Sticky and Flat 5 Draw
I've got an A harp with a 5 draw that sticks, and when it does play it's flat by about a quarter tone (my tuner app reads about 577 hz, closer to D than Db, but noticebly flat nonethelss). Any suggestions on how to correct this? I've got the basic Hohner tool kit. The harp is a Crossover, so I'd love to get it fully fuctional.
Yes, I watched the lessons a while ago. I was hoping to address this specific question here, but I suppose I could watch them again.
I rewatched the lesson on raising the pitch on a flat reed by removing metal from the free end of the reed, so I'll try that, but I'm still not sure how to remedy the stickiness. Sometimes I can massage it to play with my breath, but sometimes it won't budge at all, so the inconsistency of that reed makes the harp unplayable currently.
Hi PM42, sorry to hear about your sick harmonica ;o(
Draw reed #5 is probably the top replacement reed service I do. It is so tempting-after all-to try to dig in and coax a lower note in hole 5. The problem is that the Blow reed is only a natural half step (E) away from the Draw reed (F). Simply put, you cannot go any lower without damaging the draw reed.
I'm willing to bet that if you disassemble your harmonica, exposing Draw reed #5, you will be able to plink that reed about a dozen times, then it will unceremoniously snap off near the base of the reed. If it does not, then you will be able to tune it back to D.
Try plinking the reed and let me know what happens. Please review:
https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_study_5_reed_replacement
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
Thanks, Kinya.
I plinked the reed a few dozen times, and it's hanging in there. It feels strong and I don't see any noticeable damage (albeit just giving it a close look with my naked eye).
There is very little gap between the reed and the plate: it is basically flush with the plate. I had to get in the hole with the curved tool and push the reed up just in order to be able to get the plinking tool underneath and plink it. I see that you have a lesson series on gapping: do you think that if I followed those steps I might be able to get the thing to want to play?
What your describe correlates with this theory: some moisture gets stuck in the very small gap between the reed and hole, and the reed either starts vibrating at a slower frequency because of the stickiness (that's when it sounds flat), doesn't vibrate at all, or it takes a lot of pressure to start the vibration. Gapping it always resolved these issues for me. Mind you, if you gap it too much it'll be too leaky, but there needs to be some gap (even if you can't see it), otherwise there's no vibration at all.
I've gapped my harmonicas a lot, with essentially no more tools than a piece of thermal paper (an old receipt) and maybe some toothpick. Adam Gussow has a video on YouTube I copied the idea from, and it's fairly simple and safe. Breaking the reed takes a lot of carelessness. Just do it gently, a little bit at a time, and try until you feel the reed is responsive enough for you, then leave it there.
Anecdotal evidence: I had an issue when playing 1 blow, the note was always "slow", I was never able to play it in time. I tongue switch on the 1st hole so I thought for a years this was a technique problem, even spent a long time trying to prefect it to no avail. At some point I realized this happened only on my A harp so I thought it was because of the longer reed. Only recently it occurred to me that maybe the gap was too small. Opened the harp. Verified the gap was indeed almost not existent. Gapped the reed. Magic, now my 1 blow is as responsive as any other note. The narrow gap was making the reed start late, I assume because it was so little that it took a while for pressure to build up until the airflow was sufficient to make it vibrate. Talk about unresponsiveness. And the solution was as simple as that. So whenever there's an issue with stickiness, first thing is to mind the gap ;-)
Thank you for your contributions MMarquez!
Similar to a guitar player setting the height of the string to the neck, for us harmonica players, setting the gaps on both the free end and fixed end of the reed (called Zero Point) is key. Saliva, condensation, and protein will coagulate in between the sides of the reed and reed plate slots. It is the root cause for many issues, because it interferes (blocks) with the smooth travel of the reed through the reed plate slot.
Inexpensive "Feeler Guages", available at all Automotive Parts stores and on-line resources will provide you years and years of service. It will also enable you to document and save your favorite settings. I recommend setting the gap of the fixed end at .002" and depending on the reed length and weight, set the free end in the range of .005" to .007".
It would be helpful to review the following Harp Tech Series:
- https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_study_4_reed_gapping
- https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_studies_3
- https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_studies_2
- https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_studies_1
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
Hi, before Kinya replies to you, have you checked this?
https://www.bluesharmonica.com/harp_tech_studies_3