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Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2017 4:21 pm
by SlimHeilpern
I have so far installed a Power Comb and Power Slide in 2 of my CX12s and really like the results, so thanks again Brendan for a terrific customization!

My question:

I'm seeing some variance, I think it's between the plastic housings of CX12s from various years or maybe just luck of the draw. The first one I installed was a fairly new CX12 and the second rather old (but lightly played). The older one had an immediate issue with the slide being too tight, pretty much immovable. So I swapped with a different older housing and it was better. However, it's still a bit too tight (and this is compared with with my newer CX12 with the Power slide/comb combo) in that I need to clean and lightly lube the slide often to keep it from getting hung up.

What would you suggest to loosen things up just a bit?

Thanks!

- Slim

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2017 4:49 pm
by EugeneRyan
Hi Slim,

It may be down to inconsistencies in the individual comb. Have you seen Brendan's video where he talks about sanding the face of the comb so there are no bumps? I think it's on the Power Slide video.

Another thing could be that the tension bar/spring in the back may be too curved, which can also highlight these issues above. Does the problem occur with the back bar out of the CX12? Or perhaps try a few of them to see. You may get the combination right without sanding the comb, but anyway, it's not a huge ordeal to sand anyway.

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2017 4:57 pm
by SlimHeilpern
Hi Eugene -

I'm not using a Hohner comb, I'm using the Power Comb which comes with a metal piece glued to the top of the comb, so I don't think that should need to be sanded down. And again, changing the plastic housing does seem to impact the tightness of the slide.

And no, it doesn't appear to be a problem with the tension bar, which isn't particularly tight.

Thanks for the suggestion in any case!

- Slim.

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2017 5:31 pm
by EugeneRyan
Oh yes, sorry, I missed that!

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:05 am
by Brendan
Hi Slim, have you checked the slide is absolutely straight? With such tight tolerances the slightest kink or bend will stop it sliding smoothly.

Look along the edge from the button end and back the other way. If you see a bend, very gently tease it out by pushing lightly from the opposite side.

If it's not that, try some iron wool on the front of the metal comb fronts in case they have picked up some residue, and check the insides of the CX12 slide channel. Hope one of those helps, let us know.

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:05 am
by Brendan
Hi Slim, have you checked the slide is absolutely straight? With such tight tolerances the slightest kink or bend will stop it sliding smoothly.

Look along the edge from the button end and back the other way. If you see a bend, very gently tease it out by pushing lightly from the opposite side.

If it's not that, try some iron wool on the front of the metal comb fronts in case they have picked up some residue, and check the insides of the CX12 slide channel. Hope one of those helps, let us know.

Re: Power Slide Adjustment?

Posted: Sat Apr 01, 2017 2:52 pm
by SlimHeilpern
Before receiving your reply, I did notice that applying a touch of vaseline along the edges of the slide helps, but the sluggishness is still apparent (and a bit of an annoyance when playing fast).

The slide seems to be perfectly straight, and before trying the steel wool I tried some part swapping to narrow down the issue -- as I mentioned, my newer CX12 with Power Slide and Comb hasn't had this problem (and I've been playing it for 6 months or so).

Putting the newer housing on the older CX12 (everything else unchanged) fixes the problem. So I then tried putting the older housing on the newer CX12 and to my surprise it's fine. So I now have both of them working smoothly. No idea why (I would otherwise not be able to tell the two housings apart -- they look identical), but I'm a happy camper at the moment ;-).

Thanks,

- Slim.