jacobsaunders

The other factor that often makes it difficult for a dealer to take an instrument in part-exchange, is if he owns the fiddle he is selling, and you are trading up too, or if he has that on consignment too. This is the slippery slope that can land one in prison.

All these maniacs who know better than Del Gesu should have made their own new violins. They would have obviously sounded bloody marvelous

Kaiserlich- Königlich, i.e. Austro-Hungarian monarchy. People here say Kakanien https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_and_Royal

Many 18th C Austrian violins had high ribs, up to ca.33mm is not unusual. Some, like Meinrad Frank even had occasionally up to 36mm. It is a constant cause of annoyment when one comes across one of these that some moronic “violin improver” has planed them down to the “proper” height. Once I had a Meinrad Frank meeting with several of his instruments, and Segio Luca tested them all intensively. The conclusion was that “high” ribs, or planed down ones, puncto sound doesn’t make a blind bit of difference

I have the impression that this violin originally had a dark coloured varnish, and was quite nice. It has been manipulated beyond recognition, but I presume it was from the K&K area, late 18th C.

Does it have any corner blocks?

The best book on the subject to read would be the Turin volume from Eric Blot. It won’t alter the fact that you have a dustbin-ready “Caussin school” knackered French trade fiddle though.

Forberger violins (& violas) can be quite frequently seen here (Vienna). I remember a time when some member of the Forberger family died, and one could have bought dozens of them fairly cheap. He strangely seems to have been missed by the usual violin making lexica. I would describe them as being in a good post war Bohemian tradition, not brilliant, but quite good. Once, returning from a Paris violin auction on the Orient Express (a grotty night train from Paris to Bucharest) I was astonished to find out that the girl in our compartment was his granddaughter. She seemed pretty disgusted with violins.

Mr. Öhberg will be insulted

Many years ago I had a similar problem. Back then I called GEWA (where I had originally bought them) and got the name and address of the firm that actually made them (an engineering firm in Remscheid). I was able to send them there, and they repaired them for me. Yours don’t look like the GEWA ones, but I suppose you could ask where you bought them, and hope they weren’t made by a German firm that doesn’t trade any more, or somewhere in China.

Perhaps you should study "Saxon boxes" a little more thouroughly

Having seen many gynaecologicaly inserted “studs” from previous repairmen, I cannot say I am impressed. With the OP violin, I would open the belly/rib joint up to the lower corners, wash the crack out, and glue it together with some stretcher cramps. Re glue the edges and finished. I would also shorten the saddle, which is probably what pushed the crack open in the first place. I would not use or need any crack “stud” at all. It would be easier to repair the crack with the belly off, but if that weren’t in the budget, that is how I would proceed.

What advantage doe you expect from a "Spline"?

Should one take a bow on for re-hair, it is only prudent to point out an old repaired head crack, and point out that one will not feel responsible for an old repair that one did not execute oneself.

Did anyone laugh?