Chromatic Repairs
I'm looking for someone that does chromatic repairs, retunes, etc. Preferably in the UK as that's where I live, although I don't mind if it's in the USA.
I have an old 64 chromonica. I think it's from around 1950's (tortoiseshell patterned box and comb)?. It's in fair condition and in tune, but could do with a good service. If anyone knows of anybody and can give me their contact details it would be highly appreciated.
If you don't have any luck over there, you're welcome to give me a shout.
Joe
Hi Joe,
Thanks for the links. I'll check 'em out when I get back from work tonight.
Also thank you for the kind offer. I may well take you up on that.
Hope you're keeping well.
Cheers
Paul
Keep in mind that you can also send it to Hohner. My experience in he U.S. is that they are fast, courteous and fairly priced. I assume they would be the same in Europe (though if you send it to Joe it will come back BETTER than new! :-)
"though if you send it to Joe it will come back BETTER than new! :-)"
Lol! you read my mind David :-)
I think having a great technician like Joe work on my chromonica is the best way to go.
Troy, Sorry for not thanking you earlier. I was half asleep when I read the posts and thought it was Joe who had suggested the link. Please accept my apologies and thank you for the link.
The tortoiseshell box would place you harp earlier than the 1950s ,Anywhere between the 1930s and the end of the 1940s (if the box and the harp match; sometimes they get swapped out over time, and you get old harp in a new box or vice versa). One thing you can check is that pattern of holes inside the mouthpiece. When the slide button is in the default out position, you'll see one of two patterns when you look into the mouthpiece holes:
1. All the top halves of the holes are open. This is the older pattern, called straight tuned, and matches the tortoiseshell box.
2. You'll see a checkerboard pattern. First a top half is open, then in the next hole, t bottom half, then a top, then a bottom. This is called cross tuned and started sometime in the 1950s, and continues to day with Hohner 64s and the CX-12. Cross tuning post-dates the tortoiseshell box as far as I know.
In the UK, Anthony Dannecker is perhaps the most established harp tech (and his father before him). I can't comment on the quality of his work.
In the US, the main independent techs who specialize in chromatics are Mike "Fathead" Easton (east coast) and Steve Malerbi (west coast). Dick Gardner in Minnesota is a legendary harp tech (he does Toots Thielemans' harps) but his backlog of work is pretty long.
Thanks for the information Winslow.
The 64 Chromonica I have is 1930's to 1940's. It's straight tuned and both the harp and box match up perfectly. So it would be nice to get it back to it's former glory (or better) again.
Tony Dannecker no longer offers a chromatic repair service, just diatonics
And neither does Brendan Power. By the way, I didn't realize when I wrote what I did that "harpwrench" is actually Joe Spiers, one of the best harmonica techs in the US and perhaps in the world.
Thanks Winslow! I'm becoming more interested in chromatics, and in the future will be making more time for it. I have a bunch of near-mint straight-tuned '64's like Kingley's that I'll be more interested in building when my buddy Chris Reynolds gets his CNC code done for making replacement combs from quality materials.
Hi kingley,
Have a look here, see if this helps.
Harmonica Repair and Customisation Services
http://harmonica.co.uk/links1.htm#c