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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Difference? HotMetal-Bluesband-Pocket Pal
Difference? HotMetal-Bluesband-Pocket Pal
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SilasJackson
9 posts
Dec 31, 2008
12:22 AM
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I know these are inexpensive harps, but what is the difference between the three other than a few dollars in the price? I have all three, and after tightening up all the screws a little, they sound OK to me. I am still a newbie beginner, but my ears work pretty well. They all seem to be practically identical except for the stamping on the cover plates. All from China. I also have a Marine Band 1896 which I can tell a huge difference in the quality and tone, and a Lee Oskar I just got for Christmas. It is much higher quality too. But of course these too cost a lot more also. So, is there any difference in the three cheap Hohners? If so, which is the best?
Thanks,
SJ
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Preston
74 posts
Dec 31, 2008
5:33 AM
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Silas,
Somewhere a long way back in this forumn there was a discussion about bluesbands. If I'm not mistaken, somebody called them the "poor man's special 20." I have not played a hotmetal or pocketpal, but I did buy a bluesband for my boy, and it ain't too bad of harp for $5.00!
If they came in keys other than C, I might buy more of them for myself.
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Philosofy
100 posts
Dec 31, 2008
7:42 AM
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Would these harps be good to practice gapping, arcing, etc?
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Chris Jones
5 posts
Dec 31, 2008
2:38 PM
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The absolute best cheapie I ever played was Suzuki Easy Riders. I bought a Hohner Piedmont set, they are for the most part super shitty, I did manage to tinker with the A harp enough to play. The Piedmonts seem to be great to tear up while learning to emboss,etc.
The Old Standbys I played 7 years ago were good, bought a few lately an they are trash, must have bought bad batch or they were made on a Friday with the workers ready to call it a day.
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SUNDOG
56 posts
Dec 31, 2008
4:39 PM
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My Old (pocket)Pal aint no High end Harp but It's still on key and I've had it for at least 12 years....
I keep it and sometimes play it just for old times sake.... Think I got it in a bag with one of Gindick's old Books .
R,
Neal aka:SUNDOG
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SilasJackson
10 posts
Jan 01, 2009
3:01 AM
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Thanks, Preston. I' glad you got your Son a "real" instrument. Those plastic harps in kids stores are pure crap. I hope he is encouraged to play. Kids seem to pick up on playing a lot quicker than us old farts. LOL. I am 50 years old and struggling. Keep up the good work, and he may be the next Star.
I got a set of Piedmont Blues too. I know the guy that owns a local music shop. Got the whole shebang for $16.00 last year--they are going for about $30.00 now, and all of mine play reasonably OK. It's a great cheap way to try out most of the keys.
I agree with Philosofy and Chris Jones that these "throw aways" might be good to practice gapping, arcing and other mods. When they are all destroyed you still have a pretty decent case for your GOOD harps with the Piedmont set. It just seems to me that the HotMetal, Bluesband, and Pocket Pal are the same exact items. If so, then to me, the Bluesband is the best "throw away" of the bunch because of the price. I have a couple I have tinkered with and they play pretty good. Do not use acetone on the comb to "smooth it out". I did that on one and the damn thing looked like it was melting like the Wicked Witch of the West after only a few seconds. So I washed it off under running water and threw it off to the side, disgustedly, and went to bed. Lo and Behold, the next day it almost looked like it was never touched. I had snipped out the sprue (sp?) between the holes and used the acetone to smooth the comb out. I hit the whole deal with light sandpaper, put it back together, and Man it sounded just fine. I couldn't believe it. The comb turned a little Grayish instead of Black, and I think it's a little smoother too. I also rolled over the back of the covers to the inside which created a HUGE open back. I cut the back of the covers on the inside of the little tabs at each end with a Dremel cut off wheel (be real careful) and "rolled" over the edge with a hammer with several layers of tape on the head to keeep from skinning-up the covers. Do this on a flat surface of course. It makes this harp a good bit louder. But I DO NOT advocate the acetone route in this mod. (Cut out the sprue and use some needle files to clean it up instead and use some alcohol and q-tips to clean out the crumbs and flakes of plastic). The comb actually looked like it was growing hair from the acetone. I did some burnishing and gapping and tweeking on this one, and it plays much better, and is easier blowing than a Bluesband new out of the box. Go figure. Remember, I am practically a rank beginner and certainly not a harp mechanic, but I do love to tinker. I did find that taking the covers off and tightening all the screws a little at a time and criss crossing while tightening will help. I think it might help with a leaky harp. I wish some of the really cheap harps came in other keys too. Remember, you risk destroying the harp with any of these methods, but at $4.00 for a Bluesband, it's sure a lot cheaper than gas, what, two months ago?
Happy Harpin', and Happy New Year,
SJ
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