FULLSICLE IN NATURAL MAPLE.

WILLIAM REES, MASTER LUTHIER AT WORK.

Truitt Sharping Levers - one of the modern generation of levers, the Truitts have a firm action, solid lock and excellent tone. Red and blue jewels on the tip of the handle clearly distinguish the C and F levers without getting in the way. These markers can also easily be seen and felt from behind and are especially helpful in low-light situations.
The Truitts are machined from solid brass with a stunning 24ct gold-plated finish giving your harp an added look of distinction. One of the real advantages of this new generation lever is that the levers are not as sensitive to different string dimensions, as are some older generation levers. This means that you can change string dimensions or string types without having to change the levers themselves. Additionally, the act of changing a string is easier with a Truitt than any other lever since the string does not have to be worked or threaded between lever parts. Another important advantage of the Truitt lever has to do with thumping.
When a string gets older it becomes more stretched and, therefore, thinner. Because the Truitt lever, unlike the old Lovelands, is not at all sensitive to the diameter of the string and sharps firmly regardless, the sharped string will continue to be voiced properly. With old-style levers which are diameter dependent when a string ages and thins the lever is not fully engaging the string and the string thumps when the lever is actuated. Regarding the actual construction of levers, past generation levers, like the Robinson and Loveland levers, are attached to the harp using bent sheet brass and using a single mounting screw. This method of construction allows the dissipation of significant energy when the string is vibrating. When a lever is vibrating substantially it is sucking energy and venting it directly into the air. Because a given plucked string only generates a finite amount of energy, if the energy is put into the lever it is not available to generate sound.
New generation levers, like the Truitt and the Camac, are machined out of solid brass. The greater mass and added stiffness in the frame of these levers prevents them from absorbing much of the energy generated by the string. This means that more energy stays in the string and is available for use by the soundboard. Translation - because new generation levers do not vent as much energy, a string which is sharped is going to have virtually the same tonal quality as one which is not. This is essential to modern lever harp professionals who are keeping their harps tuned in E-flat (Eb).
OK...enough about Truitt, how about Camac? Camac and Truitt both have the same goal in mind: To render an accurate half step tone, while still retaining the quality of the voice of the string. Camac levers are made in France, superbly machined with nickel plated, solid brass bases and handles. Their action is very smooth, indeed, and the handles are both strong and comfortable to the touch. When engaged, Camac levers do not displace the strings. The Camac would not be our standard lever if we felt it to be inferior in any way.