Re: [Harp-L] Embossing/burnishing reed slots - was Gapping for Overblows

["Tim Moyer" <wmharps@xxxxxxxxx>]

I wrote:
> >Embossing (or here "burnishing") is done from the reed side of the 
> >plate, and yes, it will require the harp to be completely 
> >disassembled. 

Ron wrote:
> Why must the harp be totally disassembled?  Why cantcha just do 
> your embossing on top of the reed, with the harp intact?

As Chris and Winslow pointed out, you have to remove the blow plate 
to get to the reed side of the plate.  But as I tried to address in 
my original reply, embossing is only *part* of a process that 
involves changing the reed arc, retuning and gapping.  If you're 
committed to making changes of that magnitude, disassembling and 
reassmebling the harp is trivially little more work, and makes the 
rest of the process so much easier.  

If you're worried about doing this on a harp that's assembled with 
nails, don't be.  If you disassemble the harp carefully (slide a 
knife edge between the reed plate and the comb to raise it slightly, 
then use a pair of small pliers to remove the nails) you can put it 
back together without any ill effects.  If the nail holes get too 
wallowed out to hold securely when you reassemble, you can close them 
up by inserting a toothpick into the hole, cutting it off and sanding 
it flat.  

If this seems like a lot of work, it is.  There are folks out there 
that would be happy to do this stuff for you for a small fee.  ;-)

-tim

Tim Moyer
Working Man's Harps
http://www.workingmansharps.com/