Hello,
Am 01.05.2010 um 22:42 schrieb Simon Wascher:
Some more words on the Loveland levers (LL).
If you look for the perfect capo for the gurdy it should:
not interfere with the string in open position
the LL come in different sizes with different openings between the
bolt that blocks (a catch) and the arm that presses the string against
this catch. One can choose the size of the "horizontal" opening for
the vibrating string by choosing the size of the lever. With the LL
the basis is only a brass plate so also the "vertical" space for the
vibrating string is quite wide.
not move the string away from the wheel or much towards it but
Allow an adjustment for the horizontal angle of the string in closed
position
Here the LL is a working compromise: The LL presses the string towards
the wheel a bit, which is effectively exactly whats needed to achive
near to identical reaction from the buzzing bridge when the string
gets shortened. The LL is ok for a range of about a third up from the
open string, depending on the strings amplitude. For capos higher up
the string the open strings amplitude gets in conflict with the
correct catch position for the closed capo. for capos higher up it
would be needed that the a catch also is moveable, to allow a big
opening with a small alteration of the a catch position.
Alternatively systems without a catch would be a solution.
not change the (vertical) angles between string and soundboard (the
pressure of the chien against the soundbard
The LL moves the string towards the wheel as described above, not up
or away.
not be higher than the distance between the strings (to use them on
neighbouring strings)
this is only an issue if more than one string needs to be shortened.
The LL is at the limit for general height, there are levers that are
"thinner", but the LL winns because only the thin brass plate is
positioned between the strings, unlike other capos where the base is
"thicker" narrowing the space for the vibrating string.
include some reproduceable method of fine tuning
like all modern harp levers the LL comes with a built in fine tuning
system: the hole for the screw that fixes it is a slot, so the base of
the lever can be moved when the screw is slacken a bit.
be reliable over many years of usage
about 35 levers are installed on one harp, and on the harp single
levers might get switched at each turn of a tune, and there are
thousands of harps out there. So, harp levers are really, really
tested heavy duty, for millions of times. Why invent the wheel if you
can allready order one?
emergency-replaceable
the LL levers are made up from simple removeable parts, the screws are
standard parts, a spare lever is a cheap invetion. By the way till now
I did not manage to break one. Thouse who know me, know this means a
lot: they are (nearly?) unbreakable.
be of adjustable firmness
a screw let adjust you how hard the arm gets moved.
effortless and handsome
The LL has a second catch that limits the movement of the arm in both
positions open and closed. So it is really on and of. The switch is
done with a simple movement, no skillful finger adjustment. Assumed
the finetuning is done well, it is possible to switch the LL at any
moment whilst playing (as it gets done with the lever harps and
therefore is the case for all modern harp levers).
beautyful
The LL is *not* beautiful. If someone comes up with a more beautiful
one, that equals the LL in its practical characteristics, I will switch.
cheap
its cheap, about 10 $ each.
available
its available per mailorder in 15 different sizes.
Close: I am in no private or economic relation with Loveland, I just
think they do a good job for the hurdy gurdy (supposedly without
knowing).
I sorted through numerous harp lever types, some of them are close
matches too, others are completely useless for the gurdy.
I belive its sensible to open our hurdy gurdy minds for the outside
world, for the solutions already arround, to be able to concentrate on
the unsolved problems, to get ourselves, the dwarfes, onto the
sholders of our ancestors and not to waste time inventing the wheel
from scratch.
cheers,
Simon
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