Yogic

Thank you for your information

Thank you. That information is really helpful. I will buy one from Lowes

Hi, I have been using a regular handheld saw to reduce the length of pegs before fitting them. I know there are machines that make it easier. Could you please recommend which ones I could buy best suited for this operation ?

I did some research and apparently the makers work is rough and amateurish.One violin by the maker sold for $1500 in 1993. This has lots of issues with it and the price is no way a deal for this instrument

Being in the trade for many years does not automatically qualify you as an expert.It best qualifies you as a professional. I could have worked in the banking sector for all my life with exposure only to retail banking and retired as a Vice President.But that does not qualify me as an expert of the banking industry . It best qualifies me as a banking professional.An expert has broader extensive knowledge across all if not every sub field of the industry and is gained through intensive study, research and experience that could come out of your occupation or outside of it.If you have been a luthier spending 30 years of your life repairing student instruments in a small town,you will still not have the exposure or qualifications to discern an old Italian violin from a closely contructed fake.The person at best is a violin professional and not an expert on string instruments depite having spent 30 years in the industry. There are two sets of competencies at play here. One is your knowledge of string instruments and the other is your business acumen and skills to globally procure, source and distribute string instruments. The second set of competencies requires you to understand consumer behavior, consumer marketing,financial management, tracking changing purchase patterns and keeping abreast of industry trends.In my state there are four dealers who apparently studied under the same violin expert and started off with similar financial backgrounds, knowledge and at a similar age. One has turned out to be one of the largest and most respected dealers in the Country with inventory worth millions. The other three are always on the verge of going bankrupt and still operate out of their garages doing mostly repairs and some sales.So clearly it is not your knowledge of string instruments or the number of years you spend in the trade that you sets you on your path of running a successful string instruments business. Not being an expert in one set of competencies does not disqualify someone from having insights on the other. It apears the general sense of the forum here that whoever has experience or has sold violins for many years know everything and that is all to it. Not true.

@james Thank you for your comments.It is refreshing that you are willing to look at some of the points brought out especially being in a trade that is full of people who seem to know everything there is to it. I have had the chance to work in multiple industry sectors and the voice of a small end user customer is more valuable and insightful than the opinion of all the 'experts' in the room. I wish you well and I apologize the anonymity does not allow me to introduce myself. But I have bought in every one of your auctions for the last two years and have always been partial to older Italian violins so if you can use a bit of data science you will have no problems locating me!

It bothers the buyers and not the browsers

You may be right. Auction houses actually require you to know what you are buying. But I had always viewed Amati in the same league as Tarisio fine auctions where their attribution is precise and a buyer always felt safe buying from them because they are the 'experts' of the trade. The way Amati is headed with it reckless use of 'probably by' or ' possibly by' even for low end commercial violins sadly points out they are uunfortunately are not.

I buy regularly from a business entity and I gave a customer feedback to that business. I have more skin in the game with an auction house like Amati as I always buy multiple lots from them and found it slipping in standards. Customer feedbacks are important and if the auction house is smart they would listen to someone who buys from them regularly and is a regular customer than someone who has nothing to do with them. Also you dont need to be an Eric Blot kind of expert to tell a specialist auction house that excessive use of 'probably made by ' or ' possibly made by' for even low end commercial violins will only destroy their brand reputation.

And I am sure you are a penniless old fool living in your grand daughters basement posing as an expert all day long on Maestronet

Asking opinion doesnt mean a person knows nothing. At least I dont lounge around posing as an expert whole day.

Thats exactly the point. We all like Amati and there is nothing to not like about the individual who runs it. How do we bring back the excitement in their auctions is what it is all about

I never said I do not like the way they run it. There are things that can be done better. It is my own perspective and if he feels there is something in it that he can take it or ignore it.

Some of the greatest companies in the World were built in moms basement. A customer is a companys best critic.We are the best beta testers for a product.

It takes years to build a reputation and just one auction to ruin it.If you are going to choose to send Xmas cards only to folks who say things you agree with, you are not really giving yourself an opportunity to listen and improve.Here are my points on why I started this debate- 1.You are a vertically integrated auction house. It means you focus exclusively on string instruments. You are not a Skinner that sells violins , rugs , WW2 memorabilia and automotive spare parts or a Kestenbaum that sells Judaica paraphernalia and some violins on the side. Being vertically integrated also means you hold specialized knowledge not privy to the general masses. Many customers buy from your auction house because they place implicit trust and faith in your knowledge and then the quality of the instrument.If you are unable to assign a definite attribution on a very common maker like Collin Mezin and still decide to list it as 'Probably by' , you are losing your credibility. How do I trust your competence and buy a $50,000 Italian violin from your auction house if you stumble on a Collin Mezin ? If you have your doubts and feel it may not be right dont be shy to seek external specialist knowledge or you should not be listing it or should send it to your affordable auctions. Maybe it is the lure of that extra revenue that spurs you and that takes me to the next point... 2.Do not be revenue focused.If you excel at what you choose to sell, revenue will automatically flow to your coffers.Be focused on the product. Tarisio decided it will have a small number of items for sale but were focused on what they want to sell.You have probably seen their results and that comes from having a razor focus on listing the best items. 3.Go out and make moves in the marketplace. I receive tonnes of social marketing messages, printed brochures from Tarisio inviting instruments for consignment but dont hear from Amati at all. It is in my best interest that your auction house continues to excel and improve.It is a great source to buy and I am quite sad at what it is turning out to be.