oldwailer
18 posts
Mar 25, 2008
7:32 PM
|
Hi,
Does anybody know what is good to be used to seal a comb? There is an instruction on how to do it on YT--but no clue as to what to use or where to get it. I hope to upgrade some old Marine Bands I have hanging around.
Thanks, Adam--this forum is great fun!
|
Patrick Barker
29 posts
Mar 25, 2008
9:24 PM
|
Hey, I've had the same question myself after watching what was probably the same video on youtube ( http://youtube.com/watch?v=o4rmuXUC6lA ) . Also, I just got a new marine band today (Bb) and the blow notes are really out of tune (I didn't even need a tuner to tell because it was so bad, although I used one to confirm it) . This is related to this topic because I'm wondering if you can easily take off and put back the reed plate on the wood comb (Hopefully I'll be able to tune and seal in one fell swoop).
|
Carl_Comfort
7 posts
Mar 26, 2008
2:25 AM
|
You can take off the reedplates from a MB yourself. But if you want to tune your blow notes, I mean raising the pitch, you dont have to take the reedplates off persé.
You can stick a screwdriver in and lift the blow reed...then stick a paper between the reed and the slot..this way the reed is in a somewhat distorted position...but now you can vile a bit off the tip. From the backside so to say
This is how I do it, I hope its all clear,
Goodluck!
Carl
To take the plates off, place a very thin blade between the plate and the wood. Carefully lift the blade....I mean like 2 mm (dont know that in inches) if you do that you'll see the pins have lifted up a little and now you can peel them out with a blade or something... be vrey carefully the plates are very easy to deform
Last Edited by on Mar 26, 2008 2:31 AM
|
Patrick Barker
30 posts
Mar 26, 2008
12:44 PM
|
Thanks for the advice. I was able to get one of the reed in tune, but the other two were actually sharp (one was actually almost 30 cents sharp) so I'm going to have to figure out how to to make those more flat. I guess I'll try to file the reed in the groove and if that doesn't work I may have to take the reed plate off.
|
birdman
15 posts
Mar 26, 2008
2:58 PM
|
i use beeswax to seal my harps, warm the wax and rub it into the comb before putting the harp back together, it only works on wooden comb harps of course
|
Carl_Comfort
8 posts
Mar 26, 2008
8:20 PM
|
To raise the pitch of blow reeds, That's actually less work...I dont do that from the inside or take it apart..I just carve the BOTTOM of the reed gently (but quite long compared to viling the tip)with the tip of my vile ..which happens to be very sharp and thin..
Please know, I've not yet heard anyone else doing it this way ..so, maybe its the brutal way..but on MB I see no other fast option.I've been doing this since I started tuning my harps, about a half a year ago. But seriously, on some harp I really carved alot from blowreeds and everything is still doing absolutely fine..
By carving/scratching you might make the gap a big bigger because you'r putting a bit pressure on the reed ofcourse, so you probably have to re-gap those reeds a little.
Hope this helps,
Greetings from Holland!
Carl
Last Edited by on Mar 26, 2008 8:27 PM
|
birdman
27 posts
Apr 21, 2008
7:50 AM
|
i have found this link about sealing harps http://www.harmonicasessions.com/oct04/h-workbench.html
|
Philosofy
11 posts
Apr 21, 2008
9:33 AM
|
I've been in the paint and coatings industry for about 25 years. Mineral oil is used on things like salad bowls, but it doesn't really dry: just soaks into the wood. Shellac is non-toxic, but will dissolve off with alchohol. So, if you screw it up, you can get it off, but you can't clean your harps with alcohol anymore.
|
birdman
37 posts
May 21, 2008
5:22 AM
|
found a sealer which is working great ,its polifix a denture fixative i also drill trough reed plates and comb of my marine bands apply fixative and fix the whole lot back together with small nuts and bolts this gives you a very airtight marine band
|
oldwailer
45 posts
May 22, 2008
8:20 PM
|
Since I posted this thread I have done a bit more research and I found something that I'm going to try. It's called Salad Bowl Finish--supposed to be very hard and durable when dry--it takes 6 hours to dry between coats, and at least 3 coats are recommended. It's a non-toxic when cured finish. check it out if you want to at www.generalfinishes.com .
Can't really recommend it yet--but I'll let everybody know here when I find out something--I have 3 MB combs ready for finish--all sanded and rounded--I'll get them started over the long week-end.
|
David Thomas
6 posts
May 28, 2008
11:18 PM
|
This topic is of interest to me, not that I want to seal a wooden comb, but I was after a safe user friendly sealant to apply over the metal covers and mouthpiece of a 45+ yo Hohner Super Chromonica. The old chromatic is in mint condition as it has had hardly any use due to the covers containing nickel to which I am very allergic. Have had suggestions from local music stores to get the covers gold plated but that would be more expensive than a new unit. I was considering the use of a dental sealant but searches of the net don't give much info. Any suggestions greatly appreciated.
----------
Harpoldie
|
