fiddlewallop

http://www.luthiers-mirecourt.com/sibire_la_chelonomie.htm

Oringo, I was curious, is the book that you're referring to (ie - "La Chélonomie"), the same book that is transcribed by Dipper?

Oh, that brings up a good point too. I think there's a concrete wall behind the bench that doesn't go to the outside. I could probably anchor the back of it to that wall, without worrying about cracking it on the outside and spurring a flood when it rains. That would be a good thing to do.

I will have to keep my eyes peeled for Tapcon screws when I swing by the HW store. I've never heard of the anchoring epoxy before either. Do you think this would hold up to the abuse it would take from constant vibration from carving a plate? Not sure if it would be brittle and crack when pressure was applied to it. Maybe not. Would probably prefer to not put holes in the concrete if that was an option.

OK, great. I think I might give this a try then. I was concerned that I might compromise the integrity of the foundation if I attempted this, but if you guys have done this, then I should be OK. I'll stop by the HW store and see what they have as far as expansion anchors. I think I have a hammer drill. Need to dig it up. Thanks! FW

Hi All, I am making a bench down my basement. I want it to be very stable, so it doesn't shift around when I'm carving plates. I was contemplating drilling a hole into the concrete floor and inserting some sort of bracket for the legs, to stabilize them. Has anyone done something like this before? Good idea? Bad idea? If good idea, how'd you go about doing it? Thanks, FW

Like a lot of things in violin making, there's not an exact science to this. The best thing to do is to try a couple places, see what you like, what you don't like, and stick with the dealer who works best for you. It's a good practice to stock up on wood anyway, so you can age it yourself. Buy lots of wood early on, and then by the time you get to using it, you'll know its been aged.

Wait, I thought the violin making world is the dark side.

Great! Thanks for all this information everyone! I have been playing scales, and just concentrating on making sure I hit the exact right note, without sharping or flating it at all. I think the more I practice, the better I'll get. But it's good to set my expectations that good intontation is a life long process. I was listening to this video on youtube, and this girl seems to have very good intonation: I like the "adjusting faster" quote. There's probably some truth to that. Lots of things going on when your fingers are hitting spots on the fingerboard. My violin teacher was talking about hitting double stops and listening for the beating of the harmonics within the notes. Hopefully the more I practice the better my muscle memory will be for where the note is. We'll see, I guess!

Hello, Does anyone here have any tips about how to develop good intonation. I've been playing with the tuner on the fiddle, to make sure I hit the right note (not sharp or flat). Any other tips for learning good intonation? Thanks! FW

Right. There will be a reluctance on my part to smack into a finished bench. I'm just going to have to get over that though. Ended up going with my old tried and true Epifanes again last night. Figured it'd be good because it's somewhat waterproof for sharpening up with Japanese water stones and such. Very stinky varnishing inside though. Need to evacuate the house for about 3 days.

Has anyone considered using epoxy for a benchtop finish?

Not sure why he wasted perfectly good time restoring that, but to each their own. Sound is quite dull, and lifeless, as would be expected.

Willow is much nicer to work with, IMHO. The smell, the texture, the fact that it falls in August after any storm, so you can pick it up for free without hurting a tree unnaturally.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_de_grey