Re: [Harp-L] Defective harps

[Phyllis731@xxxxxxx]

Someone on the list sent a post recently stating that Hohner has been  
bought out and I believe the new manufacturer is in China, but I'm not  
positive.  This might explain why the harps are being made differently or  not of 
the same quality.  Suzuki makes very good harps as does  Seydel.
 
Blues Girl Phyllis
Isn't it wonderful the  way the world holds both the deeply serious, and 
the unexpectedly  mirthful?




In a message dated 4/23/2015 12:11:03 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  
swebb@xxxxxxxxxxx writes:

It is my  uneducated opinion that Hohner is doing something differently in 
the  manufacturing process. I lean heavily on 3 draw in my country type of 
playing  and newer Special 20s are not so good out of the box and I have been 
having  trouble getting them gapped to play right. And the Rocket? Even 
worse.
I am  using old harps for practice and custom harps for the rare times 
these days  that I play in front of people. I have had pretty good luck with 
Suzuki  Harpmaster. I picked up a couple real cheap and the B flat was 
extremely good  with no tweaking.
With the way pricing has gone, you would think harps  overall would be 
better.
Steve in Minnesota

Sent from my  iPad

> On Apr 23, 2015, at 11:11 AM, doug cole  <douglasrcole@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> 
wrote:
> 
> Dear  Harpers-
> I have had a string of bad luck with new harps lately. My  Crossover C 
(which I loved) went out after about a year. I bought new reed  plates but 
could not get the harp to play properly, especially the 3 and 4  draw bends. So 
I decided to try the Rocket. After less than a month of very  light usage, 
the #3 draw bend went dead. I tried repairing it but to no avail.  So I 
ordered a Manji which I have tried before and liked, and same issue. The  #3 
draw bend was just not there. I bought it through Amazon and they allowed  me 
to return it. So I order another Crossover which arrived a few days ago and  
again.. the same issue with the bends on #3 and #4 draw. I have sent it back 
 to Hohner for a repair under their warranty.
> Needles to say, this is  very frustrating to get such poor quality new 
harps. I am a professional level  player, and these instruments just are 
basically unplayable. Not a huge fan of  Lee Oscar harps, but at least they are 
pretty reliable and durable. Have had  pretty good luck with Special 20s.
> Any suggestions?  Seidel  perhaps? Time to invest in expensive custom 
harps? Would rather not but this  is getting ridiculous.
> Doug  Cole