Hohner 36 Professional
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Hi,
First post here.
I bought a Hohner 36 Pro after hearing Mario Dueñas playing My Funny Valentine here:
I like the sound but I hear and feel a lot of air escaping. Is this normal? With other melodicas it takes longer before I’m out of air.
Hello Mauricio, there could be several reasons why you are leaking air. First I need to know is it a Professional 36 Melodica or Piano 36 melodica. They are completely constructed different. To start blow and do not depress any keys and see if you can hear or feel where the air is escaping from.
Melodica-MeIt is a Professional 36 Melodica. The air seems to be escaping from everywhere. I have opened it and I can see the reeds immediately. Is this normal? Just wondering if I’m missing something.
Got it. For an interesting reason probably to evade water build-up the Hohner 36 Pro channels the wind to the end of the melodica and brings it into an air chamber. The fitting at the end was moved and was letting air escape. I glued the cracks where air was leaking and the problem is solved.
Not sure why but my last post did not post. If you don’t already have Bees wax for accordion repairs, you should pick up a small container, they sell them on Ebay for about $10 bucks use the bees wax to fill in cracks, also check your reeds and see if the bees wax is cracking, you may need to reseat them. It is also good for broken seals. I also have the professional 36 and the Solist, similar to the professional 36 with a few minute changes, very rare not many made. The beauty of the Profesional 36 is that you do not have to take it apart completely to tune it. Good luck and take pictures of your progress when possible so we can see how you fixed your melodica. They help everybody.
Melodica-Me
Yeah, I see Bees wax was indeed used by manufacturing. I used 2k glue… Anyhow, The Melodica is playable again and I’m enjoying it a lot! Next time when I open it I’ll take some pictures.
I have repeatedly faced with fact that in new Hohner instruments not a complete seal. Since I periodically buy melody before important concerts or recordings, I got statistically over the past 2 years impression that melodica quality deteriorated – what I wrote in a letter to firm.
For comparison: in 1974 I bought in New York Hohner Piano 36 – then was the most professional tool. Until now, no repair needed, except for tuning one reed.Maurizio, I advise You will also do it. We must not be silent!
It’s a shame they stopped manufacturing this product. The professional is great but in my opinion the only great melodica Hohner made. After this one, Yamaha and Suzuki/Hammond follow. Maybe I’ll write them a letter to say the Japanse have surpassed their own invention… But is honor still a factor in this day and age? Does Hohner have Hohner?
As promised the picture:
There is a metal shaft that basically started dropping and showed a gap. I glued the space with 2K and now it is working fine. What a joy it is playing on this instrument!
Next problem: when I play a lot – my high D gets stuck (with moisture). When I open and clean it’s gone… But it’s only this reed that has problems… any idea why? Or should I post a foto of the reed?
Do you mean that the key gets stuck in the down position? Or do you mean that you get no sound? Is there a strip of felt along the front of the keys? If so, is there a concentration of moisture in the felt at that key? Some of us have occasional problems with a key not playing on our Yamahas, and there has been discussion about how that may relate to a concentration of moisture and/or to gapping of the reed. But it sounds like you’re saying that the key itself is getting stuck. Is it something you can “play through” without opening the instrument by varying the wind pressure and alternately blowing and sucking? I’m able to do this with my Yamaha keys.
No, the key is good. The reed stops working (no sound) because of moisture build-up. I’ve tried both to blow or to suck out the moisture but it’s not working – even blowing in the moisture release.
Like I said… in the Pro 36 the air gets channeled all the way to the high keys – so that’s where the moisture builds up.
What does not do the firm do the customers themselves: . my friend made the tube for Yamaha P 37 D, consisting of two parts, one of which looks like here
http://www.homedistiller.ru/samogonnyj-apparat-svoimi-rukami.htm
All the moisture condenses in the first bend of tube, which can be removed. If someone wants to – I can get a picture.
Mauricio, I have the same problem, with both the Pro 36 and Solist, what I have found is that after you play your melodica and you blow it out do not lay it flat. I have a melodica stand that hold the melodica up right. After a few minutes of it being upright, blow again. The theory is simple the moisture will tend to fall by gravity. If you blow and leave it flat the moisture will stay where ever it sits. If your reads are getting stuck take a needle and scrape the side of the read block as there is where the moisture will build up. Carefully not to bend your reed during the process.
Malodica-Me
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