Re: [Harp-L] Defective harps

[Mike Wilbur <mike@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Geez my Rocket experience has been very good ...no issues playing hard.
Having said that some " batches " in any product can have flaws, Suzuki and Seydel
Harps have been good also.
Golden Melodies with few exceptions great.
I gave away the  few SP 20s I had in favor of the Rockets.
Your results may differ !

Mike Wilbur

> On Apr 23, 2015, at 1:10 PM, Steve Webb <swebb@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> 
> 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
>