Posted on June 24, 2019March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Grading and Resawing Lutherie Wood Resawing Lutherie Wood by Bruce Creps previously published in American Lutherie #91, 2007 See also, “Sharpening the Stellite Teeth on the 3" Hitachi Blade” by Bruce Creps “Grading and Curing Lumber” by Bruce Creps Harvesting, milling, and processing tonewood can be a wasteful business. Much of the wood used by luthiers comes from large, older trees, elders worthy of respect. As someone fortunate enough to work with these rare, high-grade woods, one of my top goals is to minimize waste by processing this valuable resource efficiently. This article concerns the Hitachi CB75F resaw, though much of what follows is general enough to be applicable to other resaws. Luthiers who buy resawn sets might glean information about how their wood is processed and what to request or avoid when ordering. A note on nomenclature: A resaw is an upright or horizontal bandsaw set up to make uniform rip cuts. The front of the saw is where you start feeding a cut. The face of a board is its wide, longitudinal surface; the edge is its narrow longitudinal surface; the end is its crosscut surface. The resaw blade is made up of its band and its teeth (terms not necessarily interchangeable). I refer to vertical-grain wood in place of quartersawn wood to avoid confusion, since a sawyer can get vertical-grain cuts without quartering a log. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 13, 2010February 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Q & A: Cost of Opening a Violin Shop Violin Q & A: Cost of Opening a Violin Shop by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #10, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 My wife and I are thoroughly fascinated with the violin; we both play professionally in the local orchestra. We have enjoyed all of your repair articles and look forward to meeting you. We have often considered opening our own violin shop but have no idea how costly and, furthermore, how profitable such a venture could be. We wouldn’t want to offer the most expensive instruments, but would like to have a better-than-ordinary inventory. Can you give us a rough estimate of what it might cost us? Portland, Oregon, needs another violin shop like Hawaii needs another volcano! It seems the Northwest has become an attractive setting for violin shops, and, although competition can help stimulate business, oversaturation of any market can cause all participants to suffer. Your best bet is to find a location where there are no violin shops at all, but where there are people who are interested in playing the violin. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on January 13, 2010February 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Q & A: Limits of Regraduation Violin Q & A: Limits of Regraduation by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #10, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 I recently regraduated the top, back, and sides of a violin. I took the top down to 2.5MM in the center, the upper and lower bouts down to 2.2MM, and the ribs down to .9MM. I refit a new bassbar and put the instrument back together. The instrument sounds so much better after this tonal adjustment, but I have to keep fitting a new soundpost every month or so. I have noticed a slight bulge in the soundpost area of the top. My question to you is, should I remove the top and put in a soundpost patch, or treat the underside of the table with potassium silicate to stiffen up the wood? What you did to the violin in question is not considered by most makers and repairpersons to be a “tonal adjustment.” What you have done is to prepare the instrument for an early grave. Nothing you do now is going to save it. Forgive me for coming down so hard on you, but regraduating an instrument to such radical proportions leaves the instrument, in my opinion, unplayable, unrepairable, and worthless. I hope that the violin we are speaking of does not belong to a customer of yours. I suggest to anyone reading this to remember that, when repairing an instrument, keep in mind the factor of irreversability in your work. Wood does not grow back once it is carved away!
Posted on January 13, 2010February 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Q & A: Color of Potassium Silicate Violin Q & A: Color of Potassium Silicate by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #9, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 On my first three violins, I used a gamboge solution to seal the instruments before I varnished them. This left a warm yellowish ground for me to work with. On my latest instrument, I used potassium silicate, like Sacconi mentions in his book, The “Secrets” of Stradivari. The back and ribs turned a beautiful cinnamon brown, but the top has a tinge of green in it. What, if anything, can I do to avoid this in the future? I experienced this green tinge once myself. Now before I mix my potassium silicate with water, I put a tea bag in warm water and let it sit for a few minutes. Then I remove the tea bag and combine the two liquids, mixing well and applying it to the instrument while the solution is still warm. Try this the next time.
Posted on January 13, 2010March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips It Worked for Me: Violin Shipping Tips It Worked for Me: Violin Shipping Tips by Keith Davis Originally published in American Lutherie #48, 1996 Helpful hints for shipping a violin: ▶ Place a foam rubber or tissue paper filler under the end of the fingerboard. This should be just snug, not too tight. ▶ Place a similar pad under the end of the tailpiece nearest the bridge. ▶ Using additional foam rubber or tissue, make a pad that will fill the space between the bridge and the end of the fingerboard, and a similar one that will fit between the bridge and the tailpiece and put them in place. ▶ With the padding in place, lower the string tension slightly, the equivalent of about one full tone. The strings should touch the pads. ▶ If a polyethylene violin bag is available, put the violin into it prior to putting it in the case to help protect the instrument from humidity changes during transit. ▶ Place additional foam rubber pads between the case and the ribs of the violin to prevent it from knocking around in the case. Make sure that the neck of the violin is supported and that the bow(s), if any, are well secured. ▶ Close the case carefully after including any necessary documents. Pick up the case in both hands and shake it gently, then with more vigor, listening to see if the violin is well secured. If not, back up and add more padding. ▶ Pack the case in an appropriate corrugated cardboard box. Padding between the case and the box is essential and may consist of crumpled paper in great quantity, foam peanuts, foam rubber. ▶ Whenever possible, ship violins on Mondays or Tuesdays, and rare or valuable instruments via 2nd Day Air. This will prevent long layovers in unheated warehouses. Please Note: People receiving violins in terribly cold weather should exercise caution in unpacking them. The instrument, box and all should be allowed to come to room temperature before opening. Frozen violins, shocked by instant exposure to warm air, can turn into 72-piece violin kits. Take your time and do a nice job. Using these methods we at Davis Instrument Service have never suffered a shipping loss. ◆
