[Harp-L] Re: Comb Material--some other thoughts

[Isaac Ullah <iiullah@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hey all... I've got some more thoughts to add to the comb material debate. First, however, I want to say thanks to Elizabeth for sending the link to the toxic woods list, I never even thought about that! (luckily, acacia is NOT in the list, so I probably would not have collapsed into anafalactic shock! :) )  Anyway, looking at the list of woods got me thinking. Not about perceptable sound differences, but about sustainability, DIY, and the "grass roots" of the harmonica community. I think there are many issues to consider in addition to percieved tonal qualities, which I will NOT discuss here! :)  I play wood combed harps not particularly because of the sound, but because I hate the thought of using plastic when it is unecessary. Albeit, using plastic for a permanent object (like a harmonica comb) is much more responsible than for a disposable object (for example disposable cups. Why use a material that will never never ever degrade to make an object
 that is meant to be used once and discarded?). Wood is a much better material from an environmental standpoint, especially if it comes from a sustainably managed source. Many fruitwoods are actually very sustainable, since they come from managed sources, and may be harvested without killing the tree (by coppicing). I have no specific information about where, honher for example, actually gets the pearwood for their combs, but I assume that since it is pear wood, it's not coming from a giant, clear-cutting, lumber conglomerate.  Also, working with wood, as a material, is within the scope of almost any person. Tools for doing so are very available, and quite cheap in comparision to tools made for working with metal or for forming plastics. Therefore any tinkerer with a some tools in their garage can fool around with making his or her own combs (isn't that the way the modern harmonica was invented?). I really believe that from such experimentation comes
 new innovations, which leads me to my next topic.  Upon some thought, it has become apparrent to me, that one of the main reasons I heve been able to stick with harmonica where I had given up on so many other instruments was the nature of the harmonica community. It's small, eccentric (in a good way!), and very "grass roots". The existence and nature of this listserve is case in point. It's fantastic, and I love it! So when anyone comes up with any innovation, it can spread, be tested, lauded, accepted, denied, be thought upon, etc. in a way that is not possible for any other instrument out there.   Anyway, my thoughts may be diverging from the original topic of  this thread, so to get back to my original point. Wood. What are the properties of a wood that can make it a good choice for use as a harmonica comb. Well, as I said, there is more to it than it's tonal qualities (although I'm certan that this has to be high on the list for some people!).
 One has to think abouth things like a material's toxicity, but also about its sustainability: --Where does it come from (is it from a local source, or must it be imported)?  --Is it from a sustainably managed source (woods like Ebony and Mahagony are definately NOT!)? --What are the social conditions involved in the harvesting of the wood (ie. harvested by union employees making a decent wage, or by indentured servents making a pittance per day)?--What are the properies of the wood that make it easy/hard to mill (grain pattern, hardness, etc.)? --How much embodied energy does it represent (energy costs in terms of harvest, transport, milling, distribution)? --What are the properies of the wood that will help it to last in it's application as a harmonica comb (resistance to swelling/warping, natural imperviousness to water, ability to be planed very smooth, etc.)---What type of processing wouldbe involved in order to make it function properly as a
 harmonica comb (ie. would it have to be sealed, and with what?)?Now, for me, why was I thinking of using Acacia wood? Well, it's local here, and I know of several sustainably managed acacia wood plantations. It therefore has a low embodied energy, a low social price, and the money I spend would stay local. It also has some good qualities like natural resitance to moisture and warping, which means it should last a long time as a harmonica comb even with out being sealed. I'm sure there are plenty of other woods out there that meet these criteria. What about Bamboo? Bamboo would make an AWESOME harmonica comb, and would fantastically environmentally sound... Anyway.... I don't want to preach, I just wanted to add a few extra thoughts to this discussion. Any comments are more than welcome!~Isaac