Told Tom I would post these. I was planning on putting on an 1896 and doing a center post mod., but i decided to see how it would boost this A Crossover.
BEFORE
---------- "Trust Those Who Seek The Truth... Doubt Those Who Say They Have Found It."
Tried to make it look a little cooler than just a harp Chillin on my table.
But the thing plays like a dream now. Tuned it back to stock Crossover tuning. Beat Free Octaves. Sanded the Draw plate. Straightened the Blow plate. Arched and Gapped. Tight as a Drum now. Sounds Great.
Thanks Tom.
P.S. Photos Still don't do it justice. Great looking comb. Photos dont show all the detail in it. ---------- "Trust Those Who Seek The Truth... Doubt Those Who Say They Have Found It."
Just a lil' HaHa HooHoo on the 3/4 - 4/5! @MTGap
Last Edited by Killa_Hertz on Jan 12, 2016 8:54 PM
@Killa HertzThat looks really cool. I am awaiting 4 different combs to put into Crossovers and I wonder if there were any tips you can provide in getting it tight as drum? I know the blow plate sanding and draw plate straightening are most of the battle, but I'd appreciate any tips from your experience. Thanks.
Lol .... its not about anyone else butme MN ... my playing in general ,for that matter, i keep to myself. I'm no Rockstar. I'll leave that to yall.
Owens sure. I would say that if you've never flat sanded before try it on an old harp just to get the feel for it. That really goes for anything permanent you do to your harps. Watch Andrew Zajac and R.Sleighs videos on the subject.(hotrod your harmonica)
I will say ... after watching andrews videos i attempted my first flat sanding and I was going too light on them. Now don't take that as you have to go hard. You still want a nice even pressure. But what i mean is i was really babying them. Try starting out with fairly rough paper. (I use 250 to start) and not only that but i was using a small sheet. Small sheet of sandpaper= no good. You want a full size sheet so you can really get a nice figure 8 going. Also agood flat surface. I've made a thick plexiglass sanding table. Make sure to flip it to even out the pressure. DONT push the reeds thru the slots. Lol. Also i put it flat on asurface and push the edges to see if it raises. Shine light under to see if it's flat. Straight it the best you can before staring. Then go by the high spots to see if you need adjusting. Once you have it very close just sand it flat.
I then straighten my blow plate. And put it all back together. Make sure not to overtighten any screws.
Also since you have it apart. Might as well tune it.
Also proper gapping and arching will cut out alot of leakage and make it easier to play. I don't emboss. I tried it, but it's s lil tricky to fully emboss. And I think the combs and flat sanding make it plenty tight for me.
Hope that helps.
Edit: i forgot to. Mention. After 250 i stepup upto 400 and then sometimes 600 or 800, but you should be fine with 250 then 400. ---------- "Trust Those Who Seek The Truth... Doubt Those Who Say They Have Found It."
Just a lil' HaHa HooHoo on the 3/4 - 4/5! @MTGap
Last Edited by Killa_Hertz on Jan 13, 2016 5:20 AM
@ Killa Hertz.Thnkyou and I hear ya loud & clear about a practise run. I purchased a Zajac comb in the summer & went through all that you describe. I even purchased a full tool kit and the F- tool (his blow plate straightening tool which works like crazy). I believe I have screwed up enough and I feel proficient in the process. I understand gapping but I have not read anything on arching the reeds? Help @Piro39 thanks for the reminder.
Not bad but with just a little more effort they could be more effective. Check this out https://www.shopify.com/blog/12206313-the-ultimate-diy-guide-to-beautiful-product-photography ----------
I actually bought one of those john lennon MS harps went they were on sale at guitar center for like $20 ... it's got a clear acrylic comb. I could Totally make that. I got tons of different lights too from various projects.
Owen sorry i forgot to mention what side to Sand , but i hoped your would have known that. As far as reed shaping goes. I'm just getting a handle on it myself. I feel the best place to start would be to learn gapping. Which is pretty cut and dry. But arching goes hand and hand with it. So once you work the bugs out of gapping, i couldn't recommend enough R Sleighs Hot Rod Your Harmonica Videos. They are kinda short and to the point, but it's a great place to start.
Basically you need to get the reed to go thru the slot evenly, which is much harder than it sounds. But those videos will explain everything you need to get started, in detail. After that you just have to learn from doing it i think. ---------- "Trust Those Who Seek The Truth... Doubt Those Who Say They Have Found It."
Great explanation Killa Hertz! I have been doing this a s a result of following information from Andrew Zajac's videos. I now understand that arching is the same as shaping the reed so it passes through the slot equally from top to bottom. I let you know how I make out with the new combs next week. Cheers, Owen
As Bee said they were messing with his Browser. Can i just edit them somehow before i put them on photo bucket?
Owen ... while arching is what i WAS doing. I'm now trying to make this happen with as straight a reed as possible. It seems to work better. My archs were very heavy at first, but once u get a better handle on it, i think they become straighter with better function. Just something to put in your brain. ---------- ......." Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?" .......
Nothing to with this thread... On another thread I made a response that was not in keeping with the OPs intention. You commented that reading comprehension was not a strong point, I thought it was funny and I read and responded to this after seeing that, so ran with it. That is a pretty harp! I think one of Blue Moon's combs on a chromatic would look pretty sharp. Lots of space on the sides and back for the pattern.
I don't pay chromatic. I did buy one used and cleaned it up, just to get the experience of actually playing one. It's a Larry Adler Pro12.
But i would love to see a big chromatic comb by Blue Moon. As you said it would have much more space for design. ---------- ......." Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?" .......
