violins88

Thanks, Don. When I drop a soundpost, I don’t hear anything. Oh, the ravages of age!

Colleen, it would be great to get Peter Wusterlund in a lab with sensitive microphones and actually verify what he says he hears. I really, really doubt his hearing can detect what he says. It’s really not technically difficult to verify. Please, Peter, come forward and do a test. That would be very helpful to us. There is another fellow, with many pages on his violin maker website, who claims to be able to scratch a soundpost and use that info to make useful changes. Please, submit your claim to an actual measured test. I think the frequencies involved are above human hearing. But don’t trust me. Submit to a test. How about arranging this to be done at the Cleveland VSA meeting in November? I plan to attend. Who has a good microphone? Someone in Cleveland, I bet. Can we fundraise to pay for Wusterlund to attend? Sorry, actually Wusterlund’s attendance is unnecessary. Someone just needs to measure accurately the sound of a scratched plate with the before and after changes Wusterlund indicates. That can be done by anyone with the right equipment. Anywhere. My brain is tired tonight, but any mechanical engineer can work out the fundamental frequency of vibration of the violin sound post. I am pretty sure it is above human hearing frequencies. (See Langsather videos.) But wait… what about subharmonics. Isn’t it possible that we can hear half of 30 kHz. Yes, I think so. Some people, not me. But still, wouldn’t a test be nice? Thanks

I teach hobby violin making, trying to follow Davide Sora’s method as closely as possible. Currently have 8 students. 4 of them are at the scraper stage. I have the spring steel, 0.4 mm thick, as recommended by Darnton years ago. My most promising approach seems to be to hold the scraper against a 90 degree block, to keep it vertical against the 2000 grit diamond plate. Then use carbide burnisher. I am practicing. Sometimes successful. Use lube from behind the ear.

I use 0.4 mm thick steel, 1095 from MSC. (0.015 in thick) Cut the shape with snips. Smooth the profile on a belt sander, 80 grit. This is a dangerous operation. Don’t do it. Hire me to do it for you. Now, on a Tormek or similar, using the side of the wheel, grind an angle on the edge. 70 to 80 degrees. Keep going until you feel the burr. Grind the hook away using a 1000 grit, then 2000 grit diamond stone. Next, polish the edge on 1000 then 2000 grit. I hold near the 80 degree angle. Next use a tungsten carbide burnisher, trying to emulate Davide Sora. This works for me. Maybe a video someday.

Will send more detail tomorrow. Ted will be glad you are interested.

Yes, there is a pin in the end. I put marker ink on the blade.

My friend, Ted, made this machine for purfling. The cutter part pivots down. This thing is accurate and easy to use. I will try to add details of the motor and control part.

Does anyone else use this method? It works for me and my students.

Mark and Deans, thanks.

South is towards the tailpiece.

A friend found a nice looking violin in a. Second hand shop. However, the neck measures 133 mm, instead of the standard 130 mm. The string length is 333 mm. The nut is 3 mm south of the thumb rest. Is this likely playable at all? thanks

Thanks David and Don. I am planning to teach how to measure the speed of sound in wood.

Many of us have used Audacity to analyze violin sounds. I don’t think Audacity works on phones. But I am sure there is something that does. What is it, please? Thanks, John

A student is working on a viola model after Leopold Widhalm. The pattern we got from the luthierslibrary has the arches of the top and back being the same. Is this likely, or even possible? Thanks, John

My 21st violin has a tilted neck. If the endpin were moved maybe 5 mm to the right, it would be aligned. Here is a very impromptu recording. I hope the neck lasts a long time.