New Here, Starting in the worst possible way

[NickIsWorking]

Hello all.  I am new here and if you can give me any advice I would greatly appreciate it.

 

I am going to start making bows.  It is a horrible idea.  There are few to no learning resources in my area and I really have no skills, but I've set my heart and head to the task.  I am beginning with a class on rehairing in June by a well reputed maker.  I am reading all the material I can find and watching every video (making, wood carving and tool sharpening) I can find to get a visual idea...repeatedly.

 

I have started accumulalting some tools:  Block plane, Hock violin knife, cheap miniature planes, cheap trim plane, round file, half round file and flat file, razor saw, scroll saw, junk hand drill mount to use as a drill press, alcohol lamp, some Stanley Sweetheart chisels (1/2" and 1/8"), gauge for graduating sticks and most likely some others I am forgetting.  I have plans to purchase a Taig lathe in the next year, as well as a band saw, however, I'd like to stick to hand tools as much as possible so a foret may be in my future.

 

I have started practicing rehairs on cheap bows that I own, and practicing planing sticks and carving hatchets from woods that I have on hand (red oak which I know isn't anything like pernambuco, and purpleheart, persimmon and osage orange which at least is of a similar hardness to pernambuco).  

 

So I guess my question is can this be accomplished by somebody with virtually no direct guidance, only tenacity and time?  I plan on attending more workshops like Oberlin, Rodney Mohr and Lynn Hannings bowmaking/restoration courses, but that will be over several years.

 

I appreciate any input you have, i.e. tool suggestions, materials and suppliers suggestions, psychiatrists, etc.

 

Nick

[jacobsaunders]

I appreciate any input you have, i.e. tool suggestions, materials and suppliers suggestions, psychiatrists, etc.

 

Nick

My psychiatrist has his whole attic full to the beams with crappy worthless junk he bought on ebay, so I wouldn't expect much help from that quarter

[Florian Schneidt]

Well to be honest, the biggest issue is to have a lot of money to invest in high grade pernambuco and ebony, if you can get it anyway. Cites and overall shortage means it's very hard nowadays to get going as a young bowmaker. Don't expect to break even for a long time.... There is obviously a market for skilled restorers/repairers/rehairers, but as in all crafts, the one usually doesn't come without the other.

[Craig Tucker]

  

So I guess my question is can this be accomplished by somebody with virtually no direct guidance, only tenacity and time?  I plan on attending more workshops like Oberlin, Rodney Mohr and Lynn Hannings bowmaking/restoration courses, but that will be over several years.

 

Nick

 

Yes.

Anyone can be anything, or make, anything, or do anything... if their desire is strong enough.

 

If you are interested in this occupation, then just do it. go for it.

It sounds like you are already well on your way, material and tool wise, just keep going. And yes, I agree with the possibility that this may well not be your only occupation, while you learn the basics and the intricacies involved.

Perhaps you may find yourself having to work in some other field, perhaps related to bow making, or perhaps not related to bow making at all, where you can make enough money to survive... while you learn *on the side*..., how to do this thing. 

 

Difficult? yes of course it will be. You have scratched that surface already, and so you know about how difficult it will be. 

 

 If you have any questions about rehairing, I could answer them here, so, don't be shy - ask away.

This is the only area where I have any great amount of bow related knowledge.

 

And good luck in this venture, I hope that you don't loose that spark that you seem to possess now.

[Craig Tucker]

Well to be honest, the biggest issue is to have a lot of money to invest in high grade pernambuco and ebony, if you can get it anyway.  

 

Yes, this is a great deterrent.

 

Have you considered that perhaps these materials may be replaced, with great success, by someone with enough tenacity and determination and making skill - to fore such a change?

I mean, pretty soon, (I believe) such a change will have to occur?

[Will L]

Welcome, Nick,

 

I don't know about you or others, but when I first started out I was very impatient.  I wanted to be working with the materials; I wanted to be at the bench, I wanted to get rolling.   Then I'd have to wait for materials and tools to arrive, or wait for a class to open up, or wait to get a question answered.  I strongly recommend "slowing down the metabolism," so to speak.  Patience. 

 

Also, once we have finished a bow or instrument—or a few—a whole 'nother problem arises:  Our standards will have changed;  they are higher, so we still haven't "arrived."  "Arriving" is a bit like that mirage that never gets any closer.  It's a long process that seems to never end.    Maybe never arriving at perfection is a good thing, all in all; we always have something to look forward to.  

 

Slow and steady seems to be good advice.  Some people are better at being slow and steady than others.     Best of luck with your efforts. 

[Brad Dorsey]

I have done a bit of bow making.  My formal instruction of six week of rehairing, repairing and making instruction at the University of New Hampshire has been reinforced by over twenty years of working on bows.  I have only completed one stick, but I have probably made two to three dozen frogs and buttons.  For the most part, I think that bow making comprises a set of manual skill thats I could become reasonably proficient at with some additional expert guidance and lots of practice, and indeed I have become reasonably proficient in some of the steps and details.  But when I think about pursuing bow making more seriously, I see two major hurdles:

 

1.  The unavailability of pernambuco, as has already been mentioned.

 

2.  The seemingly unfathomable mystery of how to graduate a stick to create a bow with excellent playability.

[jezzupe]

I don't think your story is that uncommon, many start out in similar ways. Related to materials, things are changing in the world of "woods used for instruments". I build "different" types of instruments and this has always made it easy for me to be a proponent of using alternate or different materials. The world of the "traditions" in the violin world does not like "different", however change is being forced. This may open up possibilities to experiment with different materials.

 

One suggestion I would make is, at first, to make one or two bows out of cheaper material in order to get the hang of it. Mistakes are not as painful when done on cheaper wood. Jatoba {Brazilian cherry} is pretty easy to get and could be an ok alternate to start with, for example. Go down to a hardwood floor supply place, order a bundle for 80$ and you will have enough wood to build 100 bows.

 

Good luck, try to have fun with it.

[NickIsWorking]

Thank you guys for all the great words. I think I have the patience and tenacity. I also have time. I'm a stay at home dad/musician and both of my kids will be in elementary school in the fall.

I'm in a position where if I get good at it, I'll be one of the only rehair technicians in my area. I plan to push this as the business first and hone my bow making skills between rehairs and gigs (double bassist).

As far as materials I already see that frustration. After research I decided to limit myself to bass bows for the first year or two. It seems that alternatives to pernambuco are more effective on the larger sticks. I have been doing a lot of wood database reading and will be working in purpleheart, wamara, Massaranduba and chakte viga for the sticks. I'm still looking into frog alternatives, but there are several woods with similar hardness and density characteristics. If it comes down to a matter of aesthetics I won't be put off.

Thanks again for the welcome. I'll have a lot of questions. To start that off...

What is your preferred gouge for cutting frogs, specifically bass frogs? Or do you have another method?