RE: Reed Tuning/wondering pitch

["G." <gigs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

<quote>
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 2003 12:24:17 -0600
From: "dfwhoot" <dfwhoot@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: RE: Reed Tuning/wondering pitch

Plug in a heating pad one,  beside the work bench and the stage. And if
you're doing an outside gig you can warm your hands also.   Jerl
</quote>

For what its worth, I've tried a herbal heating bag gave up on that after it
snagged and broke a few reeds, then for a year used an electric heating pad
for preheating when tuning until finally out of fustration I went and got a
hot/cold pack that Pat described....
OH! The difference!!!

  The electric heating pad I've got has no tempurature control (none
available where I am) I have to fold the heating pad in half to get any
practical tempurature out of it, but then it can get very hot, despite this
it takes up to 30 minutes to warm up on a cold day, 15 on a warm day.
  If I unfold it the tempurature its built up disapates very quickly and
then you're almost back to where you started.  Its a matter of extremes.

  So because of the temperature the heating pad gets to, I have to watch
over it like a hawk when heating valved reedplates (or harmonicas) otherwise
the heat causes the valves to curl up (TEFLON valves Too!!!).   Of course
make the harmonica or reedplates too hot to tune until its had time to cool
down - and for all that you can only get a few minutes of tuning out of the
reedplate before it cools down and needs reheating.

  With a hot/cold pack you can put it in the microwave for 2 or so minutes
and have it ready to go just like that.  The nature of the gel means that
its far more efficient.  It holds its tempurature for a long time and takes
quite some time to cool or heat up.   So what I do is fold the heating pad
over it, and at intervals take the gel pack out and use it outside the
heating pad so it cools a little, then pop it back in.
The combination is working very well for me now.

  Heating pads are excellent for getting your harmonicas up to tempurature
for a gig.  At some point I'm going to have to blow some money on a 240volt
10amp variable power control and wire it to my heating pad so I have more
control over it.
  I strongly suggest getting a pad with tempurature control if you can - its
probably a lot safer, and will save your chromatics from having the valves
melted to the reeds.
  An aluminium camera case set up to hold your harmonicas (lying horizontal
and flat, not vertical) with the pad sitting on top can work over a period
of time and be reasonably safe so long as you are around.

  My recommendation is if you are looking at tuning, get the hot/cold pack.
Its far more practical and you'll save yourself a lot of grief.   Its worth
listening to what Pat says.
A) He's one of the best harmonica tuners (and customisers) in the world.
B) He did this for 20 years, and made a living from it for 10 of those
years - it pays to listen when he speaks.

Best regards,
G.
http://harmonica.7p.com