[Lowboy]

Hi Bluesmen and Blueswomen.

Here is how I modify my Hohner Piano 26/27/32 melodicas to help seal them well against the melodica apron to maximize expressiveness. The photo below shows modified and unmodified melodicas. You can see from this photo, that I remove the little nubs intended to raise the melodica off of a table. I also remove the water valve shield. I also remove the handle which I don’t use with my playing style. These parts of the melodica get in the way of good sealing. So they are gone.

One note. If you remove the handle, you must seal the rivet holes on the inside of the back cover as the space underneath the handle is a sealed area within the melodica, and you will have leak if you don’t seal the rivet holes, as small as they are.

You can easily remove the handle by gently hitting the rivets with a hammer and punch on the inside of the back cover, which pushes the rivets out a 1/16 of an inch on the outside of the cover. Then grab the rivets with pliers and pull them out.

Here is a Piano 26 ready to play the blues.

Lowboy Bootay