Re: [Harp-L] Propolene Glycol

[Cal Cal <macaroni9999@xxxxxxxxx>]

Slim

I had a email discussion with somebody at Hohner a while back and they told
me that they apply their slide oil in the factory.

Daniel

On Sun, Nov 9, 2014 at 3:16 PM, Slim Heilpern <slim@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Since I mostly play CX-12s when I'm not recording (and while I record
> often, it's usually not for very long stretches at a time), it's not that
> big a problem for me, but when I used to play other models live, yes, my
> experience was not that different from yours.
>
> But here's the thing: I never experienced the sticking when the harp is
> new. I would often go a few weeks before I had to clean the slide on a new
> axe. As I remember it, once the sticking started, I'd routinely disassemble
> and clean the slide before each gig and that would get me through the
> evening.
>
> But why did the new harmonicas last so much longer before they started
> sticking? In hindsight I figure that either I wasn't cleaning them well
> enough or some lubricant was used at the factory. No idea which though...
>
> - Slim.
>
> www.slidemanslim.com
>
> On Nov 9, 2014, at 2:56 PM, David Fairweather wrote:
>
> > I've read countless posts here on harp-l about never using any kind of
> > lubricant on your chromatic slide mechanism.   Maybe I have particularly
> > sticky saliva, but I've never been able to use any chromatic but a CX-12
> > without the slide sticking.   I've used plain water or distilled water
> as a
> > temporary fix, but the slide begins sticking again for me within 5-10
> > minutes tops.     I got so fed up that I decided to experiment.   I got
> > some food-grade propolene glycol.   I dipped a Q-tip in it and then
> pressed
> > out any excess so that the Q-tip was moist but not dripping.  I then
> > applied a miniscule amount to the slide of a Seydel Deluxe.  So miniscule
> > that I could barely even see a difference.
> >
> > It worked!  I was able to play for HOURS, not minutes, before I got even
> a
> > hint of sticking.  The label on the propolene glycol bottle says that the
> > stuff is hydrophobic,  so I'm wondering if that's helping keep my saliva
> > from sticking to the slide.
> >
> > After more than two hours of playing,  I did start to feel a tiny bit of
> > sticking so I put the harp away with no further tinkering or cleaning.  I
> > know that without that propolene glycol,  today my saliva would have
> dried
> > up and completely frozen up that slide.   But I just tried it again, 24
> > hours later and the slide was still free with just that same tiny bit of
> > sticking it had when I put it away.
> >
> > So far I've detected no adverse effects upon my reeds or valves.   I'll
> > report back if I have any significant issues, but so far I have to
> consider
> > this experiment a success!
>
>
>