Levers Camac, Loveland and Truitts

All three of these lever systems work very well, giving accurate half steps without changing the tone of the strings. Thormahlen Harps are now fitted with Camac Levers as the standard option.

CAMAC LEVERS:
Camac Levers come standard on all of our harps. They are the newest lever to become available. They were developed by the Camac Harp Company of France.

Camac levers are a silver color made totally from metal. The C and F lever handles are colored with red and blue bands to make lever flipping easy. These levers give accurate half steps without changing the tone of the strings. The tone difference of the levered string is virtualy undetectable to one that is not levered. They have a smooth and quiet action with a reasonable throw distance. There is no noise from the lever rubbing on the bass wires when engaging. The levers can be easily adjusted by the harp owner. Because of these things, we think they are the best choice of lever for your harp. The tone is clear, the action is smooth and the levers easily adjusted.

This lever regulating tool kit, which comes complete with instructions is available for purchase. It contains 3 nut drivers that coincide with the bridge pin sizes and a torx driver. The #4 nut driver is modified so it will fit between the levers. The tool set is $50.

Regulating Camac Levers

LOVELAND LEVERS:
Loveland Levers were developed by Robert Bunker of Bertoud, Colorado. They have been around for quite awhile and have stood the test of time.

These levers have a brass metal bracket with long gold plastic handles. The long gold handles are smooth to operate. They have a short throw, which facilitate rapid lever changes. We paint red and blue dots on the C & F levers, making it easy to find the lever you want to engage. Loveland Levers can be regulated by the owner, but a more accurate regulation would be gotten if done by a professional. The tools for adjusting these levers can be purchased from us for $3 each or $5 for both. Find them on our pricelist page.

Once in a while the Loveland Lever handles break. They are very easy and inexpensive to replace at $1 each + $1 shipping. When ordering a new lever handle, please let us know if you have the short black or the long gold handles.

If your Loveland levers tends to make a little noise when engaging and disengaging in the bass octave, you can muffle the string while you lever, or if you move it slowly as you engage or disengage the lever, it minimizes the sound.
Occasionally, one of the levers may sound muted when engaged. This can be caused by a lever that may have been knocked and is no longer exactly straight to the string, or the lever may need a little tightening to the neck. Your L wrench is the tool you need for that. Call us if you have problems with this. We may be able to help you over the phone.

TRUITT LEVERS:
Truitt Levers were developed by Betty Truitt of Mt. Laguna, California. These gold-plated brass levers have a small barrel with a groove that immobilizes the string at the sharping point. The result is a very clear levered tone and almost no noise when the lever is engaged. Because the Truitts do not pinch the string, you can more easily tune your strings with the levers engaged and not worry about having to equalize the tension.

Truitts have a quiet, smooth lift, although they have a long throw. The Truitt handles are flat (parallel to the neck) and have little heart shapes on the C and F levers. These are hard to see when you are sitting at your harp playing. They are easier to see when you are standing next to your harp looking straight at the levers. A lever tool for adjusting these levers is included with your harp or you can also purchase one from us for $3. You can find a photo of this tool on our pricelist page. Truitt levers cost $500 extra.

What key should I tune my harp in?:
This can vary greatly depending on your level of understanding music. It can also change in time as you get more familiar with playing the harp and what music you're playing.

We generally send our harps out in the key of Eb unless otherwise specified. This gives you the largest range of keys to play in from Eb all the way up to the key of A. Using the circle of fifths that takes you from Eb (3flats: a, e, b) to Bb (2 flats: e, b), F (1 flat: b) C (no flats or sharps), G (1 sharp: f), D (2 sharps: f, c), A (3 sharps: f, c, g) and with all your levers up you would be in the key of E which is a 1/2 step up from where you started at Eb.

If Eb is too confusing for you, you could start in the key of C by tuning all notes to natural.

If you feel a little adventurous, you can tune your B's to flat and then you have the key of F to play in and also the key of C modal using a Bb in the key of C which is very common in old timey music.

Don't be too afraid of the Eb tuning. With the quality of levers available, the tone of the harp is beautiful in any key and there is a lot of music being written in the key of Eb and it's relative minor of Cm (See the music books on the bottom of the music page for some of these tunes). They have a wonderful placement on the harp and the red (c) and blue (f) anchors work great in those keys.

Please don't hesitate to call or email if you have questions about the tuning of your Thormahlen harp. You can also learn more about this from the books of Ray Pool: 3's a Chord and Tuning Your Lever Harp in Eb Major. Wherever you start your harp adventure, you can always evolve along with your ability as you gain mastery in playing the harp!

Onward to the strings page.