antero

What MM said about Gregson: "His one mistake is that he does not copy anybody...Talents must be fed and pruned like fruit-trees in an orchard. Gregson is impatient of detail. The more conspicuous parts of the instrument are carefully handled, but there is a disregard for purity of outline and clean inlaying of the purfle..." I have one of Gregson's violas and what Meredith Morris says is very true.

With all that R&D he (AS) must have done, one wonders, if there was any time left to carve the wood? Perhaps he was after all a clever manager and R&D director of his secret factory with a half of Cremona + county working for him?

Well it seems to be even more complicated: regardless what Rampal actually thought of the 1723 date, they believe it was made by Nicolo together with HIS SON Giuseppe; so most definitely we are not talking of a teenager http://pillifond.ee/en/instruments/

"Nicolaus Gagliano, filius Alexandri, feat Neap 1723" it supposedly says, the photo is from public web with a statement it has Vatelot-Rampal cert. Meditation is good but I was indicating to what you so directly say : the construction method that is so "reasonably" different, may hardly indicate a direct influence, like apprenticeship.

Well, the one in the picture looks like built on back, and this would be very different, does it not? I don't know if it changed over time (the method), but I recall somebody also here saying that Gaglianos used BOB.

1723 Niccolo e figlio

Wasn't it so that Gaglianos followed a completely different building method comparison to the Cremonese?

W Thomas viola, 1893.

STEINER, Gustav Worked circa. 1908 Teplice Czech Republic. Work presently unknown. [Henley]...

They sometimes also have back decorated

Thanks, another good point! I have put the string change on the hold a bit - all my Helicore sets appeared to be 4/4 after all...will order both them and Prims, just for future challenges.

Good point, Helicores I do have, I'll give it a try.

It looks pretty recent, does it not? And is it not so that during the last +/-100 years everybody makes anything, regardless their original reginal tradition? You probably suggest that one should be familiar with this (living) maker?

As suggested, I shortened the tailgut for 3...4 mm and it made some improvement: not a whole lot, but enough to notice. Another observation: I played around a bit with the soundpost and it eventually fell over. And guess what - all strings and positions, including mentioned B had exactly the same power - in somewhat slightly sore way as it could be without a post. So for now, with the same post slightly more south-west, it is already (not yet completely) better. I haven't tryed different A yet - a radically different I probably don't have at hand -I don't keep very large variety for fractionals. What is a good steel - Prim?

Thanks everyone; I will let you know if I have any progress.