Bow rehair philosophy

[Casey Jefferson]

Hi,

The last thread about bow hair quantity that I started recently has morphed into rehair philosophy discussion.

I've always under the impression that bow hair should be equal tension across the ribbon as what I've been reading. However, the last thread got me surprised that slightly more tension on the playing side is desired to counter the extra pressure on the playing side.

So as the title suggested, is equal tension essential, or a slightly more tension on the playing side is required?

Thanks in advance for your inputs!

[Oded Kishony]

depends on the bow and the player. I use equal tension on carbon fiber bows because they tend to be overly stiff to begin with.

If a wooden bow already has a "good" warp I would not exaggerated it by adding tension. On a softish wooden bow that has a tendency to a "bad" warp, paying side tension will improve it's performance.

It also depends on the player and the style of playing. For someone who plays with very little pressure but higher bow speeds I would try to keep the bow very straight, only apply enough tension to maintain a straight bow. For a masher- a player using lots of pressure and slow bow speeds, more tension on the playing side seems to work well.

Keep in mind that as soon as the bow deviates from straight it's dynamic properties (ie bouncing etc) become less predictable, more erratic.

Oded

[Skywalker]

Ha!

I didn't mean to turn that last thread around, but that seemed to be more of the issue to me than the quantity of hair.

For the most part, the hair tension should slightly favor the playing side; i.e. audience (finger) side of the bow for violins and violas and player (thumb) side of the bow for cellos and basses. The tension should fade evenly from more on the playing side to less tension on the non-playing side. It should not be exaggerated to the point where the playing side is excessively tight and the non-playing side is just hanging hairs. It should be subtle, yet noticeable, and only slightly bending the bow toward non-playing side when brought up to tension. We are anticipating the player leaning the bow to play, and thusly, the stick will remain straight while it is in motion (straighter that is, since bows do bounce around quite a lot).

There are some players who demand even tension on the bow, which is fine, we can make that happen, and the customer is always right. However, as said in the last thread, the hairs on the playing side will inevitably become stretched before those on the non-playing side, and will begin to bend the bow towards playing side when brought up to tension.

Either way is fine, however, but I think we can all agree that concentrating tension of the hair toward non-playing side is never desirable.

The idea behind this is to keep the hair lasting as long as possible, and to prevent any excessive bending of the bow. A proper rehair can last a very long time.

[Casey Jefferson]

Great inputs guys! No worries Skywalker, since the hair quantity isn't really much important when there're other more important issues to take care.

Regarding the bow in question on my last thread, when I turn the screw, and I can see the hairs on the playing side start to get straighten while leaving the remaining 85% on the non playing side still wavy. Pretty obvious really, so my guess is the luthier overshot it. The older bow I had which also rehaired by the same luthier, seems to have a better job done where the hair on the non playing side do get straighten (due to tension) sooner but only when observed closely.

Anyway, I'll have a better idea on my request next time. Thanks again to all!

[Oded Kishony]

I often get asked when is it time to rehair.

• lost too many hairs on one side
  
• hair too dirty
  
• hair too slick not holding rosin
  

Please add to this list.....

Oded

[danielmiller]

I'm afraid I have to disagree with Skywalker. Even tension the width of the ribbon should always be used unless the bow is extremely weak. More tension on the playing side will not make the hair last any longer. All hair has a life span depending on dirt from the player's hands, the amount of rosin, the time between re-hairs, etc. If you put more tension on the playing side of the bow, you're more likely to warp the bow. You should not force the bow to do what you want it to, but allow it to do what it wants to do under the player's direction.

Now, saying this, if the player is adamant about more tension on the playing side and cannot be dissuaded, then and only then will I do what they ask.

Also, heavy tension on one side should not be used to offset a warp on the other,

Hope this helps

[Brad Dorsey]

I often get asked when is it time to rehair.

• lost too many hairs on one side
  
• hair too dirty
  
• hair too slick not holding rosin
  

Please add to this list.....

Oded

I would change "lost too many hairs on one side" to just "lost too many hairs."

[Skywalker]

If you put more tension on the playing side of the bow, you're more likely to warp the bow.

Perhaps I didn't explain it clear enough...

Putting more tension on the playing side of the bow prevents warping of the stick. What it does is to anticipate the fact that players inevitably lean the bow toward playing side. Because the bow is seldom (if ever) played at an exact 90 degree angle to the strings, then there is no reason to have even tension of the hair since the pressure applied to the bow is uneven; you can think of adding tension to the hair on the playing side as acting as a counterbalance. The amount of tension put on the hair is slight, and really only noticeable when brought up to playing tension. The stick will remain straight while the hair is loosened. Doing this will always keep the bow straight and a rehair lasting longer. Always.