Re: RE: custom diatonic harmonicas

[fjm <2738540@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Come to think of it the first really custom thing I ever did for myself
was a Lee Oskar.  A low A, I picked a mismatched set of LO plates that
got as low as could get then retuned them to the bass A.  I was nearly
done, on hole 7 I think when I snapped a reed.  I was using previously
installed plates out of my bone pile.  This lead me to learn how to
replace reeds.  I had a lot of hours into the retuning by the time I
broke that reed.  Lee Oskars lend themselves to custom tunings because
of the wide variety of tunings and plates and the fact that you can mix
and match the plates so readily.  Ultimately though I have the same
problem Tim does, I don't like the equal tuning (easily fixed though)
and the reed profiles aren't ideal for the kind of playing I do.  The
closed coverlets are difficult to open and there is an inherent
brightness to their tone.  I do keep a full set of the harmonic and
natural minors.  All they ever need is preliminary gapping and some
touch up tuning.  They are much more consistent out of the box than
Hohners, especially Marine Bands and they do last a good long while. 
fjm