[Harp-L] Special 20 "Progressive" (was Made in China)

[Steve Baker]

On June 18th Chesper Nevins wrote:

A little backpedaling... upon closer inspection of the older Special 20's,
it appears the comb shape is the same as the "Progressive".   Funny, I just
never felt this aspect of the comb shape on the lips while playing a
Special 20 before.

On Sat, Jun 17, 2017 at 6:43 PM, Chesper Nevins <chespernevins at xxxxx <mailto:chespernevins at xxxxx>>
wrote:

> I just bought 5 special 20's, first time in a long time.  They say
> "Progressive" on the cover.  This is fine.  What I'm more ambivalent about
> is that there is a new front to the comb (on the mouth side).  This front
> is taller than the rest of the comb.  This front wall of the comb sticks up
> above and below the height of the rest of the comb. 

Steve responds:
The Special 20 was incorporated into the Hohner Progressive Series a couple of years ago. The only changes made to the instrument were the stamp on the cover and the addition of extra screw holes to ensure compatibility with the Rocket. The quality is identical to what it’s always been. As Mr Nevins rightly observes, the comb is the same as it was previously.

About 2 years prior to the introduction of the Progressive Series, the comb of the Special 20 was actually reworked to reduce the projection of the front wall of the comb. So not only was there no change to the comb when the Progressive Series came out, but old Special 20s in fact have a comb where the front wall projects more above the rest of the comb, not less.

Anyone seeking a comfort upgrade will find that the pleasantly rounded Rocket comb can be fitted to all newer Special 20s (as long as they have the smaller reed plate screws). 

Steve Baker
www.stevebaker.de
www.european-music-workshops.com
www.harmonica-masters.de