Can some cheap harmonica be bad for health?
Sat, 03/17/2018 - 13:38
Can some cheap harmonicas have materials that might be bad for health or dangerous ?
Toxic Plastic or nickel for example?
Thu, 10/31/2019 - 06:49
#2
I bought a chromatic from
I bought a chromatic from China and felt a little bit of some kind of metal shaving go into my throat and started coughing!
I said to my husband that he might read in the newspapers:
Woman killed by Chinese harmonica - film at 11.
Btw, I started on the harmonica at all because I got that harmonica for almost nothing because I bought a totally different kind of stringed instrument from the company. I was totally taken with the harmonica in general because of it and that's how I ended up here. I still like that harmonica!
And... I lived to tell the story. ;)
Seriously, though.
Nickel used to be he material of choice for plating Hohner harmonica covers. But some people have a nickel allergy, and German law was changed to forbid its used. Hohn er swtiched to stainless steel several years ago, but older vintage harmonicas may have nickel plating.
Cheap harmonicas come mainly from China. Not sure that anyone there is using nickel. but we've seen lead being used to brighten colors in the plastic used in children's toys, so perhaps that might be of concern. That said, most plastic combs are black ABS, which is not a bright color and probably woudn't benefit from using lead to punch up the color.
If you're concerned aobut it, well, buy better harps. You ears and mental state will definirely beneifit.