Achilles Tenderloin
4 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:05 PM
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I've been really hitting the woodshed these past few days and feel like I'm making some solid progress, but I'm slowed down significantly by dryness. I'm fine for about an hour or so at a time, but after that I can't even get all the way through Oh Susanna anymore without having to stop and lick my lips halfway through. Is there an oil or popular trick to keeping the harp lubricated, or is it just a matter of waiting for my lips to grow thicker skin?
Thanks,
~ Joe
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tookatooka
3166 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:03 PM
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I don't have that problem. Mine is the need to swallow at the worst possible time.
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MrVerylongusername
2452 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:43 PM
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As your saliva dries and thickens, the friction on your lips increases and the crud that builds up on the coverplates start to aggrevate your lips even more.
Drink plenty water; add-a drop of lemon if you like. It will help to keep your saliva thin and flowing.
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spackle20
52 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:48 PM
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Isn't that new Hohner harp supposed to help with this ? The Spittle 20 ?
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FMWoodeye
524 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:48 PM
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Saliva is the lube of choice, no oil or cream. Certainly not Chapstick. I find that the plastic combed harps as well as the bamboo laminate of the Crossover give me the "impression" of a lower coefficient of friction than the pearwood of the Marine Band. Keep a bottle of water handy.
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Achilles Tenderloin
5 posts
Jan 04, 2013
12:52 PM
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Thanks :)
I really ought to drink more water than I do anyway, so I'll just work it into my practice routine. In case anyone's curious, here are some suggestions I found searching the archives at harmonica.com and harmonicaclub.com.
ON LIPS:
Aquaphor, Biotene, Blistex, non-stick canola spray
ON COVER PLATE:
Vegetable glycerin
OTHER:
Sucking olives, sipping Throat Coat
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BikerG
14 posts
Jan 04, 2013
1:08 PM
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When I gig with bands I always apply Chapstick or Blistix to my lips before I play, even in humid weather. I keep a stick in my harp case.
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Leatherlips
175 posts
Jan 04, 2013
2:20 PM
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I don't drink soft drinks, but I always have a lemon squash or something similar at a gig. Beer is good but you have to keep drinking too much to keep up the lube.
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KingoBad
1234 posts
Jan 04, 2013
3:35 PM
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Try the harmonica stickers at bluemoonharmonica.com.
I busk and play harp on a rack for hours. Plain harps can get a little rough to play after a while because they keep drying the exposed harp with the wind.
The stickers allow me to keep them slick and easy to move around on, even in dry and windy conditions. They also make your harp look cool. I think you can design your own too...
They are a great inexpensive solution.
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Danny
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nacoran
6355 posts
Jan 04, 2013
3:57 PM
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There is a trick when you warble. The intuitive thing to is slide the harp back and forth across your lips. There are some variations that cause less lip problem. First, treat your harmonica a little like a rocking chair rocker. Instead of sliding it back and forth, rock the ends in and out. You should be able to get the hole on either side of the one you are playing on, more with a deeper embouchure. Second, and this is what I do for warbles, is I loosen up the muscles in my bottom lip. At the same time I push the harp down on the lip harder. The result, if you do it right, is the whole lip moves with the harmonic. For the top lip, I actually let a little air escape out between the cover and my lip, so it slides along like an air-hockey puck. When it's done right you get a zero friction warble.
The harmonica stickers do look cool. I haven't had mine long enough to tell if they prevent build up, but they do slip along the lip nicely and they do look cool. Stay hydrated, and wipe your harps down. If the gunk is hardened, you can scrape it off with something like a toothpick and then wipe off the rest with a piece of cloth. The gunk is a lip killer.
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Nate
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Greg Heumann
1924 posts
Jan 04, 2013
7:27 PM
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The one time I go on stage without a bottle of water is the one time I get severe dry mouth. I consider it a big mistake if I don't have a bottle of water or two near my amp. When I'm staying hydrated I don't have any trouble. When I'm not it can go from bad to worse in short order.
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/Greg
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Kingley
2114 posts
Jan 05, 2013
1:20 AM
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Using chapstick, vaseline or any other kind of lubricant on either the harp or your mouth is not a good idea. Sooner or later it will work it's way onto the reeds and cause you problems with the performance of your harmonicas. Keeping hydrated with water is the way to go. If you're hydrated and still getting dry lip syndrome, then I'd suspect that you need to look at your embouchure.
Last Edited by on Jan 05, 2013 1:21 AM
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jbone
1158 posts
Jan 05, 2013
5:16 AM
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Water and not sliding the harp as much as just moving it to the right spot to get that note. For me the idea of holding the harp firm but gently to my mouth and easing up a bit to move it seems to work well. In other words I don't press the harp into my lips but let it rest there.
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Rubes
635 posts
Jan 05, 2013
5:33 AM
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Beer is not good really as it tends to dehydrate you anyhow, along with all alcohol and coffee and tea..so I'm in the H2O camp.
Also at the risk of igniting the old TB/LP debate...maybe LP uses more saliva and dries mouth quicker....I dunno!? May have to run some tests......
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florida-trader
222 posts
Jan 05, 2013
8:04 AM
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Achilles. If none of the excellent suggestions that you have received work for you, in addition to the Harmonica Skinz, I would also suggest you try the powder coated covers. They are super slick and nothing stick to them.
Please pardon the shameless self promotion.
Kingo and Nate - thanks for the love.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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