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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Acrylic or Corian?
Acrylic or Corian?
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AppalachiaBlues
182 posts
Jun 15, 2018
9:56 AM
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Custom combs in acrylic or "solid surface" (like DuPont Corian)... which do you prefer, and why? Pros/cons of each?
It would be interesting to hear from people who have used both.
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SuperBee
5434 posts
Jun 15, 2018
5:51 PM
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I have some corian. I have no acrylic
There are potential drawbacks with corian such as easy breakage, but I have not personally had th at problem
I haven’t noticed any tendency for it to deteriorate in presence of saliva or water
Polished surface has stayed polished
I think the 2 I use most have been with me 4 years.
I do notice the difference when I put them in mouth. They feel ‘different’ to wood and abs. Different to the composite resin combs I use a lot. Corian feels cold, in a similar way to metal but not as horrible as metal. And it’s just an initial impression, as soon as I start playing I forget about it.
I’m full time tongue blocking too so I’m feeling the comb all the time when playing. The tongue is very sensitive of course, and to me corian feels very ‘hard’ if that makes sense. But practically so what?
Some folk have told me they think the tone is brighter than with a wood comb but I really don’t know about that. I think I’ve got so many other ‘cold, hard, brittle’ sensory perceptions going on that it’s too easy to bundle the tone up with those as the player.
I do like the harps with corian combs but they are a great pair of harps regardless of the comb type. I briefly tried one of the combs in another harp and put a Zajac comb in the one I took the Corian from.
That didn’t last long before I swapped them back. Not much difference worth noting but the corian was marked with the key so I put things back how they were
For me the only reasons to have corian combs is because they don’t require any sealant or gloss coat to stay smooth, and they can be made very flat. I don’t know if acrylic is the same in that way. I thought I’d read grumbles about the flatness with acrylic but that was long ago and may have been about process rather than intrinsic quality of material
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Todd Parrott
1449 posts
Jun 15, 2018
6:08 PM
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Corian is great, just don't drop it! I like acrylic for the color options, and it seems less fragile than Corian.
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hvyj
3588 posts
Jun 17, 2018
1:02 AM
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Never tried an acrylic comb, but I did have a set of harps with corian combs. I found them to be bright, making the higher key harps sound shrill. FWIW
Last Edited by hvyj on Jun 17, 2018 1:03 AM
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nacoran
9870 posts
Jun 17, 2018
11:36 AM
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As a clutz I've stayed away from Corian. I kind of prefer warm (physically) combs too (although metal combs don't bother me enough that I wouldn't use them, they just tend to be more expensive and I might get used to them if I had more of them...)
I don't know if I've seen any recessed Corian combs... is that a thing? I tend to slightly prefer recessed combs, at least for OTB harps, since until you get up to the more expensive models harp companies don't seem to spend much time smoothing the front edge of the reed plate.
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Nate
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Kingley
4092 posts
Jun 17, 2018
12:50 PM
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Have a few harps with corian combs on. They feel nice on the mouth, make the harp a little heavier and sound a little brighter to my ear. Tried a couple of acrylic combs once. They were ok, but didn't really care for them much. I thought corian was far nicer. My personal preference though for comb material is wood. To my ear it just sounds warmer, a little softer/less harsh and has a slightly more organic quality to its sound.
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Todd Parrott
1450 posts
Jun 17, 2018
3:38 PM
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Nate, are you forgetting Tom's recessed combs? I have some of his Special 20s and they're super comfortable. The Corian feels like a nicer material, but I've broken a few of them. I prefer acrylic, and the swirly colors are really nice too. I honestly don't notice a difference in sound between Corian and acrylic. Not saying there isn't a difference - just saying I don't notice it. I have an F Special 20 on one of Tom's combs and it sounds better than anything for recording. I think this is due more to the overall design - recessed comb and covers - than the comb or comb material, but it sure does look pretty!
Last Edited by Todd Parrott on Jun 18, 2018 10:29 AM
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florida-trader
1320 posts
Jun 18, 2018
4:46 AM
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I don’t know of anyone else who is making both Corian and Acrylic combs, so I guess I am as qualified to offer some thoughts as anyone. I also make combs out of Wood, Aluminum, Brass and Phenolic Resins.
As far as the sound or tone goes – there are many who believe that the comb material makes zero difference what-so-ever, so if you fall into that camp, then the other considerations such as aesthetics, durability or comfort would be deciding factors. More about that in a second.
Although I think I have a pretty good ear, it should come as no surprise that many people who play and sing music for a living can hear things that I cannot. Corian has received consistently high marks in the tone department. In fact, among many of the professional harp players I cater to, it is their favorite material. Yes, it is brittle and can break and that has led me to consider eliminating Corian as a material to work with, but the demand for Corian combs is consistently high. FWIW, if you buy a Corian comb from me and it breaks, I will replace it for free. This has been my policy forever. I don’t care whose fault it is. I just figure that nobody wins if you spend $35 - $50 on a custom comb and it breaks. It would leave a bad taste in your mouth. Can’t have that. Bad business. I’m too obsessed with Customer Service to let that happen. So, if you do business with me, even though there is a chance of breakage, it is essentially a non-issue. I will continue to use Corian for the foreseeable future.
Acrylic is more elastic and is not brittle. It will not break unless you really abuse it. Both Corian and Acrylic are easy materials to work with. They machine well and are easy to sand, shape and polish. Polishing makes them very attractive and glossy and also makes the combs very comfortable on your hands, lips and tongue. There is also an element of design too when it comes to comfort. It helps if you incorporate rounded edges into the custom combs.
About sharp edges on reed plates. There is little doubt that I am more inclined to disassemble and modify a harp than most, but if one of your harps has sharp edges and it bothers you, just smooth them off with a piece of fine grit sandpaper. Problem solved.
I have many harmonicas with Anodized Aluminum and Brass Combs and I have never once felt that the metal was cold – or at least no colder than the metal reed plates and the metal covers that are present on most harps. And FWIW, my Anodized Aluminum Combs are the same price as my Corian or Acrylic Combs. Brass is more expensive.
Back to tone for a second. Not to renew the endless debate about comb material, but among those who believe that there is a difference, the general consensus is that metal combs, particularly Brass, make the harps louder and brighter. My opinion is that Corian and Acrylic are brighter than wood but about the same as the ABS Plastic used in Injection Molded combs.
Regardless of the material, if the installation of a custom comb results in an improved harp, it is likely due to the custom comb being flatter than the stock comb, which makes the harp more airtight. I do believe that a comb that is CNC Milled from a solid block of material, versus an injection molded comb (like a Special 20) with all the cavities, does have a positive effect as well. It is more airtight – more solid. I think it matters.
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Tom Halchak
Blue Moon Harmonicas
Last Edited by florida-trader on Jun 18, 2018 5:17 AM
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Joe_L
2847 posts
Jun 19, 2018
1:38 PM
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I have three or four of the acrylic combs. They are sandwiched between Big River plates. I bought them mostly because I wanted to see if using the extra screw made a big difference. It did. I ended up gapping them and they made for very playable instruments, which I still use on a regular basis.
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nacoran
9871 posts
Jun 19, 2018
3:38 PM
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Todd, I knew he had Corian and I knew he had recessed combs (they are top notch) but I didn't know he had Corian recessed combs!
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Nate
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florida-trader
1324 posts
Jun 19, 2018
5:25 PM
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Nate - how could you miss them? I post pictures as big as billboards all the time! :)
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Tom Halchak
Blue Moon Harmonicas
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