repair

If a reed doesn’t produce any sound it could be broken. But first it might be stuck with dried salvia or way too much spit in the harp. Do not try to force the reed free by blowing or drawing hard on that one hole (if the reed suddenly releases, this powerful force can break the reed), OR stick something in the hole to free the reed. Play a gentle chord (include the offender in the chord), blow and draw, with a big flow of air. continue reading...

Kinya Pollard (the HarpSmith) has provided a lot of very good instruction on harmonica repair, upgrades, and upkeep on the website. Please make note that for repairing and modifying harmonicas that you have to look at and adjust a lot of reeds to be able to do a professional job. continue reading...

The chromatic harmonica has more moving parts than a diatonic (slide assembly, wind savers, etc.) and is more prone to needing adjustment now and again. If a reed goes bad on a diatonic harmonica we commonly weigh the cost of sending it out for repair, taking the time to learn how to repair them for ourselves or just buying a new one. Chromatic harmonicas are more of an investment and most chromatic players I know do their own repairs (unlike diatonic players... though more are doing it these days). continue reading...

If you play Hohner Harmonicas and need some help, Hohner has a new website with a "Ask a HOHNER Technician" page... pretty cool! http://reedology.com/contact-us/