How to Keep an Inexpensive Violin Alive

[Rue]

Taking an OT topic discussion from here:

http://www.maestronet.com/forum/index.php?/topic/333748-soundpost-press-crack-repair/page-4

 

I am very interested in the when, why and how of repairing 'cheap' violins.

 

If the option is fix to it cheaply...and use it for one more child, or season (or whatever reason) versus throwing it out because it is not worth repairing "properly"...I would opt to fix it cheaply - provided someone is willing to do the work.

 

I started playing the violin in Grade 5, in a school-sponsored strings program, on a very cheap loaner.  I graduated to a second very cheap loaner in Junior High, and then upgraded to my very own VSO which my mother had to save up to purchase for me.

 

If I didn't have access to these cheap instruments...I wouldn't have had the opportunity to develop an on-going interest...which I finally was able to actually explore more fully once I was an adult.

 

I also like to learn from the ground up.  What can you do to do a functional repair?  What do you use and why?  What shouldn't you use and why?

 

And...when is a violin worth a decent repair...and when is a violin considered 'trash' and only worth a cheap repair?  Finally...when is the violin really past the point of no return and should be thrown out?
 

[DGerald StephenR]

Taking an OT topic discussion from here:

http://www.maestronet.com/forum/index.php?/topic/333748-soundpost-press-crack-repair/page-4

 

I am very interested in the when, why and how of repairing 'cheap' violins.

 

If the option is fix to it cheaply...and use it for one more child, or season (or whatever reason) versus throwing it out because it is not worth repairing "properly"...I would opt to fix it cheaply - provided someone is willing to do the work.

 

I started playing the violin in Grade 5, in a school-sponsored strings program, on a very cheap loaner.  I graduated to a second very cheap loaner in Junior High, and then upgraded to my very own VSO which my mother had to save up to purchase for me.

 

If I didn't have access to these cheap instruments...I wouldn't have had the opportunity to develop an on-going interest...which I finally was able to actually explore more fully once I was an adult.

 

I also like to learn from the ground up.  What can you do to do a functional repair?  What do you use and why?  What shouldn't you use and why?

 

And...when is a violin worth a decent repair...and when is a violin considered 'trash' and only worth a cheap repair?  Finally...when is the violin really past the point of no return and should be thrown out?

My Fellow Canadian Rue,

Admittedly, I slightly cringed when you mentioned on the other post about options on how to keep a beater alive. This is mostly to do with the issue of, when not going the preferred route of repair (very often due to the fact that these repairs are just not financially possible) the other options for repair are really, very vast...and some are just plain wrong. But how do you determine what wrong is right?

I grew up in the Ottawa Valley and the famed fiddle music of the area is part of my family heritage. I LOVE beater fiddles...grew up with them, sawing tunes out here and there.

When I returned to Ottawa a few years ago, one of the first fun jobs I was tasked with was repairing a number of Ward Allen's fiddles (and other Allen family members) for the Museum of Civilization. Amongst the group of Ward's fiddles was a particularly special fiddle. It had suffered a bad accident and the scroll snapped off. I believe it was Ward himself that put his hand to the repair, which consisted of hammering the mashed up bits back together with nails and slewing the whole thing with some type of epoxy. And, it held. It still holds and I couldn't bring myself to try a re-repair.

So why am I bringing this up? I suppose it's similarly to why I mentioned, of all things, "duck tape", on the oher thread. It'll work. A number of different methods will work but it's hard for anyone to justifiably say "this way of not quite doing the repair right, is right. That way of doing the repair not quite right, is wrong."

I personally believe there are so many things to consider that I think the instrument, repair needs, restorer and instrument owner all need to talk through the process and options available to them.

In my shop, if something is mangled, I have a $100 wall hanger repair. Often this requires gluing cracks, setting the neck, fitting an existing bridge (I may just reshape something from the bucket of random bridges) and some cheap, often recycled strings and having it LOOK like the fiddle great-great-great gramps used to play. But they are instructed it is a wall hanger only. I repair with hide glue. This is a process that usually take 2-3hrs time. I don't get too involved.

If they want it playable, then we really need to talk things over.

DGSR☺

[MaestronetLurker]

I run a small string shop part time, and it's part of a much larger music company.  They had a little old lady doing repairs for 30 years as a hobby with no real training, followed by another fella who's favorite methods usually involved blobs of epoxy and fire engine red touchup.  I've dubbed him J.B. Frankenstein, which is a play on his name. 

 

I've been working hard to bring everything into the modern age, and I've got a room full of instruments that have shockingly bad repairs.  I call it the house of horrors, and I meant to post some of the worst of the worst photos on halloween. 

 

In following after these folks who 'repaired' things for dirt cheap, I have had to be really inventive to satisfy the clientelle that would keep coming back to such a place while trying to maintain a good reputation and keep raising the standard. 

 

I've been working on blind cleating methods using magnets to guide them into hard to reach areas, and teflon spray to prevent the magnet from sticking to the cleat.  The reinforcements are washi paper sized with hide glue so they are slower to soften later.  The magnet has soft foam on it covered with packing tape and spray teflon.  It will flex to contrours and hold the flexible washi paper in place.  I use either hide glue or titebond to actually glue the reinforcement when I'm ready.  Titebond gives a little more time to get the cleat in place, is flexible, and fills any gaps that may exist.  It will hold well to the washi paper sized with hide glue.

 

I'm trying to get this technique to replace the occasional pull patch that I used to do.  The pull patch involves drilling a hole in a rib crack and pulling a cleat into place with an old string.  You may use a guitar tuner mounted to a block to pull the patch fully into place.  It's a pretty sketchy repair, and only for the real beaters.  Even then I'm horrifyed by it, but it keeps an old beater alive a little longer.

[keyboardclass]

Also a Canadian.  I've already told the happy story of the cello I repaired (took top off, reglued neck) because the shop said it wasn't worth anything.  I was lucky - I teach in a school and D&T have a gazillion clamps!  I was playing it today and it was still in tune from last week.  So yeh, if you've a needy kid go for it.

[Trenchworker]

Being unable to sell violins of my own making due mainly to the availability of cheap violins, I repair instruments for the local public schools.  The area had lost its violin repair person to Parkinson's, and there were, literally, stacks of string instruments waiting to be repaired.  The music director threw her arms around me when I arrived in town to open my shop out of my home, with an employee of one (me).  My 3+ years of violin-making school did not prepare me for the kind of damage inflicted upon rent-free instruments by careless students and uncaring parents, who are not charged for repairs.  The public schools can not afford the repair charges by full-service shops, so I charge what the school district can pay.

 

Regarding the nature of repairs:  I have Weisshaar's and Shipman's book, the Strad's 3-part "Secrets..", various other books, the monthly Strad, you guys at Maestronet, and my former instructors at the violin-making school who kindly give suggestions on some new type of damage I haven't met before, via email  (recently I was delighted to hear that the school has added a repair instructor and now gives time for teaching repair).  I take each job as a challenge, because the thought of an instrument being trashed, even the crappy ones, is unhappy for me (irrational also, perhaps).  Occasionally, the instrument is an old one, made well, good wood, and solid accessories --- then it is a pleasure to repair.  I take as much care with the crappy ones, but without the pleasure.  Occasionally there is a rush job, but mostly I can take what time I need.  I don't keep track of time.  My only regret is that I am afraid to lose my making skills.  Now that I am caught up with the backlog of repairs, I plan to build again. I have heard that combining making and repairing doesn't hold up, especially if one can't sell ones creations.   I am taking that as a challenge.

[duane88]

How to keep an inexpensive violin alive?

 

Date a violin maker!  Seriously, have you ever had a look at the instruments played by the SO of makers and repairers? Talk about the cobblers kids...

[Smith]

On 12/15/2015 at 7:12 PM, duane88 said:

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