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WHC 2011 - Harp maintenance and regulations

WHC 2011 - Harp maintenance and regulations Brief notes on morning sessions on Harp maintenance and regulations at the congress:
1. Most importantly, keep your harp alive.  Treat it as a human, wood is organic material, if you won't feel comfortable in freezing cold night inside a truck, neither does your harp.
2. Have your harp regulate at least every three years.
3. Points to note if you change felt yourself:
a. wrap the felt clockwise for pedals on right-hand side; while anti-clockwise for pedals on left-hand side.
b. wrap round the pedal twice and cut at 45' at the bottom.
4.  May need to adjust the spring, if the pedal is too tight or loose.
a. hold the spring and push down straight to take it out
5.  Adjust the pedal rod
a. take out the pedal pin and turn clockwise to shorten the rod.
6. Also need to change bass wire after some years.
7. Sound board belly is a sign of good vibration.
8. High humidity may cause the wood to bend as it soften the wood.
9. Surface cracklines, usually only cracks on finishes.  It does not affect the structure of the harp, so may live with it.
10.  Serious crack - 
a. neck crack (sometimes, the neck may have stress lines);
b. soundborad crack - horizontal line is less serious, vertical line means stress of a number of strings.
11.  Tuning - elbow up and push in.  If tuning pin is too tight, tap on the pin using the tuning key.

Videos:
1. How to turn your harp to regulate:








2. How to change pedal felt


3. How to adjust the spring



Useful Online Harp information videos:


http://www.harpcenter.com/category/harp-information-videos#1A
http://www.youtube.com/user/mossharpservice

http://www.harpcenter.com/category/harp-information-videos#1A


Examples: Video on  "Tuning your harp"