Lee Oskar Harmonica (Putting it Back Together Again!šŸ˜³)

Hi anyone find retuning Lee Oskar harmonicas fiddly. Iā€™ve had to tune mine recently and found the cover plates fiddly to secure to the comb with the screws and the star shaped nuts. Quite like the harp and itā€™s tuning just found the securing of the cover plates a bind.
Iā€™m not really a grouchā€‹:thinking::face_with_hand_over_mouth:

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Hi @mackam_man,

Yes, it is a well known problem with Lee Oskar harps ā€“ not the tuning but the attachment of the cover plates to the comb. Very tricky, but with practice it gets easier. I prefer the attachment hardware for almost any other major brand.

Regards,
ā€“ Slim :sunglasses:

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Hi @Slim me thinks the same as you glad Iā€™m not the only one.

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Hey, @mackam_man. Early on in my career, one of the screws on my Bb Special 20 came loose. The nut that holds the harp and screw together is that same frilly square shaped design as the Lee Oskar, but a bit smaller. I recommend that you put the nut on the hole first, then tighten the screw up with a posidriv screwdriver to just the right amount. Donā€™t tighten it too tight though.

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Seems they could spring for whatever it costs to add another 16th of an inch or to to the screws. It would certainly make our lives easier when we want to fiddle around with them.

Times are tough, but I donā€™t figure it could cost that much! :joy: :dollar:

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Iā€™ve taken Lee Oskars apart and put 'em back together many times. As KeroroRinChou suggested, I set the nut over the hole on the bottom plate and hold it down with my finger- then add top plate and screw. Personally, Iā€™ve no problem with the screw length. I have big hands and fat fingers and if I can do it easily, anyone can.





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Hello @Trapper,
I do it like this, too. :smiley: Thumbs up.

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Hey @mackam_man so youā€™re problem isnā€™t actually tuning the harmonicas, just putting them back together yeah? I recently took mine apart for the first time to fix a gapping issue and had the same experience as I shared about in this post.

@Trapper great photos man! Thanks for encouraging the rest of us. It feels a little spooky, like ā€œis this even gonna work?ā€ But then it does!

Aloha,
Luke

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Thanks, I actually made a video but the site wouldnā€™t upload the file, thus, the photos. I think the cover plates are easy ā€“ itā€™s when you start messing with the reeds that trouble comes! :wink:

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You make a good point, @Trapper ! And this why it is so important to first gather experience by doing reed work on cheap or unimportant harps before trying to work on a valuable harp.

I actually bought several cheap harps (ca. 10-12 U$) and did all sorts of reed work on them just to learn the techniques, such as re-tuning, gapping corrections, reed shaping, etc. It was worth the time & expense!

Regards,
ā€“ Slim :sunglasses:

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That is the only thing about the Lee Oscar I donā€™t like , I was really aggravated by the time I put it back together.

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Hey guys. Itā€™s designed that way to stop us from catching ourselves on a jutting screw end :koala:

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@stonestone63, naturally! As with everything, poor to no description. Or written so small that you canā€™t read the description despite the :mag_right:! Everyone wants to earn :dollar::euro:! :rofl:

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@AstridHandbikebee63 I love a challenge :face_with_spiral_eyes:

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@stonestone63, oh yes, you grow from it and itā€™s the good pinch in our lives.

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Thatā€™s a great point, having it flush keeps it from snagging on things :+1:

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The screw is to hold it in place once itā€™s together. Not pull it together. As @KeroroRinChou said, hold the nut to the hole with harp together before putting the screw in. Maybe elastic bands would make it less fiddly :koala:

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@stonestone63, oh rubber bands! Thatā€™s what @HarpinBobbyMcB experienced. :wink:
Sometimes I have a memory like a horse. But that was really good! Maybe @HarpinBobbyMcB will show you again? :smiley:

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Oh no, what happen to @HarpinBobbyMcB Rubber bands? Sounds horrific. :scream: Though as a nurse, I am looking forward to seeing the scars. :grin:

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@stonestone63, I found it. :slightly_smiling_face:

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