Re: [Harp-L] chromatic spring

[David Payne <dave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

You are the perfect candidate for an external spring. 
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfpgOXS43bY
The shims work for an external spring, but I made some great springs from banding steel.
But nobody ever wants to do that, so...
Keeping the spring you've got -
 Shortening is the last thing you want to do. Shortening a spring makes it stiffer - if it would make any difference at all.  
What you want to do is make the spring thinner. Use a rotary tool if you have one, jeweler's file if you don't.  Where you remove the metal is critical. You need to remove it from top end and taper back. If you make it taper, so that the bending stress is not concentrated in one place, you might actually make it more durable. This will take a while.
 
There was a time I spent months experimenting on springs. One hypothesis I came up with was maybe if I heated the spring up red hot and then let it slowy cool. I can't remember how that turned out. I should have written some of this stuff down. 

David Payne
www.elkriverharmonicas.com


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________________________________
 From: Music Cal <macaroni9999@xxxxxxxxx>
To: harp-L list <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx> 
Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2012 1:54 AM
Subject: [Harp-L] chromatic spring
  
I don't like the tension in my slider spring. I want less tension. I have
tried using the recommended safety pin but then the tension is not enough
for me. Has anybody here tried clipping (shortening) the immobile end of a
standard Hohner spring as means to decrease tension? Did it yield a
significant decrease in tension?

MusiCal