Re: [Harp-L] The Reed Issue

[Zombor Kovacs <zrkovacs@xxxxxxxxx>]

Well, sales figures is always an issue. The roughness
of the grinding tool determines the depth of sracthes
and thus the fatigue of the reed. It would be no
significant cost to add one or two more polishing
discs to make the raw material smooth from which the
reeds are stamped out. But this would perhaps increase
the lifetime and lead to drop in sales. Everyone sells
things which are just about "sellable". If they sell
too good they will either increase price, or lower
costs which results in lower quality.
At least I believe so. 




--- samblancato <samblancato@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> I don't think the material (the quality of the brass
> used or what ever other
> alloy involved) that would be the cost issue.  I
> think it's what you have to
> do in terms of hardening and tempering the metal
> that drives the cost up.
> Once you get a reed material that you can use there
> is the issue of how easy
> it's going to be to adjust the pitch within the
> manufacturing process.
> Maybe I'm really naive but I don't really think
> companies like Hohner are
> actively trying to plan for reed material that both
> sounds good and wears
> out fast. I think it's just been a balancing act all
> along between the
> quality and density of the metal vs. having it in a
> condition wherein it can
> be worked at the factory to easily render a finished
> product that's in tune.
> 
> 
>  
> 
> What I think Hohner *could* do is to go back and
> research their product line
> the way it was in the 1930s or 1940s and try to
> produce the same results.
> But guess what?  I bet they have already considered
> this.  They're aware of
> the criteria points we discuss on this list and I
> bet they have a couple
> dozen other ones too.  Talk to a couple of
> mechanical or manufacturing
> engineers and they'll wear your ear out.  How do you
> produce of a certain
> quality such that you can make millions of them and
> have them all turn out
> more or less alike? I think it's probably pretty
> complicated. 
> 
>  
> 
> Maybe we all need to just play then a little more
> gently.
> 
>  
> 
> Sam Blancato, Pittsburgh 
> 
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