Soaking only makes the wood stick out and do your lips a whole heap of no good. Don't do it! Marine bands are better than plastic or wood vampers because the metal finish makes the holes wider, so you can get more flexibility from the metal finished hole. Soak that and you get rust spots that cut your tongue to ribbons. If you want to sound clean, run the plastic-body harps under the tap, then blow to loosen the gunge, then run them under the tap again. Me I like the wood bodies, because they're easier to tighten up the reeds if you bend a reed out of shape. But soaking - that does nothing but give you a mess that costs you money!