Hohner Marine Band

Brad Little

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Just got an email from Elderly that had a promo for Lee Oskar harmonicas. Went to their website and checked the price on Marine Band harps. I have a couple in my junk drawers from the late 60s-early 70s, price stickers of $3.95 or $4.95, the current selling price at Elderly is $47.99, more of an increase than a direct 1970 to today dollar conversion. Back then, $3.95 was not a lot for a teenager to have to spend, and I wonder how this translates. Is today's teen likely to think of $50 or so the way we looked at $5?
Brad
 

NEONMOONY

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Well, I don't think I'd buy one at Elderly. Many other stores have similar and even higher prices than that but on Ebay some new ones are in the 20's with some make offers. Pro Audio Star around $33.75 or make offer (Dollar Times says $5 in 1965 converts to $38.69 and a 1970's $5 bill is 32.02).
 

GardMan

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I dunno... my kids ask me for $50 as casually as I asked my dad for $5 when I was a teen (45 years ago)...
 

matsickma

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Gas prices are one item that has typically been higher than normal inflation. Maybe its the fuel taxes or additives. In NE PA a gallon if regular leaded was $0.32 a gallon June 1972. $1 in '72 is $5.83 today. At that rate a gallon of gas would cost $1.87! In the old days regular was 89 octane. Just paid around $2.50 a gallon. Gas really was dirt cheap at one time!
M
 

dreadnut

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In the mid 70's I was paying $5 for a Marine Band or a Blues Harp. I'd soak 'em in a glass of water to "help the reeds bend." (And to rust, no doubt.)

Hey, in '76 when I bought my first Guild, a Martin D-18 was about $650. I paid $300 for my D-25M. Those prices included a hard shell case.

The cheapest gas prices I remember were in the 60's when the service stations used to have "gas wars," 17.9 cents a gallon. The 9/10 cent in the price was invented by a marketing genius no doubt.
 

Sal

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Yeah, harmonicas are expensive. I've been buying Lee Oscars because they are great harps and because you can buy replacement reed plates for close to half the cost of a new one.
 

Jeff Haddad

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Gas prices are one item that has typically been higher than normal inflation. Maybe its the fuel taxes or additives. In NE PA a gallon if regular leaded was $0.32 a gallon June 1972. $1 in '72 is $5.83 today. At that rate a gallon of gas would cost $1.87! In the old days regular was 89 octane. Just paid around $2.50 a gallon. Gas really was dirt cheap at one time!
M

As of a couple years ago when I was researching diesel fuel prices for my business, Pennsylvania had the highest fuel taxes that I found in the US. Even higher than what I consider high-tax states like NY, NJ, MA and even CA. And the roads still suck!
 

Cougar

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Soakin' the harps in water didn't actually help the reeds, it helped swell the wood a to make them more airtight.

Whatever it does, just running some water through a harp really opens it up!

Jeez, at todays prices, I'm sure glad I've still got all my old blues harps!
 

Brad Little

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Soakin' the harps in water didn't actually help the reeds, it helped swell the wood a to make them more airtight. It doesn't help on the newer plastic or aluminum ones.
I remember someone, maybe Tony "Little Sun" Glover, saying he soaked his harps in gin. Never tried it myself. Even though I still have several, haven't touched a harp in decades.
Brad
 

Brad Little

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Gas prices are one item that has typically been higher than normal inflation. Maybe its the fuel taxes or additives. In NE PA a gallon if regular leaded was $0.32 a gallon June 1972. $1 in '72 is $5.83 today. At that rate a gallon of gas would cost $1.87! In the old days regular was 89 octane. Just paid around $2.50 a gallon. Gas really was dirt cheap at one time!
M
A lot of the increase due to state taxes most places, and, as Jeff said, the roads still suck. Because Stop & Shop supermarket runs a discount program in conjunction with its own gas stations, we've been paying about $1.85 a gallon the last year and a half.
Brad
 

matsickma

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The last time I drove to FL i noticed fuel prices were lower in other states than PA but not as much as I anticipated. When I head down next week i'll keep some notes for refe.
NJ always has much cheaper gas prices than PA and it's pumped fir you!
M
 

Cougar

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Soakin' the harps in water didn't actually help the reeds, it helped swell the wood a to make them more airtight.

Just running water through a harp (then shaking the water out) makes it MUCH easier to bend a note. I guess it also cleans out the saliva in there, cleans off the reeds... They really sing after the water treatment!
 
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