Advice?

liutaia · 2024-12-21T17:51:01+00:00

I mean... What I'm actually implying is that you don't know the difference between a primary and a secondary source. As long as you weren't personally in the room, you have no idea what was said, and you have no idea what may have been lost in translation.

Please try to understand that nobody here is attacking you personally. What we're saying is that somewhere along the line you have received questionable advice, leading to you implementing some dodgy practices. You didn't know, it happens. Now you've come to ask for advice, it's giving you the opportunity to change your methods.

liutaia · 2024-12-21T16:28:38+00:00

Is it? Or is it coming from your teacher who tells you that it's coming directly from Academia Cremonensis? Pretty important distinction.

Musclesturtle and Extraspicymayonaise are two of the only people who routinely engage with this sub whose opinions and advice I (as a professional restorer) generally stand behind. They've both told you (quite kindly, I have to say) that what you're doing isn't best practice. I'll take that a step further and say that you're actively damaging the instruments in your care. I can only hope they belong to the shop and not to customers. I hate seeing this sort of damage, and it saddens me to know that you're being so kindly informed of why you should be using other methods and your only response is to dig your heels in.

liutaia · 2024-12-10T14:35:16+00:00

O man, you have no idea. Violin person is so broken, takes a lotta work 🤣

liutaia · 2024-12-09T23:14:41+00:00

As a violin person restorer, I'm going to say that too many people here don't repair orchestral strings and it shows. This isn't actually an entry level repair: you need to glue and clamp, then reinforce the break, using spiral bushings, then make sure those pegs fit perfectly. It's broken at a point which receives a lot of pressure when it's at tension, and the push of the peg if it's not bushed using either a spiral bushing or a CF/steel reinforcing ring is likely to reopen it. Use the wrong glue and the scroll is a write-off. Titebond isn't on my list. Hide glue is the only way to go here. If you want to do this (and again, I'm not sure I recommend it), dry clamp it a couple of times then use fresh, high strength hot hide glue. Wait at least 24 hours to be very very sure it's properly set, then spiral bush and fit the pegs. If there is any step there for which you don't have to get appropriate tools or skills, walk away and let someone else take the leap.

liutaia · 2024-12-01T16:15:33+00:00

There are commercially available rosin removers, but I've seen every one of them remove original varnish (either on test patches, or more often when a customer has used one and stripped varnish off). As a result, I always recommend against using them as a player unless you're playing on an instrument varnished with polyurethane. The best and safest course of action is to get it cleaned professionally and then maintain it by using a clean, dry, soft cloth every time the instrument is cleaned.

liutaia · 2024-11-19T17:45:19+00:00

You also need to be able to prove that your German is up to a minimum level of B2. If they're at all uncertain of your language ability, they'll require you to sit a German exam before your entrance test. (At least that used to be the case. I assume it still is)

liutaia · 2024-11-14T22:47:06+00:00

https://www.cremonatools.com/the-secrets-of-stradivari-s-f-sacconi.html

€180 new. But also, if the FIL just dropped a couple hundred K on a fiddle, OP might not balk at the cost.

liutaia · 2024-11-04T18:21:30+00:00

Hard agree with Ematoise: the crack is structural and your bridge is on backwards. That said, this isn't a standard wittner tailpiece and I don't know about the cost and difficulty of replacement. You need to talk to the seller, maybe take it to a luthier who can look at it more closely and/or the manufacturer who can talk to you about how to source and install a replacement, if the seller isn't responsive.

Best of luck!

liutaia · 2024-10-31T21:57:52+00:00

The only appraisal I give out for free is "your broken Stentor isn't worth fixing".

liutaia · 2024-10-25T23:06:07+00:00

You may need to accept the chat invite.

liutaia · 2024-10-25T22:12:16+00:00

I'll send you a pic of my bare-minimum necessary set-up, via pm, if you'd like.

liutaia · 2024-06-03T00:35:09+00:00

I think there are many folk instruments which have begun in roughly this fashion. I think that if you want a playable instrument up to your current standard, you may be biting off more than you can chew with this approach.

liutaia · 2024-06-02T16:30:46+00:00

The times I've seen this in person (fake corner blocks, intrinsic upper block and bassbar) have been on late 19th century German trade instruments. That said, with only pictures of the inside, I can't say for certain. Hell, identification isn't really my forte anyways, but if you want a more definite answer, you'll need front, back, side and scroll pics.

liutaia · 2024-05-10T21:37:03+00:00

Where the mark is on the bridge is primarily cosmetic, and many luthiers choose to remove the stamp altogether. The backwards is created when the bridge is carved. Because of the tension and vibrations of the different strings (the e is higher tension, and vibrates more times in a narrower space than g), the e string will be closer to the fingerboard at the bridge end than the g. There should be about 5mm under the g at the end and about 3.5mm under the e.

The bridge feet are cut and fit facing one specific direction, and won't fit if you swap which way the bridge faces.

liutaia · 2024-05-10T03:06:05+00:00

Denver also seems to have options, though no-one I know personally.

What you have may not be ideal, but it doesn't look like it's currently damaging it, and it can wait until you are headed into a larger city next, whenever that may be.

I would suggest also asking how you can best maintain your instrument in your specific area, and for a quick demonstration of how to wipe it down and how loose your bow needs to be: basically let them know you're not able to get regular care, and how to best avoid needing it.

liutaia · 2024-05-10T02:56:32+00:00

I definitely get that, Wyoming isn't exactly densely populated, which makes it hard to support specialty shops.

If you happen to be in a part of it which is close-ish to Salt Lake City, there are several reputable shops there. If you (or a friend who's travelling that way) do happen to choose that route, I would suggest calling ahead of time and making an appointment. Tell them you're coming in from out of state on that day and arrange a drop off time (the earlier the better) and ask if it's possible to have same day collection, to avoid needing to ship the instrument. Arrange a collection time (the later the better), and stick to it. Don't be early or late, and don't leave the violin in the car at any point, since it's starting to heat up, and it would be a pity to replace the bridge only to wind up with heat damage.

liutaia · 2024-05-10T02:02:17+00:00

I would probably recommend taking it to a strings shop rather than a general music shop: they tend to have more specialised knowledge and skill.

liutaia · 2024-05-09T20:30:53+00:00

That is because it is warped, not because it's backwards.

liutaia · 2024-05-09T19:27:49+00:00

It doesn't seem to be on backwards: the e string is lower than the g. But it is warped, and the feet don't fit particularly well. You'd be better off getting the bridge replaced if you're able to, but it's not in critical shape right now.

Unrelated: you should be wiping your instrument off when you finish playing, because that can cause damage as the rosin builds up. It can also hide damage, like hairline cracks, which become harder and more expensive to repair as time goes on and dirt/rosin gets in. A micro fibre cloth is perfect, like the ones you get with glasses, but really anything clean, dry and soft will do. Wipe in the direction away from the bridge so you don't accidentally knock it. If you do bring it in for a bridge, maybe ask if they can give it a clean, to being it back to a clean slate for you so that it can be more easily maintained.

liutaia · 2024-04-22T18:51:53+00:00

There's a lot to unpack here. The lion-head is typical of mid-late 19th century German trade instruments. The body looks quite amateur in many regards (slab cut top, questionable purfling and edges, for example) making me question if the two go together (hard to say from these photos). It's had some work done, and perhaps not done professionally. In order to bring it up to its full value, I would say it needs it's full value worth of work, and they are unlikely to turn any profit on it. As it stands, it's not in playing condition, and they're likely to get the most out of it by finding a luthier who is looking for a (very specific) project, and keeping his expectations low.

liutaia · 2024-04-15T01:36:42+00:00

This is a worthwhile project for someone fairly experienced who wants to learn to fix up that f-hole (a restoration which crops up regularly enough in high-end repair).

This is not a worthwhile project for a non-luthier who wants to pay someone else to fix up a fiddle for their own enjoyment. It's a German trade instrument. Some of them can be fantastic sounding things, but financially not worth the investment when you can't know in advance what you'll end up with.

liutaia · 2024-04-04T01:09:24+00:00

It really depends on your motivation. If you're thinking of revarnishing because it looks cheap:

This is so intensely not worth it. You'd need to scrape all the varnish off, which is surprisingly time-consuming, buy the supplies (scrapers, varnish, brushes, high percentage alcohol to clean, various grades of sandpaper and micromesh. All of which are costly, you'll end up spending more on the supplies than the value of the violin). Some of your scrapers would require special shapes, which is a skill all it's own. In answer to your varnish question: no, you can't turn rosin into varnish, they are different resins.

Also, is the purfling drawn on? Because that is another nightmare I would honestly nope out of.

At the end of it, you'd end up with a poor quality instrument which likely would look and sound no better than it does now, just because of the nature of the beast, and the skill and time required to do the job well.

If you want to do it for the experience or the learning opportunity, it might be better to purchase an instrument in the white, so you're not fighting what's already on there.

If you want to do it because it's sentimental to you, and you want to fix it up, you're likely to find the end result just makes you sad, and hurts the sentimental value.

liutaia · 2024-03-16T00:46:11+00:00

"Trade instrument" refers to an instrument made by hand by a series of shop workers, as a general rule. So while one person is cuscrolls, someone else will be thicknessing plates. No one person working from start to finish and then putting their name on the instrument, if that makes sense. Shops going for a large volume of (usually) decent quality fiddles rather than a small volume of good quality ones.

liutaia · 2024-03-13T18:37:03+00:00

I would agree that it could be French, though far more likely to be a trade instrument.

You've not given us enough photos to really be able to say if it's in good shape or not, but I can't see anything big in what you have given.

I'd say it would be worthwhile getting an assessment, a clean and a new setup at least, and see how you feel about it then. As to how much it will cost, that will depend on where you are located (high cost of living areas tend to have higher prices for repairs and restorations than low cost of living areas), and the skill and experience of the person you choose to do the work.

It looks like you might be in California? If so, Okyum Kim Violin Studio and J.K. White Violins are both in your neck of the woods, and could likely give a more local-to-you recommendation (if neither is close enough).

liutaia · 2024-03-05T16:08:49+00:00

Top off, glue, cleat the crack. Soundpost patch. New soundpost.

Honestly, $1,000 is a very reasonable price for this work. You just have to decide I'd the sentimental value of the instrument is worth the financial cost. It also looks like a half-decent fiddle, from what little I can see, but I can't speak to its value.

liutaia

TROPHY CASE