Re: [Harp-L] Fatigue and reed life




On Apr 17, 2008, at 9:27 PM, David Payne wrote:



The Steel appears to me as virtually identical to brass reeds in thickness.

Ok, but how fine is the milling. Is it about 250 lines an inch (like Hohner) or 175 (like Hering)


Maybe somebody can take a measurement and see. They seem the same to me. Eventually, the stainless reed might have a different profile altogether, remember this is all pretty new.

OR, the surface may be smoother.

I know what you are saying, they need to be thinner to vibrate properly with human breath. This would especially be noticeable on short-slot harmonicas... it would seem they would have to be thinner to work, Seydel took another approach to that, there simply is no short slot 1847.

Yes, THAT is what 'I' would do.


1847 Ds, Es, Fs, are all long-slot harmonicas. That's especially nice on the D, cause it's the key that goes out on most guys, simply cause it's short slot, yet it gets as much playing pressure as the C...

Yes, I find the D to be my easiest key to play. They bend best (for me).

I don't think the steel makes any huge difference, really, in playability.. There were so many other changes Seydel made with this harp, better cut reedslots, open back, thick covers, that make the harp play like it does.. That reedslot cut was a HUGE difference, huge. It's much closer to the reed.

There is also a difference in brass & steel. With stainless, you are dealing with several metals that have similar melting points. That way, you only have to achieve the highest metal's melting point to do the alloy. You don't get too much gassification. With brass, the copper has a higher melting point than the zinc and you have to bring the temp up so high that before the copper is ready to alloy, the zinc is already 'watery'. Some gassification takes place in the zinc and so you have to allow for it by figuring more zinc than you actually need. Getting an even mix this way is tricky.


As our buddy said yesterday, you could use other more exotic metals but the price would put them out of reach, and that is understandable. But I think this whole thread began with someone asking "Why not make our own reed making machinery"? Yes, If we DID make our own reeds, cost wouldn't be a factor. Factors would be availability and time.

Karl Pucholt is the big man behind the 1847. He could have made a stainless steel harp maybe back in the 1970s or 1980s if Seydel hadn't been government controlled under the East German Communist Government Overlords. Karl is the former DDR's version of SmoJoe. So Karl's been thinking about this, planning this in that Einstein of harps brain of his for 30 or 40 years, so in 2004, when Niamia media buys out Seydel, within like hours before it was closing forever, Seydel did't have a pit to poss in, but Karl had this steel reed harp in his back pocket ready for some serious development.

I started into my foray with steel reeds back when my mother's favorite music box broke. The reeds are all cut out of ONE piece of steel. I couldn't figure out how to repair it. I found that I could order the reed plate from a toy company. But for my harmonica, I used a Gillette super blue razor blade. As long as you kept the reed edges 'Criscoed', they wouldn't rust. Then I used a Schick copper clad blade. Finally a Wilkinson Sword stainless. They are too much work. ALL razor blades are too much work (for working by hand)

I'm still playing mostly brass reeds. I can fix my own stuff, emboss my own plates, etc. If I emboss an 1847 reedplate, it will play about like the brass reedplate I'd embossed, the main thing the 1847 has going for it at that point are those thick, awesome coverplates.. But stock, the 1847 is much better and has a longer life. I've not had a customer blow one out yet that I know of, but they've gone through a few brass harps in that time.


Eventually, the 1847 reeds will fatigue, but the wait for fatigue is a heckuva lot longer than for brass.

I might have to try these harps. smokey-joe

Dave ___________________________ Dave Payne Sr Elk RIver Harmonicas www.elkriverharmonicas.com





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