I am going to start learning reed replacement on my Marine Band harmonicas.
I can get the old reed off without any problem using a small punch and a piece of metal with a small hole drilled in it.
I have a couple of questions that I'd appreciate answers to from anyone with experience of doing this.
When replacing the reed what is the best way to refit it using rivets without buying expensive specialist tools such as the Farrell tools (which of course are no longer available)?
I know some people use small screws but I'm not too keen on that idea as I fear the screw would become loose over time.
My thinking is to use maybe a metal plate and to then just tap the rivet in using a small hammer or maybe just squeeze it in with pliers. Is that a good idea?
Would re-using the old rivet be a good idea or should it be replaced and if so by what?
I tried riveting - it's pretty difficult unless you have professional tools AND you do this reriveting regulary. It needs practice to do it properly. I barely break reeds and use the Harponline screw and nut system now. It's easy to use and much more safe than riveting. The nuts never went lose so far, but if you fear it you can just pour a small drop of nail polish or wax on the nut to make it 100% fail safe.
I have used the rivet anvil and punches from the herring tool kit and they work quite well. Re-using the rivets works but you need to be good at taking them out in good condition.
I had a few rivets sent to me, but I don't know where you can buy them from. There might be some rivets in the herring kit.
Last Edited by on Jan 29, 2010 3:33 AM
If you are careful and use a pin punch (flat end,non tapered diameter) to drive the rivets out you may be able to reuse them. I see you figured out using a hole drilled in a thick piece of steel to give the rivet a place to go...good.
The thing to do when attaching a reed is to keep the reedfoot held tightly to the reed plate as you tighten the rivet.
The plate is reed side up and again resting on a good flat piece of thick steel. The rivet is tightened by "peening". Peening can be done a lot of ways...essentially you are spreading or slightly mushrooming the rivet to the point that it tightens up in the reed hole and the plate hole. I have used flat punch blows as well as gentle tapping with a pointed punch in the center of the rivet as peening methods.When putting a reed on you want the rivet area to be over solid metal backing. A thick piece of scrap steel works fine.
I have also had good luck cutting my own rivets from brass round stock (brass wire) of the correct diameter.
If you are good with you hands and head, it honestly doesn't take a lot of expensive tools to do this or any other harp work.
You can make special tools for special purposes...a small tool to help keep the reed foot pressed tight to the plate as you peen the rivet is helpful.
Last Edited by on Jan 29, 2010 3:32 AM
Hi Paul, I have tried the harp online screw and nut method about a year ago now and they reeds are still going strong. It was very fiddly at first and I made the mistake of over tightening the screws thinking they may come lose. If you over tighten them you may buckle the reed plate and may lose airtightness as a result, but then if you hit a rivet too hard you would get the same result.Try on old plates first till you get the hang of it.
I also contacted Brendan Power and got some suzuki scews he demoed on YT. I have not tried these out yet as I didnt get a bench pillar drill for xmas but my birthday is soon. fingers Crossed.
The suzuki screw method seems to make more sence to me as I think the screw and nut is an overengineered solution for the materials used. Just my opinion though
The reeds in the Hering tool kit are only for key of C harmonicas and they will not fit in any other manufacturer's harps at all. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
Kingley - I've not ventured into reed replacement yet, but like you I've been looking into it. You might want to check out jewellery making websites; the same mini-riveting techniques are used there. Hobbycraft sells brass wire which is what the jewellers use for rivets. I think I might give it a go this weekend on a cheapo harp...
I think it's Vern on Harp-l that does this: He gets some brass wire, a little thicker than the original rivet. He cuts a small length of it (1/4" or so), and sticks it in his dremel chuck so that 1/8" is sticking out. Then he turns on the dremel, and holds a flat jewlers file up to the edge of the bit of spinning brass wire, and reduces the diameter until it'll just fit in the rivet hole. Then he sticks that bit through the new reed and into the rivet hole in the reedplate. He taps it with a peen hammer with some steel plate or and anvil under the reedplate and it "mushrooms" tight in the hole. Then he cuts off the excess with flushcut snippers. This leaves a slightly wider "head" over the reed, which he says helps stabilize it more.
I used a tool called the 3RT that was originally made by a guy on the West Coast some 25 years ago named Dave Doucette, who also made a special tool for me to remove the nails that used to be on the Hohner 280's before they finally had them screw tapped (but worked better for GM's, which were also held together with nails at the time.
Bill Romel was continuing to sell those until he passed away last year and it allowed you to reuse the rivet on the reed, plus it had a reed wrench (can oly be used on Hohner reeds) that also was a cool gapping tool and scraper for fine tuning. I don't know if his wife is selling what's left or not, but his site was http://www.harmonica-workshop.com. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
