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I design my combs myself and produce them using my CNC mill. Here's a breakdown of the process.

The combs are cut. Water is sprayed on the surface as the mill works to cool the bit as it cuts. Keeping the temperature down helps keep the bit sharp and prevents the finished comb from giving off a strong smell. Fresh off the mill, the combs look a little rough....

After a quick rinse....

Each comb is held in place with support bridges. Here, I have cut them free.

Then wash away the debris.

The rough combs need to be sanded polished and flattened. I first start working on the outer edges and tips of the tines.

Here the outer edges and tines are smooth.

Next, I flatten the top and bottom sides. I check for flatness using a reference. This comb is not flat and needs to be fixed.

After a little work, it's flat.

At this point, the combs are starting to look nice.

Next, I round off every edge. The front (tines, viewed from the side) is rounded.

...and the corners...

Next, I painstakingly work on the inside of every tine. I make sure each one is shaped for comfort.

These tines are comfortable on your tongue.

I start the process of lacquering the tips of the tines. I apply many thin coats instead of only a few thick coats. I do this to ensure the lacquer doesn't chip or crack. My aim is that they last a lifetime.

This is after one coat.

After several coats...

If it's dry and it looks wet, it's done!

Next, I polish the sides and back of the comb. The last step is to flatten the comb one last time to ensure it's going to deliver peak performance.

Combs get wrapped up immediately and are ready to be shipped.

Embossing decrease the space between the reed and the edges of the slot. With higher tolerances can come better performance - the harmonica responds better and plays louder.

The thing about embossing is that so much can go wrong. Fixing the damage can take more time than it takes to do the actual work of embossing the slots.

So how to you "walk the line" to get maximum benefit without creating problems for yourself?

Some folks advocate special tools. Some use a light table. Others use a microscope - sometimes.

All those things can work well. But every method has its disadvantages.

For example, a fast-acting tool can overshoot the mark causing you to work against yourself. A light table only shows you two dimensions and as the reed passes through the slot in three dimensions, you can be left confused as to what you are seeing. A microscope can be overkill - you may not even need one if you have good eyesight. You certainly don't need to use magnification to do most of the work - if anything, you would want to shorten your view of the slot instead of zooming into one segment. But if you are over 40 years of age, using some form of magnification is probably good idea.

Let me share a secret with you: You can get top-level results using simple methods that don't rely on fancy technology.

How?

I'm not telling you. I don't make a habit of keeping secrets, but this is something I have never shared before in public.

I am happy to show folks the basics of how to tweak harmonicas and I have a strong preference for some methods, but there are may ways to get a task done. You don't need to know this secret to do a great job. This method's advantage is that it makes things easier and saves lots of time if you do it correctly.

Again, I'm not going to tell you what it is. I will, however, give you a clue.

Here it is. Print it out. (It's a way of looking at embossing.)

Contact me if you think you have it figured out. I'll let you know whether you are hot or cold. I'll add the most interesting responses to this page as they come in.

Good luck and don't hesitate to contact me!

2014/11/24 - Stephen C. described the way he holds the reed plate to "get a pretty good sense of what's going on in the space between the reed and the plate" and he's very close to what I describe!

2014/12/25 - Jaime G. wrote about "aligning tip edge with edge under rivet (to emboss) with a secure and efficient method."

EDIT: The mystery is over! My explanation can be found here!

I get asked about the blue engraver you see in my YouTube videos. I use it for tuning.

It's from a local store and they no longer sell that model. I bought a few of them when they were clearing them out. They seem to last forever.

From the product description:

Hold the engraver as a pen and apply a minimum amount of pressure. Do not apply excessive force when engraving, as a higher speed will result in better engraving. Free speed: 11,000 to 12,000 RPM.

Here is the new model:

The newer models come with a smaller tip. I like the bigger tip - it's gentler and I can get really close to the side of the reed and not have to worry I am going to cut through the reed. What I do looks a lot more like chamfering once I am done.

Here are the two types of tips you can easily find on Ebay:

With the big gentle tip, I feel I can take off a lot of brass or stainless steel without distorting the reed.

One thing about some engravers is that they can have a little or a lot of run-out.

What is run-out? It's an inaccuracy of rotating mechanical systems, specifically that the tool or shaft does not rotate exactly in line with the main axis.

A lot of run-out will make the tip wobbly and difficult to use. You will distort the reed using such an engraver.

Hold the tip up to the light and watch it spin. If it stays straight, you've got a good one.

If the tip wobbles, I suggest you find a better engraver. Many cheap engravers made in China can have a lot of run-out while some will have almost none. I bought five of them for $2 each and threw four away.

It took me a while to get used to files. Early on, I wrecked reeds, bent them out of shape and overshot the mark using files. A good quality file helps. I found it a lot easier to use the diamond-tip engraver. (Nowadays, I prefer using a Grobet file). I suppose there are many ways to get the job done!

Use any method that brings you success!

I usually prefer to work on a harmonica along with its comb and cover plates. However, there are times when I only require the reed plates. This can save on shipping costs because reed plates can be sent through regular mail.

You do need to be careful to package them in a way to try to avoid damage or loss. If you just drop reed plates into a plain envelope, I probably will receive an empty envelope with a hole in it.

Here's a safe way to package reed plates for transit by regular mail. Please be advised that although this is a great way to package them, regular mail is a lot less safe than sending them as a parcel with insurance. I cannot assume responsibility for list or damaged goods. It's up to you to make the choice whether the cost savings is worth the risk.

Step 1 - Place the reed plates back-to-back. Make sure the reeds are on the out side of both plates.

Step 2 - Wrap them up in wax paper.

Neatly fold the paper around the reed plates.

Step 3 - Use wide packing tape and stick the reed plates to a piece of cardboard. Make sure the reed plates are under a "bubble" of tape and completely covered.

Step 4 - Repeat the process for any other reed plate sets you are sending. Position the plates so they are parallel and centered on the cardboard.

Step 5 - Cover the first piece of cardboard with about piece of the same size. Make a sandwich.

Step 6 - Tape it up. Wrap the tape around the cardboard in both directions.

Step 7 - Put the cardboard sandwich into a bubble envelope and you are ready to send it!