Cello Bow Head

[UG Fiddlesmith]

I have a cello bow with a broken head; it is located 9mm down the head from the stick. I have been using CA and accelerator to glue this type of break but am curious about epoxy glue. Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks

[danielmiller]

You can always clean out CA glue with acetone, but not much dissolves epoxy. Either one will hold it; one is reversible one is not. So, if you use epoxy, make sure that it is together so that everything lines up perfectly.

I'm assuming you're going to spline the head? I have used both CA glue and G2 epoxy for this. If either glues are old, it won't hold. If you mix up G2 on a rainy day, it won't hold, it won't even stick. I don't know why, but it doesn't. You will need to use an epoxy like G2 or another epoxy that is designed for tropical woods.

Also, CA cures a lot faster. I let epoxy sit for at least 24 hours.

Hope this helps.

[Brad Dorsey]

It seems to me that if the head is going to be splined, almost all of the strength of the repair will come from the spline rather than from the glue that holds the break together. Therefore, the glue that holds the break together should be chosen mainly for its ability to result in an invisible glue line, as long as it is strong enough to hold the break together during the splining process. I use thin superglue to glue a bow head together in preparation for splining.

[lyndon]

if youre going to use CA glue, as would be reccomended for pernambuco, make sure you use a formula specifically designed for wood, not plastic and metal, crazy glue for wood and leather is the best one i know.