Case cloth imprint on spirit varnish

[Kovy Petr]

Hello! :-)

I bought a modern Cremona violin in 2022. The problem is that the fabric of the case leaves an imprint. 

What is the solution for this? It's extremely confusing for me... My other violin (F. Bissolotti 86') doesn't have this problem... By the way, the violin has spirit varnish. :-)
can micromesh 4000 or super nikco help me?

(!) not my photo, just an illustration: https://ibb.co/Ld3yZLh

Edited August 13, 2024 by Kovy Petr

[David Burgess]

7 hours ago, Kovy Petr said:

can micromesh 4000 or super nikco help me?

I wouldn't recommend trying to fix this yourself. Find someone who is well-versed in such things, and knows all the possible causes and solutions.

[Dwight Brown]

I have had this problem as well.

DLB

[Brad Dorsey]

8 hours ago, Kovy Petr said:

…the fabric of the case leaves an imprint. 

What is the solution for this?…

David’s advice for fixing the varnish is good.  Don’t try to fix it yourself.

You might try lining the case with waxed paper after you get it fixed to prevent the imprinting from happening again, or right now to prevent it from getting worse.

[Kovy Petr]

@David, Brad: Thanks… It's very frustrating… 

 

@Dwight Brown: Did you solve the problem?

[Mark Norfleet]

The previous advice is good.  If you know the instrument hasn’t been exposed to higher than usual temperatures, I would suggest getting it back to the maker or shop you purchased it from to have the problem addressed.

[Marty Kasprzyk]

At a VSA competition I looked at all the violins and violas entered.  About one third had a table cloth imprint on their back plate's varnish.

[Brad Dorsey]

44 minutes ago, Marty Kasprzyk said:

...About one third had a table cloth imprint on their back plate's varnish.

Wow! That's a lot.  I'm guessing most of them had been recently made for the competition, and their varnishes hadn't had enough time to completely cure.

[Mark Norfleet]

1 hour ago, Brad Dorsey said:

Wow! That's a lot.  I'm guessing most of them had been recently made for the competition, and their varnishes hadn't had enough time to completely cure.

Or perhaps polished in the hotel the night before handing them over…

[Mike_Danielson]

Leave the instrument out of the case--a small amount of self-leveling can still take place over a period of weeks.  

If that does not solve the problem, it can be fixed by a French polishing which only an expert should do.  This is irritating since you paid good money for a completed instrument, but it is easily fixed.  

Wax paper in the case should prevent sticking to the case as suggested.  In the past, instruments were always wrapped in a silk scarf because the silk has a very fine thread pattern; so, a pattern in the varnish is not discernable.

[Melvin Goldsmith]

Unless the instrument in question has been exposed to very unusual conditions of heat or climate for example left in a car in hot weather or in the case exposed to hot sunlight....Then the varnish itself is at fault unfortunately.... If the violin in the case has been exposed to temperatures of 35-40C or more for prolonged periods of time I would pass liability to the owner

[Guido]

6 hours ago, Mike_Danielson said:

Leave the instrument out of the case--a small amount of self-leveling can still take place over a period of weeks.  

If that does not solve the problem, it can be fixed by a French polishing which only an expert should do.  This is irritating since you paid good money for a completed instrument, but it is easily fixed.  

Wax paper in the case should prevent sticking to the case as suggested.  In the past, instruments were always wrapped in a silk scarf because the silk has a very fine thread pattern; so, a pattern in the varnish is not discernable.

Presumably rigid French polish over presumably soft varnish will often lead to crackling.

[Kovy Petr]

@Mike_Danielson

Thanks Mike!

Really extremely irritating... The instrument is in a Gewa Air 2.1 case and I never left it in the car or in the sun... 

[Mike_Danielson]

Melvin is right that this is a varnish problem.  But eventually, it should harden but it could take years.  Leaving the instrument in low level sunlight would speed up this process or spending some time in a UV light box like makers use to set the varnish would also help speed the process.

Repeated coats of french polish will take away the stickiness, though the OP did not mention that issue.  French polish will help to harden the surface but this problem goes all the way through the varnish thickness.

French polish is such a thin coating that no one worries about it causing varnish cracking.

Perhaps the maker will tell you what his varnish is composed of.  That would be helpful in predicting if it will eventually harden.