Posted on March 6, 2024March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Q&A, Part One Violin Q&A, Part One by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #9, #10, #11, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 In the last year I have received many letters concerning the repair articles I have written for American Lutherie. For the most part, the writers have thanked me for my willingness to share with the membership. Along with the comments on past articles, there are always a few questions asking my opinion about what to use or where to buy, and so on. I’d like to share some of those questions, along with my replies. No matter what I use to polish a violin, it never seems to clean it completely. Do you have any suggestions? I have never found a product that cleans as well as polishes, although many manufacturers claim that their product will do both. Taking into consideration the instrument’s age, type of varnish, and how dirty it is, there are a number of cleaning products that you can use. Example: a French violin, ca. 1875, covered with a thin spirit varnish, with enough caked-on rosin so that ridges have formed on either side of the fingerboard. 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 March 1, 2024March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Trimming Violin Bridges Trimming Violin Bridges by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #6, 1986 Few will argue the statement that there are no two violins the same, even if the arching, graduation, position of the bass bar and soundpost, and even the preparation of the wood may seem to be exactly the same. All violins do share some of the same properties, but each instrument has a single property of its own that distinguishes it from another. You’d be surprised what 0.1MM, either in thickness or thinness, can do to the sound of an instrument. An adjustment that minute can change the tone tremendously. Does the same hold true for a violin bridge? Yes and no. The following is my personal expansion upon the information given in Data Sheet #224 by Alan Carruth. As Mr. Carruth states, violin bridge tuning is a trial and error situation which is challenging when searching for an instrument’s highest potential. 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 August 11, 2021March 5, 2024 by Dale Phillips Electric Violins: The New Frontier Electric Violins: The New Frontier by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #12, 1987 In the past, my contributions to this journal have been of the more traditional subject matter. From repairing cracks to varnish recipes, I lend my knowledge of the violin to all our readers. Although this article is not about the traditional violin, I have the same enthusiasm to share the following information with you. Twenty years ago, electrifying a violin was a simple matter of attaching a DeArmond pickup clamp to the tailpiece and plugging the cord into an amplifier. Not much attention was given to the quality of sound that came out of the speaker. Players were more concerned that the violin could be heard over the drums and other electric instruments. 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 August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips “1704” Varnish Recipe “1704” Varnish Recipe by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #12, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 The subject of violin varnish and its making has been the topic of great debate and secrecy for the last hundred years. Many makers still spend a great deal of time chasing the elusive dream of coming up with the perfect varnish. Books and manuscripts are filled with endless recipes from the very basic to the most absurd. I have seen some formulas that call for ingredients such as goat urine, sheep bile, gold, and other even more exotic organic extracts that have to be boiled, dried, and then mixed with many different hazardous chemicals. I showed Dr. James Martin, head chemist for Bradshaw and Praeger Shellac Co., one of these more eccentric recipes. His reply to me was, “If you heat these chemicals, you will probably blow your shop to smithereens.” Needless to say, I took his advice. The varnish recipe described on the preceding page is known throughout the world as “1704”. The recipe came out of the old Wurlitzer shop in the early ’50s. As you can see, the varnish is a simple mixture of seedlac, gum, resin, and oil mixed with alcohol. 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 March 4, 2020March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Top Removal Violin Top Removal by George Manno Originally published in American Lutherie #5, 1986 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 One of the most difficult repairs to perform on a violin is removing its top after it has been glued with a yellow or a polyvinyl white glue, such as Titebond. These glues do exactly what the name implies: Their main objective is to close the separation between the rib and the top or back permanently. Violins are built in such a way that they can be taken apart if necessary. On many occasions, we have seen instruments come into our shop that were repaired by amateurs using whatever glue was available at the local hardware store. Apparently, thoughts of future adjustments to the neck or bass bar are not considered. Efforts to remove the top without damaging it after such glues have been used were, for a time, a cause of great distress to us. We have found a way to dissolve such a bond without harming the table, ribs, or back. Using a number of thin artist’s spatulas, a syringe, and some warm vinegar, along with a lot of patience, the removal of the top can be done successfully and the repair completed in a few days. 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.
