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Showing results for tags 'spirit varnish'.
Found 6 results
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Hi guys! So, I'm doing a retouch on an old trade violin that has spirit varnish. I know that it's somewhat futile to discuss colors without actually showing an example (I'll be approved for pictures soon!), but I'm looking for a varnish that's deep cherry red... much more red than brown. I've thought of making my own 1704 varnish and adding dragon's blood.... but then I saw that one could also use henna, or cochineal, or madder root.... or I could just buy red pre-made varnish from Kremer pigments, and maybe some brown in case I need to adjust the color. So basically, now I'm overwhelmed with choices. Does anyone, from experience, have some endorsements for a nice deep but vibrant red? Anyone know what would typically be used to color a cheap varnish red.... so maybe I can use the same thing or something close to the original? Also.... how much variance is there in the types of reds the common red colorants yield? This is where some first hand experience or advice from those with lots of experience would come in handy! Thank you much for any thoughts you all may have!!!! -Sarah
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I am looking for a spirit varnish recipe that does not contain shellac. I am a guitar maker. I usually French polish with a shellac based varnish that also contains other resins. For this instrument, however, I can’t use shellac due to the believes of my client (please don’t make this the focus of the conversation). I tried modifying a sandarac based recipe, but the varnish was easily scraped off. I also tried sandarac turpentine and elemi (in alcohol), with the same results.
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here is a what looks to me as a nice article on french polish, is this also good to use for violins and violin spirit varnish restore touchup? http://www.lmii.com/french-polish
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Hey all, I used spirit varnish on my first varnish job and had a fair amount of success. My problem was that after only 5 coats the wood grain was almost unseeable, but the darkness of color was perfect. So, I was wondering if there was a way to thin or dilute the spirit varnish so that I would do more thin coats, achieve the same depth of color, make the varnish more flexible (like oil varnish), but also be able to see the grain. Also any technique for applying spirit varnish would be greatly appreciated. I couldn't figure out how to have a seamless coating since the varnish would set up from my previous brush stroke before I could connect it to my next stroke. Thanks!
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Hi guys! So, I'm getting ready to varnish a fresh, bare patch of spruce on a violin top. But, it's my (shaky) understanding that one must first coat the bare wood with something to "seal" it-- meaning, something that will 1. Protect the wood if the upper layers of varnish are ever worn off, and 2. keep the varnish from soaking all the way through the wood and stiffening it, thus diminishing its tonal qualities. I'm about to do my first varnish, a simple spirit varnish (with some pre-mixed varnishes.... because this is a rush-project for a friend of mine who needs to violin soon)...... what would be a good ground coat for a beginner? I have hide glue at my disposal, but I've heard that diluting that and using it as a ground coat tends to muffle the tonal qualities of the wood. I also have tripoli powder, sandarac, and methylated spirits at my disposal. Could I rub tripoli powder into the wood as a filler/sealant? Or could I use a VERY dilute coating of sandarac dissolved in spirits? Advice is very much appreciated! I've not been able to find a lot of background on this topic that is geared toward beginner varnishers (rather, I see a lot of writing arguing about Cremonese techniques .....). Thanks, guys!!!!! - Sarah
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Hi guys, I'm going to try and mix my own batch of 1704 spirit varnish. Does anyone know a good place to order the individual resins and coloring agents? Thanks! -Sarah
