Good Day Y’all,
Do hole distances differ between manufacturers? Is there some sort of industry standard in manufacturing? Perhaps, an international convention agreement? 
I notice I perform single notes slightly better on my Fender Blues Deluxe than on my Hohner Spec 20. When I line em up hole to hole (so to speak) they seem to line up flush but I imagine even a couple of millimeters might impart a difference.
Just curious.
It seems to me that my fender blues deville has narrower holes than my hohner sp20 and crossover
Don’t know if that’s a function of difference in keys or just manufacturing difference
Looking forward to other peoples answers
Great question @Draw2Blow
Best
Mike
I’ve no idea if there’s anything “standard” but i imagine over the years its more a case what worked stuck around. I’ve found as i’ve played more and a few different harmonicas that i get used to the slightly different dimensions, spacing and response fairly quickly.
I also suspect hohner designs got/get copied a fair bit as they’re the biggest selling brand.
Be neat to do a factory tour someday. I did a Fender tour in Corona CA years ago where they used to do limited manufacturing of guitars, they still might.
This is the kind of thing that seems to matter at first, and over time, that goes away. You eventually learn how to extrapolate the distance of the rest of the harp based on a couple holes.
I went through it on diatonics, and now it doesn’t matter whether I pick up a Trochilus Game Changer, a Seydel, Suzuki, Hohner, or JDR harp. You just learn it over time.
Interestingly, if instead you choose to only play harps from one maker, then you will have a much harder time when you switch harps.
Relevant human performance research: players who mainly practice free throw shots sink fewer free throw shots than those who practice shots from many different positions.
I’m going through it right now with Chromatic harmonica, where you are also dealing with slide throw distance & resistance. I’m having trouble going back and forth between my Infinity and my CBH, specifically for more technical pieces. For improvising, its fine.
This actually makes sense as it relates to my profession (not a basketball player). I also just began to notice other differences, like the number of screws on the cover plate, rounded vs. sharp corners on the comb and how my dogs go into the other room when I practice.
Our dog (god rest his soul) used to look back and give a look of utter comtemp as he left the room.
Oooh! Nice insight here @hogie.harmonica. Good encouragement not to be afraid to practice broadly in the world of harmonica. Nothing is wasted. Love it. Thanks for sharing this.
And agreed 
, trying to “hack” single notes by choosing a different harmonica is an unnecessary journey, in my opinion. Just keep playing! Eventually it’ll become like breathing, effortless.
Yes I do, especially on he game Changer and a Oskar I have. I like crossovers so the Oskar has not ben played in awhile. Too much like a box.
Good insights. And I’ll keep working on single note free throws from different positions – 1st, 2nd & 3rd anyway😎