest in the company would rather let it burn than have another family member be involved in it.  

They also make/de 16" Jazz and Combo models (.475" diameter!) I'd be interested in trying if and when that becomes possible. 

Bopworks Birdland Model - 15 5/16" x .5"
Bopworks is a one-person company reproducing mainly signature models from the past— several models are very good, a couple of them seem more specialized. The Birdlands are by far the smallest sticks I've ever used, similar dimensions to the Regals, but even lighter. Long taper, slender at the playing end. It's easy to blend with unamped acoustic bass and piano with these, and after an adjustment period, they feel and sound like normal sticks. 

Bopworks 40s Swing Classic Model - 16" x .515"
Longer than the Birdlands, slightly beefier, with an acorn bead, long taper. Good balance, good normal stick. When a stick is too weighted towards the bead end— like those Vaters— it feels like I'm playing with boxing gloves on. 

You can get Bopworks sticks here.