Re: [Harp-L] harp price



Don't forget scrap and waste, very little of the sheet metal actually makes it into the harp. 



Thanks Jerry, 

----- Original Message -----
From: "Vern" <jevern@xxxxxxx> 
To: "Peter Madcat Ruth" <madcat@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> 
Cc: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx, "mik jagger" <harpomatic@xxxxxxxxx> 
Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 4:05:12 PM 
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] harp price 

A 270 Chromaitc weighs 6.2 oz. Assume that it is made entirely of copper (the most expensive component of brass). The current price of copper is $3.70 per pound. That means that the value of the raw materials in a chromatic harmonica cannot be as much as $1.43. 

A diatonioc harmonica weighs about 2.3 oz. Using the same assumptions, the value of its raw materials is less than $0.53. 

Thus, the value of raw materials is about 1% of the sale price. For this reason, I can't see changes in the cost of raw materials driving harmonica price changes. 

The increase in harmonica prices must be the sum of labor + overhead + profit. It may be that prices were lagging inflation and there has been some "catching up". I think that there is enough competition to keep profits reasonable. You can help by buying on quality, service and price while ignoring myths and prejudices. 

Whenever you see a product (XB40, CBH2016) or a company (Blockbuster) die , you can bet that it is because of low sales. Also remember that there are not enough Harp-l and Slidemeister members to keep very many harmonica manufacturers in business. Those of us who play seriously, repair and customize our harps are going to be affected by a larger, more casual market. 

Vern 


On Sep 12, 2012, at 2:05 PM, Peter Madcat Ruth wrote: 

> The price of harmonicas world-wide has gone up because the price of brass has gone up. 
> Also, building and tuning a harmonica is very labor intensive. 
> 
> 
> Peter Madcat Ruth 
> Musician - Grammy Award Winner 
> madcat@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> www.madcatmusic.net 
> www.youtube.com/user/petermadcatruth 
> 
> 
> 






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