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Posted

I am curious about techniques for removing a label from an instrument so that it can be put back in after a repair/regraduation--hopefully intact.

Can I guess?

If it's really well attached, perhaps Steam?

As expected, you'd have to be extremely careful in this regard.

Posted

Before you do anything try to determine if there is any water soluble ink on the label. If there is, you're in trouble. If not I've had good results by folding a few layers of paper towel, cutting them to the size of the label, wetting them, and laying them over the label. In TIME (probably more than you think) the label can be gently lifted using a very thin palette knife. Hide glue will soften fairly easily, while white glue/Titebond/ carpenters glue will take longer. Don't try to rush the procedure. Gently wash away any glue remaining on the label and place it glue side up on a piece of wax paper.

Barry

Posted

I am curious about techniques for removing a label from an instrument so that it can be put back in after a repair/regraduation--hopefully intact.

+++++++++++++++++

The best course is not to disturbed it. With few exceptions the label would be ruined.

You can remove it quite easily but putting it back is the problem. You end up putting a new label then nobody

believe what it is written because the label is so fresh. something like a 200 years old violin with a 5 months old label.

Posted

I am curious about techniques for removing a label from an instrument so that it can be put back in after a repair/regraduation--hopefully intact.

I do it exactly as Barry describes. I have found that most labels are glued with hide glue and come out fairly easily. I have occasionally encountered more resistant glues that make label removal difficult. And I have destroyed several labels because I could not get them out intact. My reason for removing labels has always been to regraduate the back.

Posted

Let me add one more thing; sometimes you're not removing A label. There can actually be another label under the one you can see. I had a nice German violin with a typical "Strad" label. My guess was that the violin was a Neuner & Hornsteiner. I carefully soaked off the Strad label to discover the original Neuner & Hornsteiner label underneath.

Barry

Posted

+++++++++++++++++

The best course is not to disturbed it. With few exceptions the label would be ruined.

You can remove it quite easily but putting it back is the problem. You end up putting a new label then nobody

believe what it is written because the label is so fresh. something like a 200 years old violin with a 5 months old label.

You don't use this for those rare occasions do you Yuen?:lol:H65SC_7642.jpg

Posted

You don't use this for those rare occasions do you Yuen?:lol:H65SC_7642.jpg

Ah, the Strad model graduation marker. Accurate to 0.01mm... or is that 0.01m? Well, anyway... biggrin.gif

Posted

just as a general rule, if the violins label is valuable enough that you dont want to lose it, you shouldnt be regraduating it in the first place.....

  • 6 months later...
Posted

My humble and not identified violin had two labels apparently identics. I removed the first and noted that the only difference was the handwriten part of the date. No one mention the makers. Both labels sais Josef Guarneri faciebat...ano..." Both falses securely (one had the stamped work "Tartini".

Barlera

Posted

This is probably not advisable at all.. maybe for an inexpensive instrument... but I have noticed that if you carefully apply glair to water soluble ink, it will create a layer over the ink, that will resist water. Obviously, you need to apply it very gently, because too much glair will have the same effect as water, and wash the ink right off. Just dab the glair on lightly, (maybe with a cloth or paper towel) until you build up a layer of it, then you can apply it in thicker layers, maybe with a small paint brush. Once you have a good dry layer of glair, it should resist water well enough to not smudge the ink. (glair being beaten egg white.)

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