Harmonica repair

My harmonica has some tuning issues on the lower notes. I’ve called a few local music stores and none repair harmonicas! I’m a loss of what to do! Any advice would be so appreciated.

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Hi @BoJoGlass

YouTube has numerous videos describing the tuning process. Paying someone to do it for you can easily cost as much or more than simply buying new reed plates or a new harp.

Only if you have an expensive harp (over $80 or so) can it make sense to pay an expert to do the work.

Regards,
– Slim :sunglasses:

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Hello @BoJoGlass ,

did you just start playing the harp? Is only the one harp in your possession? Which model?

Is the Harp clean, especially inside? You can find numerous tips for adjusting your harp here in the forum. But you have to open it to do this.
If you can’t find anything here in the forum, then search on YouTube. Enter “repair or adjustment” in the search function.

You will have to deal with this in the future. Every harp player should be able to and know the basics. Take the time and it will be beneficial.

Regards from Astrid :woman_in_lotus_position:

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@BoJoGlass welcome to the forum! @Slim’s advice is sage. @Boaz_Kim_Music tunes harps if you wanna proceed. The question is: will the price of shipping and tuning exceed the cost of the harp? If you’re harp is less than $80, it probably will.

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Thank you all for the helpful input! I got my harp earlier this year as a gift. It’s a Hohner and I think it was about $50. I opened it up and couldn’t see any visual blockage but the 2 spot sounds blocked and the 3 is the wrong note. I appreciate all the insights!

Thank you @Luke for all of your delightful content! I’ve been loving the harp and look forward to more happy playing ahead.

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Harps die. Get used to having a drawer full of broken harps. Play softly. Keep them clean. Make sure you check for debris on the reed plates when it sounds wrong. A hair caught in a reed can be a problem for example. Unfortunately, the usual way to overcome debris is to remove the cover plates. So keep jewelers screw drivers in your gig bag.

Oh and you can fix them yourself. You can file if it’s flat and add solder if it’s sharp. This is explained in The Harmonica According to Musselwhite. Use iStroboSoft to verify pitch.

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Hi. I’m a harmonica repair tech and customizer based in Pennsylvania, USA. Do you have any other harmonicas especially in the same key where you don’t have these issues? What key and model is the harmonica you’re writing about?

If your technique isn’t developed yet, it’s very easy for certain notes to not want to sound correctly. On a C harmonica, usually people have issues with the 2 draw, which I assume is the note you’re trying to play.

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