HoGo

MY real world experience is from (archtop) mandolins so it may be slightly different from violins... I always do final shaping on white instrument with strings tuned soI can play and feel the shape of neck in real action. I found that reshaping the main "shaft" of neck doesn't do much if anything at all (while sytaying within physical stiffness of healthy neck) but I noticed in few cases that reshaping of the heel curve (deepening it just slightly) made some difference especially in case when there was more wood than necessary and reshaping it more to "normal" so player can reach up the neck with thumb hooked at heel comfortably. In these cases the tone "opened" a bit. It's hard to describe but perhaps better response and richer tone was the result.

Did you do the back repair as well? Looks like it was bitten by Dracula . The two visible dots in the top and hole just opposite on back. The bass bar looks quite low with squarish crossection.

Looks like exposed pin knot. The first mandolin I built has pin knot going all across one half of back mostly on the outside. No problem in tone or longevity after nearly 25 years.

It likes moist sand, look for areas with sandy soil or downright sandy areas. Here it often finds its way into children sandpits when they are close to nature and water.

Used (or new) cloth backed sanding belt also makes great bending strap for cheap. Safe for hands and the rib doesn't slide around like on metal strap.

By judging some of the violins on local market I see there are makers whose violins can sound great ONLY by mistake.

The rule is fat over lean which in language of oil varnishes means more elastic over less elastic. Not all spirit varnishes are less elastic than oil varnishes (as is popular belief) so answer is "depends". If you are looking for ground or sealer that won't make layer abovelevel of bare wood then anything that next layer will adhere to well is OK - dewaxed shellac is very good for that, though not really "cremonese". If you apply full layer(s) of softer (possibly oil) varnish and over that layer(s) of less elastic varnish you may experience crazing, cracking or even alligatoring of varnish. Also covering slowly curing varnish with faster curing may cause problems with the lower layer trapped shrinking for a long time after upper layer is cured causing wrinkling if teh outer layer is elastic enough or cracking (again the layers don't have to be different types of varnish just different drying properties)

I wouldn't want to have that piece of wood in my workshop in case there may be a living bug inside. I'd immeditely paint it with bug killer and put it away from my stash.

I was offered 5 figures sum for my 3D mandolin model that I respectfully declined. You cannot imagine how much work is behind QUALITY 3D model. Most free or cheaply available violin models are quite funny VSO's.

I don't think Marty was responding to you at all. I actually like his funny remarks, mostly pulling his own leg. Chemically his varnish was a product made from pine resin and drying oil (linseed) that dries by polymerisation with oxygen with some added resins as plasticizers. A bit oversimplified, "Poly" finishes are typically products made of alkyd modified urethanes which are products made from oils (linseed or modified soy or tung or others) and alkyd resins with added plasticizers. So not too far from each other...

How thick are those pins? They appear massive. Perhaps half sized ones would be enough, they would not reduce the gluing surface as much and their holding strength is along the grain of pins preventing the seam from opening.

I will add that I used it on half dozen gunstocks I finished for a friend and four or five mandolins as main varnish coat with french polish overcoat for gloss. Worked well and aged nicely. The last bottle of TO I had, got to stage of half rubbery jelly and I used it as a sealer/filler/basecoat on a poor stripped fiddle I got and I managed to create beautiful smooth satin surface for color varnishing by rubbing that jelly on and rubbing off any excess. It took nice amber color after some suntanning. I've also used BC tru oil sealer/filler (I don't know exact name but it is in the same bottle as regular TO - I think I still have it somewhere in boxes of old varnish stuff) that is suposed to have more solids doesn't seem too different for regular TO but I heard from gunstock folks who mix the two together to get something with more "body" for quicker buildup of first layers.

Florida is quite humid and that makes a big difference. Heat plus changes in RH makes wood twist like potatochip and even one piece plate woud crack into pieces. No glue can withstand that. Here is test that Frank Ford did. http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Data/Materials/GlueTest/gluetest.html Unless the joint was extremely loaded the hide glued joint survived the heat. Matches my own experiments. (don't ask me how burning hide glue stinks!) Asiatic composite bows made of wood, sinew and horn all held together with hide glue are traditionally heated to allow correcting twist or adjusting symmetry of limbs. If the glue joints degraded or failed no one would do that.

Many mandolin makers use Tru oil as their main finish. It's a bit on the lean side making more flexible film than typical old school oil varnish but nothing really wrong. Can be applied thinly and can be colored and also brushed. It certainly won't crack or chip anytime soon. I think Michael Darnton showed herea a violin he varnished with TO few years back.

It sure got that one wrong. I don't think that one is completely wrong. Dry hide glue joints will survive quite a heat. Almost to burning temperatures of wood. The glue becomes brittle and wood mevement under such heat may loosen joints but not because the glue melts or decomposes. I'd have problem with the repairability. I tested white glue and it WILL stick to dry white glue quite decently. With standard cleanup procedure before regluing, the repairs with white glues are similar to original white glue joints. That said, I still prefer HHG for the non-creep almost every time. For the OP, I'd use nice strong HHG and clamp/hold till it catches. I can't see any good space for application of pins into the cheeks, they would be mostly under pressure. Pin may help if inserted from under nut (or under end of board) at slight angle close to the surface of "heel" of the pegbox to to hold tension opening the crack (similar to pins in viola/cello neck heels).