Re: Re: [Harp-L] Nails in Combs

["Tim Moyer" <wmharps@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Rick Dempster wrote:
> To be honest, the sight of the old nailed-together harp 
> does give me a feeling of security. I know eventually I 
> will have to pull it apart, drill and tap etc., but it 
> looks a lot more solid than say, and MS style instrument, 
> with it's -what is it - 3 or 4 screws.

I'd offer that the sheer number of screws is not a good indicator of 
how airtight a harp will be.  Design and quality of materials and 
assembly have to be taken into account as well.  For example, the 
Suzuki Overdrive is widely regarded as one of the most airtight 
instruments around, and it's held together by two screws, one at 
each end going all the way through.  By contrast, the Chinese made 
Hohner Pocket Pal uses no fewer than nine screws in ternally, plus 
two end screws, and it far from the performance of harps using far 
fewer screws.  

I've played harps using only some of the screws they're assembled 
with at the factory, like a Golden Melody with, say, three of it's 
seven screws, and many times can't tell a difference.  Many harps 
are assembled at the factory with fewer screws than they could 
have.  The Special 20 has extra holes at the back corners of the 
plates that are not populated.  The Golden Melody has an extra screw 
hole in the comb in the center of the mouthpiece, but the reed 
plates aren't drilled for it.  The MS harps are generally drilled 
for at least five screws, in most cases, but usually only uses 
three, in addition to the two at the ends that also secure the 
covers.  

In my opinion, most of these screw-happy designs are made to either 
provide a false sense of security in the player -- it must be 
airtight, look how many screws there are! -- or to compensate for 
poor processes, such as getting the comb flat or creating smooth 
mating surfaces on the comb and/or plates, or getting the screw 
tensions right in assembly.  

-tim