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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! > Remember the original Old Standby
Remember the original Old Standby
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Slimharp
89 posts
Jan 10, 2014
10:58 AM
Anybody remember the Old Standby by Hohner from the mid 70's. It seems to me they came out about the same time as the GM. I kept going through GM's ( back then we didnt have all this available info on repair ) and then the Old Standby came out. What a great harp. It came in all keys, was as responsive as the GM, had a black plastic comb and cost $12.00. I played them for about 4 years then the Sp 20"s got popular and the Old Standby went away. I wonder if the Old Standby was the prototype of the SP 20 ? The new released Old Stanby is an el cheapo from China, not the same harp.
MP
3041 posts
Jan 10, 2014
11:29 AM
The Old Standby came out a long time ago. I have one from at least the 1930s. Really old Old Standbys will have Embossed (raised) lettering and portrait of M. Hohner. I put MB covers on one and it is my G gig harp.
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Have reeds in stock and now accepting orders for the following Hohner Hand Made Series Harps Bb-C-D-Eb-E-F-G

Click user name MP for contact info
florida-trader
421 posts
Jan 10, 2014
11:29 AM
Slim. The Old Standby dates back way before the 1970's. I have quite a few pre-war Old Standbys. They have the same reed plates as the Marine Band 1896. I also have one New old Stock Old Standby from the Hicksville era (70's) with a wood comb. (It is a C and can be had at a reasonable price.) I'm not sure when they switched to the plastic comb but I'm thinking that somewhere along the line the reed plates were still made in Germany - even with the plastic comb - but now it is an entirely Made in China product.

I read that Charley McCoy used to play Old Standbys because he could tell if it was right side up on a dark stage by felling for Mathias Hohner's head stamped on the cover.

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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
clyde
333 posts
Jan 10, 2014
11:36 AM
The reeds are still made in Germany
Slimharp
91 posts
Jan 10, 2014
12:12 PM
I may be mistaken but I could swear the Old Standby switched to a plastic comb sometime in the mid to late 70's about the same time the SP 20's came out. It was made in Germany. They were around for about 3 years then disappeared and only The GM's and Sp 20 were plastic.
Rick Davis
2844 posts
Jan 10, 2014
1:02 PM
I bought an Old Standby harp in the 70s or 80s... Didn't really like it.

I once found an old rusted out Old Standby in an abandoned mine in the Big Horn mountains of Wyoming. I'm pretty sure it predated the 1970s.



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-Little Rick Davis
The Memphis Mini harp amp
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society

Last Edited by Rick Davis on Jan 10, 2014 1:07 PM
Slimharp
92 posts
Jan 10, 2014
1:07 PM
I called a friend at Hohner. In the early 70's the first plastic comb harp was The GM, followed a year later by the SP 20. In 1980 The Old Standby came out with a plastic comb and was later discontinued. I would guess they got rid of the plastic combed Old Standby because of competition with the SP 20 which from my memory was very close to the same harp but about $ 10.00 cheaper. If my memory serves me the Old Standby was about $13.00 and the SP 20 was around $ 20 - $22.00
Sherwin
111 posts
Jan 10, 2014
1:34 PM
Sadly the Old Standby is still around, in the new oversized box packaging, and in many keys.
It's a crappy harp, on par with the Blues Band harmonica; both of which are made in China.
I don't see why we need one more lacklustre harmonica. The packaging suggests that it is good for country music.

Michael
Slimharp
93 posts
Jan 10, 2014
4:22 PM
They were decent harps a long time ago. Like you said Sherwin they are more crap now. Marketing.
Sarge
377 posts
Jan 10, 2014
5:37 PM
My Dad is 92, he started playing a harp when he was around 8 or 9. He had an old standby when he was a kid. I started when I was 10(65 now) with an old standby that my Dad gave me. It was my favorite harp for many years. A friend sent me 3 pre war old standby's; great harps.
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Wisdom does not always come with old age. Sometimes old age arrives alone.
groyster1
2504 posts
Jan 10, 2014
6:14 PM
I have 2 pre war old sb,one I bought from tom the other an ebay auction....great harps but prefer the open covers mb1896 has
MP
3044 posts
Jan 11, 2014
12:34 PM
At one time the Old Standby, The Marine Band 1896, and the Blues Harp all shared the same comb and reed plates. The only difference was the cover plates.
They were all the same harp.

Hohner reed plates would have three holes on each side of the reed plates to accommodate all three types of cover plates. Since the Old Standby covers had one nail per tab, the reed plates had an extra hole for them.
----------
Have reeds in stock and now accepting orders for the following Hohner Hand Made Series Harps Bb-C-D-Eb-E-F-G

Click user name MP for contact info
MP
3045 posts
Jan 11, 2014
12:34 PM
At one time the Old Standby, The Marine Band 1896, and the Blues Harp all shared the same comb and reed plates. The only difference was the cover plates.
They were all the same harp.

Hohner reed plates would have three holes on each side of the reed plates to accommodate all three types of cover plates. Since the Old Standby covers had one nail per tab, the reed plates had an extra hole for them.
----------
Have reeds in stock and now accepting orders for the following Hohner Hand Made Series Harps Bb-C-D-Eb-E-F-G

Click user name MP for contact info


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