TheATL
63 posts
Oct 24, 2013
11:53 AM
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Just curious - when playing on a dark stage, how do you find the harp you want? Inquiring minds want to know.
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jpmcbride
16 posts
Oct 24, 2013
12:39 PM
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White sticker with the key on each harp.
Always keep a small flashlight in the harp case.
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Jim McBride
www.bottleoblues.com
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Buzadero
1156 posts
Oct 24, 2013
2:27 PM
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Glow-in-the-dark paint.
I've got letter stamps for imprinting metal. Heat them up with a torch and "brand" the little buggers like cattle. Take a toothpick and apply sight paint from the local firearms supply store to the trough of the letters. Having it recessed in a trough means that it won't rub away from handling.
It's a bit fiddly and time consuming, but it's very cool when you glance over at your harp case and want a second key or a backup and don't have your second hand available to operate a flashlight.
Just make sure you "charge" them when you first open the case for the night, by keeping them under a light for a few minutes.
I must caveat this by saying that a couple of years ago I finally ran out of some awesome tritium based paint that I'd had for a long time. Part of that was kicking down a few precious drops to that grubby and demanding Buddha bastard. Thanks to the meddlesome do-gooder Gummint of these "United" States, the sight paint nowadays doesn't hold a charge nearly as long. But it still works.
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~Buzadero
Underwater Janitor, Patriot
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nacoran
7251 posts
Oct 24, 2013
2:27 PM
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Ah, now you finally understand why some of us have all sorts of different color combs!
Actually, I try to keep them in order in my case, and failing that, I wear pants with lots of pockets and try to keep them in some sort of order, but usually I'm doing short open mic sets of 3 songs, not full length shows, so there are fewer harps to keep in order. I haven't tried them, but Turboharp has light up key markers (the other things I've tried from Turboharp are great. They only fit a few combs, like the Sp20s, but their Turbolids are really really comfortable to hold and play, and they sound great. They come in a lot of colors so you could color code your harps that way.)
A penlight is another easy solution. I think I've seen some custom cases with lights built in.
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Nate
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garry
454 posts
Oct 24, 2013
7:35 PM
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i keep my basic 7 on one side of a seidel zippered harp case, backups and less used keys on other side. i keep them in circle of 5ths order (why doesn't everyone do this?), and can identify them by their position on the case. as long as i can see well enough to know there are harps there, i can find the one i want trivially.
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Rick Davis
2589 posts
Oct 24, 2013
8:10 PM
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You can kind of see the red Mini-Maglite under the coiled cable...
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-Little Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
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Thievin' Heathen
266 posts
Oct 24, 2013
8:52 PM
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Rick, I use those very same Walmart stickers. Now I can say, "it's so I can find my harps in the dark". It has nothing at all to do with old eyes.
Thanks
Last Edited by Thievin' Heathen on Oct 24, 2013 8:53 PM
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dougharps
462 posts
Oct 24, 2013
10:27 PM
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My harps are in a 12 hole Seydel belt bag, with two more harps stuck in the gaps. They are by circle of 5ths except for the High G and Low F (which look different from the others). I always put them back in place and know where they are in the order. I have used Circle of 5ths layout for years, and that is how I learned the circle.
B__F#_Db_Ab
Eb_Bb_F__C
HiG______LoF
G__D__A__E
The F# is low tuned, though I have high F# harps, too.
Edit: The Seydel bag is usually in another larger padded pistol bag that has a toolkit and also 8 chromatics by circle of 5ths.
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Doug S.
Last Edited by dougharps on Oct 24, 2013 10:34 PM
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TheATL
65 posts
Oct 25, 2013
2:36 PM
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Thanks guys - great suggestions!
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Frank
3094 posts
Oct 25, 2013
3:32 PM
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If worst comes to worst, just hold the harp real close to your eye, like your trying to read the date on a penny - that works in a pinch :)
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TheATL
67 posts
Oct 25, 2013
3:33 PM
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@Frank
Maybe 20 years ago ;-)
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