Re: [Harp-L] Replacement (looser) spring for Hohner 270?

[Bobbie Giordano <bogio@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Meant to send this long ago, like my last post, but have been having all 
sorts of personal and computer woes messing with me lately!  Anyway, I'm 
'sort of' back and hope whatever input here is still useful to someone...

Back on 10/5/2006 2:53:39 PM, Winslow Yerxa wrote:
> There is a steel post embedded in the comb that slips out, about
> halfway back on the right end of the comb. There are holes in both
> reedlpates that allow access to it. The spring is wrapped around this
> post. Use a small screwdriver or something similar to push the post
> out, then take out the spring

You may need to use needle nose pliers to pull the spring out, as it 
presses pretty tightly against the walls of the hole.  Also, when undoing 
the mouthpiece, it is likely under tension, too, due to a bow in the 
mouthpiece, so it's best to loosen the mouthpiece screws alternately a 
little bit at a time to help avoid stripping the holes for the screws, 
being careful not to lose the plastic buffers.  Work over a dark cloth, 
even a black T-shirt, to catch and soften the fall of small parts so they 
don't bounce into the next county!

Personally, I have always wondered why the Hohner springs seem set so 
overly strong in the first place.  The outer end wall of the wood comb 
has been known to blow out from this high pressure the spring can exert 
on it.  If the slider mechanism is well adjusted for quick and slick 
movement, the spring doesn't have to be so stiff, IMO, which is why I've 
lessened the tension on nearly every chromatic I've got or worked on.

Some folks have found it beneficial to insert a metal sleeve in the hole 
to add strength to the hole's wall.  I know the ferrule that holds a 
pencil's eraser has been used, but again, this can cause a different 
problem - a noiser slider from the metal spring tapping against a metal 
insert.

> Try bending it farther inwards, but angle the end out so that it
> can still insert into the pinhole in the slider.
>
> This will take some experimenting to get right.

As Winslow, and "G" after him, implied, this can be a bit tricky.  G's 
idea of using nails in a block of wood is good, but I'd suggest hammering 
them all the way through and then clipping the pointed ends to workable 
lengths with strong wire cutters, a Dremel saw or some such. I have used 
a screwdriver or small rod with a diameter that fits neatly into the 
spring's coil, holding it tightly in a vise while I adjust the spring 
with masking tape on the vise jaws to mark the original angle of the 
arms.  [The main thing is to slip the spring over a shaft that is close 
to the same diameter size as the spring post, because using something too 
small may cause the spring to deform and not fit properly over the post 
anymore.]  Then use small pliers to squeeze the spring posts 
together.  You may have to secure one end while you grab the other with 
the pliers and literally wrap the arm a bit tighter around the shaft or 
nail.

And, yes, this will change the angle of the arm that goes into the slider 
pinhole, perhaps even making it too short now, which is why I recommend 
altering the shorter arm more than the long one, so as not to change the 
pinhole arm's length too drastically.  Anyway, you will probably need to 
reinsert the spring several times, and even temporarily position the 
slider over the spring wire to test its action, then eventually rebend 
the pinhole arm so it fits into the hole properly.  Try to get it so the 
arm is fairly perpendicular to the slider's surface when the slider is 
midway through its movement in order to minimize wear on the pinhole's 
edges or the spring arm itself.

There are several other little things you can do, depending on how 
finicky you want to get, but hopefully, you've gotten enough hints here 
to get you going.

Good luck with it!

Bobbie
<http://www.tfn.net/~bobg/Renaissance.htm>http://www.tfn.net/~bobg/Renaissance.<http://www.tfn.net/~bobg/Renaissance.htm>htm