Gnarly
911 posts
Feb 20, 2014
9:11 AM
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OK, I'll go first--
Gapping, the space between the reed and the reed plate--low enough to be airtight, high enough not to choke when you hit it hard. The gaps should look uniform, and be about the width of the thickness of the reed.
Next?
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Kingley
3473 posts
Feb 20, 2014
9:33 AM
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I'm a straight ahead blues player and I mainly play out of the box Marine Bands. What I do is I pry off the covers with a Swiss Army knife, then I gap the reeds if they need it to suit my playing style. Pretty much along the lines that Gnarly does. Sometimes if a reed still doesn't respond how I want it too, then I'll look at the reed arc and alter it if need be. I'll also do some very light embossing if need be. Mostly though I find that simple gapping sorts out most problems.
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arzajac
1289 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:02 AM
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It depends on what I want.
I like tight control but I don't like tight harps.
I'll usually make the harp as airtight as I can (flat comb, flat draw reed plate) and do some reed work to make most of the reed swing through the slot at the same time. Usually light embossing, full slot.
Then I gap and tune. I want to hit each straight note with medium pressure which means I set the gap to respond to light pressure, but not choke on hard pressure. I set the balance between the blow and draw so that the bend plays effortlessly without compromising the gapping I just set. I also want the overbends to be there. I like keeping my harps at medium breath force which means I set them up to bend the overbends by only one or two semitones.
Then I tune them. I like a compromise tuning. On some harps, I won't compromise more than 8 cents while others will be regular Hohner tuning (14 cents). I have a couple tuned to JI (up to 29 cents).
On a harp I want to play bendable overbends, I'll remove all the blow reeds and flatsand the blow plate. I'll do aggressive embossing and meticulous reed work. They will also be gapped tighter.
I don't do much polishing of the reeds.
I open up the backs of the cover plates if they are not already open.
That being said, I only have four harps that are in giggable condition at the moment. I don't usually play harp on songs I don't sing so I only carry around a few keys. I keep telling myself I'll make myself a full set one day....
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Custom overblow harps. Harmonica service and repair.
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Slimharp
206 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:06 AM
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I play mostly Sp 20's straight ahead Blues. I check gap on reeds and adjust if necessary ( some of the time no gapping is needed, they seem to be getting better lately ). If I really want to go into detail I copy the reed profile from one of my Spiers customs. I open up the covers. I seal the comb with a very light coating of Carmex put on with a Q-tip. This really makes a difference in air tightness. I add - VERY LIGHT coating, not gubbered up. I add the 2 missing screws that are not in the reed plate when they come stock from Hohner. All of this takes about 30 to 45 minutes. Ive got a really nice playin harp after that.
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Gnarly
912 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:11 AM
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Boy, it's been a while since I bought a new harmonica!
Thanks all, so embossing is part of most people's improvements well. Having the right tool helps--I have one of the UST devices that comes in handy.
What about flat sanding the draw plate? Is that routine?
Last Edited by Gnarly on Feb 20, 2014 10:12 AM
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isaacullah
2640 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:13 AM
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Definitely gapping first. If it's a screwed together harp, I take it apart, and then reassemble using the torquing procedure laid out here:
If the harp is still leaky, I will sand the draw reedplate. If it's a wooden combed harp, I will also sand the comb. If there is still some leaking after that, I will focus on the problem reed. I will put some work into setting its curvature, and may lightly emboss. This "problem" reed is usually the 2 and/or 3 draw.
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YouTube! Soundcloud!
Last Edited by isaacullah on Feb 20, 2014 10:19 AM
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KC69
364 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:17 AM
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Play Em :)
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And I Thank You !!
KCz
Backwoodz
Bluz
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Gnarly
913 posts
Feb 20, 2014
10:16 AM
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Disassembling and reassembling the harp IS one of the things Winslow mentions as routinely improving the response of an OOTB harmonica--so it goes at the top of the list, before gapping.
So this is in order of priorities, or at least expedience. There's only so much time and you can spend a lot of it on one harmonica!
Last Edited by Gnarly on Feb 20, 2014 10:21 AM
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TheoBurke
588 posts
Feb 20, 2014
12:15 PM
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I play Special 20s, Lee Oskars and Suzuki Pro and Harpmaster, and I have nothing done to them. I just play the @#!@! out if them until they give up the ghost. I usually make a harp last about a year before replacement is needed. Some , though, just keep on going. My Hohner Xover was purchased two years ago and it remains a fine instrument in spite of the abuse I subject it to,
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Ted Burke
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheoBurke?feature=mhee
http://ted-burke.com
tburke4@san.rr.coM
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dougharps
564 posts
Feb 20, 2014
12:38 PM
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I take it out of the box and try playing all the notes, plus trying 6, then 5, then 4 overblows. 6 is the primary overblow I use, then occasionally 5. 4 is something I am working on my technique to get a decent note. No overdraws so far.
If nothing seems leaky and no reeds seem to hesitate (I do play moderately hard), and those three overblows pop, then I do nothing. If any of these issues are present, I take off the covers and adjust gaps as needed until the problems are gone.
If I notice any pitch issues, I do some light, as needed, retuning. So far I have not found it necessary to undertake the full retuning of a harp.
Edit: If it still seems airy, I may loosen and re-tighten the reed plates.
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Doug S.
Last Edited by dougharps on Feb 20, 2014 12:39 PM
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SuperBee
1690 posts
Feb 20, 2014
12:47 PM
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I've started doing the dis/ass thing. Or maybe I just do that when I'm taking the harp apart anyway. Can't say I've noticed any difference.
Usually I have to adjust a few gaps, but last time I bought a bunch of harps I planned to gig with it took a while to work out which gaps. Which is to say, the adjustments required weren't large, not immediately obvious, became clear only after comparison with other harps. If I have 2 similar and I prefer 1 to the other I'll adjust the less preferred one until I no longer have a preference in playability. But that can be subtle and ongoing.
I've never sanded a reed plate or embossed a slot on a new harp. Changed a comb, yes. It's all just an ongoing relationship really. If I can play it, I play it. If I think it could be better I try to improve it. If it breaks, I try to fix it.
Oh , and tuning. Sometimes it's a bit too out there but I'm still learning about that, very slowly and hesitantly. However, last new harp I bought was with the intention of countrifying the 5 draw, so I retuned it. that harp also required a reed alignment in 6 blow.
I bought a big river lo D at the same time which I put on a bamboo comb, but honestly I can't say it plays any better or different (I always held low opinion of big river, but this one seems fine). These low tunings though, I find so different I don't yet have an expectation of how the harp should be. There's a fair bit of adjustment to be made in my playing.
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nacoran
7545 posts
Feb 20, 2014
12:50 PM
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I gap them and adjust the covers a bit. If I have money I make them look pretty.
Life has got in the way so far this year of getting my magnetic lids on, but it's on my short list now that the clouds are parting a bit.
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Nate
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2chops
219 posts
Feb 20, 2014
1:59 PM
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Play lightly first. I play SP20s mostly, and they have been good lately. Though I did have a C & a G that needed a reed centered. Easily done. After any minor reed adjustments, I open the backs of keys D and lower. Gap if need be.
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I'm workin on it. I'm workin on it.
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Gnarly
914 posts
Feb 20, 2014
2:01 PM
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Yes, I am thinking "if need be" should be my default.
Last Edited by Gnarly on Feb 20, 2014 2:02 PM
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Kaining
27 posts
Feb 20, 2014
2:42 PM
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Play them to check
if they are correctly tuned.
if the reed respond like i want them to
if the overblow/draw are usable
Then i check if the reed are corectly centererd, gap, wax the squicky overdraw and tune what must be tuned.
After that, i recheck the gaping, tuning and if the overdraw are buzzing.
If some overdraw are still buzzing, i stroke very softly a razor blade along the suspicious edge of the buzzing reed to recenter it.
Reassemble and retry that overdraw. if still buzz, i repeat the process until it doesn't.
Gapping, waxing and centering reeds are what's trully needed to overdraw in my experience.
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TheoBurke
589 posts
Feb 20, 2014
3:22 PM
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Last Edited by TheoBurke on Feb 20, 2014 9:59 PM
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