Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[malcolmbebb]

I am trying to identify the Hohner reed lifting tool, as favoured by Lester I believe. I can see T18021 tuning "stabiliser", unsure of that's the same thing.
Or I have some 0.5mm brass sheet, would that be thin enough to make one?

[Steve_freereeder]

I am trying to identify the Hohner reed lifting tool, as favoured by Lester I believe. I can see T18021 tuning "stabiliser", unsure of that's the same thing.
Or I have some 0.5mm brass sheet, would that be thin enough to make one?

Yes - that's the one. You might find that you have to file the tip a bit, to make it thinner but stubbier (= stiffer).
That ought to work too.

[Theo]

Brass sheet may be too soft.  It depends on the brass and what state of hardness it is.  The only way to find out is to try.   The Hohner tools are I think phosphor bronze, which is more springy.

[Theo]

I've just measured my Hohner reed lifters, both sizes are 0.3mm thick. They do a larger one that they call a support plated that is 0.5mm, but it is too thick for anything but low bass reeds. I have experimented with some 0.37 nickel silver that I get from Dave Shaw that are off cuts from Shaw whistles, but that is too soft and is useles as a reed lifter. As Steve says you will need to thin your 0.5 brass.  If it is too soft try hammering it thinner which will work harden the metal.

[malcolmbebb]

Thanks both.

I could only find the brass "stabiliser" on the C-shop website, which didn't seem right. Phosphor bronze sounds a better idea. It looks like Hohner aren't listing the lifting tool at the moment.

Charlie only sells the hooks, unless I've missed something.

[Mike Hirst]

A quick note for anyone who might make the same mistake as me.

Don't Google "German hookers". 

[Lars]

I make mine from 0.3 mm brass - a plate cost about the price of two pints, and will get you 20+ lifters - it's nice to have various tapers and widths available for different size reeds.
I got it off a model makers shop.

[diatonix]

Naturally, there are about as many opinions as there are tuners, but from personal experience I'd say that by far the best* lifters  are made  from steel, incidentally from the very steel sheets used in reed production (the same sheets make also excellent cabinet scrapers!).
*) = fastest, most durable, providing best support for the reed during the tuning process either with a file or a scratcher

[Winston Smith]

Speaking as an ex mechanic, how about a set of feelers? (All thickness's catered for.)

[Steve_freereeder]

Speaking as an ex mechanic, how about a set of feelers? (All thickness's catered for.)

My feeling (ha, ha!) is that they would be too thin and flexible to overcome the springiness of the reed tongue in order to tweak it up through the reed plate slot. A thicker feeler gauge might work but it would also need filing so that it was narrow enough at the tip to poke down through the slot.

A German-style reed lifter ideally has to perform two functions - (i) to spring the reed tongue up through the slot and (ii) support the reed tongue while it is then being filed or scratched. In the hands of an expert, steps (i) and (ii) are combined in one smooth movement.

Personally, I can't get on too well with them; I nearly always prefer the Italian-style hook lifter. However, I'd be interested to try a spring steel lifter as described by Diatonix.

[diatonix]

The "secret" of a good, versatile* German type reed lifter lies very much in how skilfully different grades of width, thickness and flexibility are distributed along its entire length. Surprisingly, the hook itself is the easiest part to get right.
* lifting effortlessly as many different sizes as possible 

[Prestidigitator]

I bought some small bronze sheets in different thicknesses to make lifters. They seem to work well for me.

[Rog]

I use the Italian style hook lifter. Can't get on with the other sort at all.

[malcolmbebb]

Oh dear. Marmite.

[Theo]

Oh dear. Marmite.

Try them both, see which works for you.  If you are tuning inside the box then the Italian hook is essential.

[malcolmbebb]

Not having the right size hook, I ended up taking the block out, poking the offending reeds  - fortunately only two - from the inside (in turn) and slipping a scalpel blade under the tongue to hold them there.
I can see that this method won't always be available.

[Theo]

The hook is very easy to make from a scrap of piano wire of about 0.7mm

[malcolmbebb]

The hook is very easy to make from a scrap of piano wire of about 0.7mm

Cheers Theo, I will give that a go.

In other news, a ground down and slightly tapered 0.30 mm feeler gauge is also looking very promising with a couple of successful lifts to date 

[Steve_freereeder]

The hook is very easy to make from a scrap of piano wire of about 0.7mm

Cheers Theo, I will give that a go.

Ideally you need two or three hooks of different sizes and different gauge wire in order to deal with different size reeds. A crucial thing is to get the width of the 'U' of the hook the same distance as the centre spacing between the slots on the reed plates. It makes it far easier to manipulate the hook successfully.

I made my most used hook from a long saxophone needle spring (about 0.5 mm dia) - I happened to have a few spares - bent over at one end and the other end pushed and super-glued into a wooden dowel handle.

http://www.windplus.net/supplies/needle_springs.html

[tirpous]

Another source for music wire is guitar or electric bass (the core, for larger diameters) strings.