From: Douglas Tate Date: Sat, 31 Aug 1996 00:55:21 +0100 Subject: Manufacture of harps
Barry Bean wrote: ########################### As for design, clearly, Hohner must incorporate both musical design and commercial reality into any harmonica it manufactures. Of course, given that their only customers are musicvians, and there is competition in the market, I'd say that commercial reality forces them to build as good a musical instrument as possible and still allow themselves a profit. ###########################
I would like to disagree. When manufacturing any product over a long time, tools wear out and have to be replaced, redesign can take place to iron out any little faults at the same time.
Now lets look at the #270 The slide movement is not the same width as the body and reedplates. The reedplates are sandpapered away during assembly so that the cover plates do not fit in the slots in the reed plates. There is a fault in the cover plates which raises one end and allows a big air leak. The reed plates are bowed front to back and do not sit flat on the wood The three slide members are each laterally bowed and because of this tolerance has to be allowed in the slide movement which is one of the reasons the slide leaks air. The mouthpiece does not sit flat on the top slide member, The bottom slide member does not fit accurately with the U piece and cuts lips if you are not careful. Shall I go on. I have to admit that I have only noticed this for the last forty years. Maybe their tools don't wear out, maybe nobody has complained, maybe nobody notices it. I say "Keep it as it is" That way I make a lot of money altering them for people who don't buy my books!
