The humble nail has historically been used on everything from the barn to the cross but as part of a musical instrument demanding precision and serviceable access I believe it has had its day, the fact that some world class manufacturers are still using nails to hold reed plates to combs is beyond my comprehension considering the general consensus of opinion that nails equal leaky harmonicas.

above is a diagram designed to illustrate the inefficiency of threading the reed plate, the arrows represent the force of pressure on the parts of the harmonica the force is constantly pulling the screw back through the threaded reed plate,

BUT with a nut completing the clamping pressure directly on both reed plates the possibility of stripping the reed plate and air leaks will be illuminated

the HARP CLAMP KIT is for just such a job a hand vice two drill bits and 4 screws and 4 nuts you can remove the nails and drill through the reed plates and comb and tighten up that harmonica

With the reed plates held on the comb with the cover plate screws (cover plates removed)

Cover the reeds with masking tape

remove ONLY one nail

Drill through each nail hole from the exposed reed side uppermost as you remove the nails one at a time using the 2mm drill bit

You may use the hand vice, or if you have a power or piller drill you can fit the hand vice in the chuck and do it the easy way drilling on a block of soft wood

dont drill with the exposed reeds down or you will damage the reeds