brokenbow

I stumbled onto a few sets of Alice A747 violin strings. Chinese made--their "best" at about $15 a set. Passable strings. Only this model, the lower level stuff is horrid.

Inter library loan will get you any of these books without having to buy them and later move them.

Credit cards companies charge the store 3%. Asking for a 3% discount if you pay cash seems like a logical and reasonable request.

That instrument needs nothing more than violin/guitar polish. Alcohol may damage lacquer finishes--and lacquer is a good possibility with sprayed on finishes of mid century instruments. Naptha is a better choice for cleaning of soiled lacquer finishes--this violin is not soiled. Guldan not Gulden

I also acquired some inexpensive IPE China made bows. Of the ten, two have acquired broken tips with the usual clean horizontal break--due to no obvious impact or accident. I have also used IPE decking wood glued up for turning in a lathe. I find that the glue seams do not hold despite cleaning the bare wood with naptha before gluing and the wood prone to catching and cracking on the lathe more so than most woods I have used. Not a fan.

If one does not care about the experience of the audience, please just play in your bedroom.

2.5 pages of comments and no one has pointed out the obvious question. What color(s) were the walls of Stradavarius' workshop?

Elderly Instruments has a Gibson Cello in stock as of 10/8/2021 priced at $3500. Described as having a laminated back. https://www.elderly.com/products/gibson-g-110-1241-4-4-c-1940

Thanks--this is a useful technique for student violins, lots of other stringed instruments and furniture repair. Thanks for taking the time to prepare such a detailed explanation. My ten minutes of Googling to find Glycol Ether turned up $80 US gallon jugs. Is there another source that you can point us to for Glycol Ether?

could also be celluloid. A hot needle will quickly test for it versus the other mentioned possibilities.

For these inexpensive violins with grainy finishes (and NOT fine violins, or even semi-fine violins) this is an okay method for reducing the visibility of lots of scratches:

https://greenville.craigslist.org/msg/d/left-handed-stradivarius/6760237226.html If any of you are thinking about stealing it, security will be present!!!

Some of us include the front page of the newspaper printed the day we ship showing the date in our photos. Of course you have to have a subscription to the newspaper--something that is getting less and less common. I enjoy my small town paper.

I have seen quite regularly student grade Hungarian violins (made in 1970s?) with two piece backs that had fake flaming on them. The flaming was sprayed on with some sort of masking, but so poorly done that the faux flame from one side that should have stopped at the middle seam, slightly overlapped onto the opposite side of the two-piece back. Dead give away! I have seen fake flaming on old German violins that must have been done with something chemical, as the wood was burned such that there was a groove in the wood and the varnish that was originally on the top of the "flame" had completely deteriorated. Or perhaps.... I had been told by a luthier who had trained in Germany back in the 1950s that some of the faux flaming was done by tieing string/rope around the backs and burning the rope.

I bought a Ludwig Koschat violin maybe 15 years ago and then had a standing search on ebay for this maker. Bought about six more over 12 to 15 year period. They had the features of your instrument, even the pegs. I sold them by consigning them to a major midwestern brick and mortar store, retail price being between $650 and $800.