Re: [Harp-L] reed polishing - revised

[Ben Bouman <benbouman16@xxxxxxxxx>]

I started replacing steel reeds soon after being in the business. That was in 2008 and from the beginning on I used reeds tuned down a semi-tone by polishing them .Sometimes I even tend to tune them down a wholetone.

The reason for starting this was that I wasn't happy with some reeds. Seydel was at that time ( in the beginning of producing steel reed harmonicas) still working on the reed dimensions. 
When  I spotted a reed that was too thick near the rivet ( too stiff) I worked on that by removing material to find the optimum reed shape/response.

The reeds that I worked on lasted forever and that's why I started tuning them down/polishing reeds. I made harps for players and tuned down all reeds by completely polishing them.
These harps still play fine and I can't remember a single broken reed.

There's no proof for these reeds to last longer. But it works well for me and my customers :-))

I found some very good tools that allow me to do this very quick and accurate so I will keep on offering this service for my customers.

In my webshop I offer a low Bb, that is a low C , tuned down a wholetone. It makes the harp play like hell!!

I think the key in doing this is knowing about reed dimensions, curvature etc.. when you get this right a polished reed is great for the job.



kindest regards, met vriendelijke groeten, 

Ben Bouman
www.benboumanharmonicas.com <http://www.benboumanharmonicas.com/>
www.harmonicainstituut.nl <http://www.harmonicainstituut.nl/>
www.harmonicaheaven.nl <http://www.harmonicaheaven.nl/>
www.marble-amps.com <http://www.marble-amps.com/>




> Op 28 dec. 2014, om 03:06 heeft David Pearce <harpdog123@xxxxxxx> het volgende geschreven:
> 
> Thanks for that excellent info Vern.  Greg at 1623customharmonicas.com replaces broken stainless steel reeds with polished reeds as he believes that the polishing process increases their longevity and has never had to replace one of his polished reeds.  He compensates for the pitch change caused by the polishing by using a reed that is 1/2 or a whole step higher in pitch.  Players have been reporting that certain stainless steel reeds on some of the seydel harmonicas seem to die within a short period of time.  Have you ever had to replace any of your saxony reeds?
> 
> David   
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vern <jevern@xxxxxxx>
> To: David Pearce <harpdog123@xxxxxxx>
> Cc: harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Sat, Dec 27, 2014 4:50 pm
> Subject: reed polishing - revised
> 
> 
> Please disregard my previous email. Here is my revised response.  I deleted the 
> part about polishing both sides of the reed. I understand that the finish on the 
> stock is better than the machined top side. We are talking about polishing the 
> top side of the reed only.  My conclusion is the same but the deleted item is 
> not a valid reason.   Mea   Culpa.
> 
> Vern
> 
> Short answer: Yes.
> 
> Long answer:
> In general, fatigue cracks can occur at stress concentrations arising from 
> abrupt changes of cross-section thickness.  Polishing is intended to smooth out 
> such changes.  This is the weak rationale for the notion of polishing reeds.
> 
> Howeverââ..
> ...SS is very resistant to fatigue.
> âthe Seydel reeds are not very rough so there are not appreciable changes of 
> cross section.
> âIf polishing removes any material, you will lower the pitch.
> âif polishing removes any material, you will change the stress distribution 
> along the reed, possibly creating stress peaks and doing more harm than good.
> âyou will never know whether or not the polishing extended reed life.  A valid 
> test would require cycling many polished and unpolished reeds to failure under 
> identical conditions.  I doubt that even the manufacturers have done anything 
> like that.
> 
> IMO, there is much to be lost and little to be gained.   
> For this reason, I donât bother to polish my Saxony reeds.
> 
> Vern
> 
> 
>