It very easy to use, it will be the best solution for the luthier. It strengthens the violin and adds depth to the sound. On deciding to become a violin maker, i left france and came to england to study at the renowned newark school of violin making in 2006. The bass bar is a reinforcing strut which is fixed inside the front of the violin and lies under the line of the g string. Youll learn about instrument making, and have a lot of fun along the way. Making an instrument of the violin family, also called lutherie, may be done in different ways, many of which have changed very little in nearly 500 years since the first violins were made. On a good violin with the traditional bass bar you tend to have a wolf tone on the b natural or c natural above a 440. Once the bass bar is glued into its position, it is given its final shape. I prefer to preheat the bass bar and top plate to about 100 degrees f. Viola violin making luthier tools edge clamp to repair. When perfectly fitted, the bar is glued into place with violin making glue, usually perpendicular to the predominant contact surface as the curvature changes.
Unlabeled new violin with bass bar crack for repair reverb. Contemporary handmade instruments mainly based on stradivari, guarneri patterns. This is a crack that runs along the length of the bassbar on the top of the. This book covers so much information from making to restoring. Oct 19, 2014 a cellist from georgia wrote us that although she prefers older cellos, she doesnt want to own a cello with repairs in certain areas, or a lot of repairs in general. Bass bar crack repair the pegbox maestronet forums. Usually,we use epacket delivery from chinaabout 721 business days ship to the us, canada, france, australia, russia and so on. A nearby cellist who plays in a major symphony was able to afford the cello of his dreams because it has a wellrepaired soundpost. The role and romance of the bass bar strings magazine. From tonal adjustments to the more complex restoration projects, hershey violins approaches repairs with the same professional level of care as our instrument making. In the case of my fiddle, the crack was next to the bass bar, and one side was higher than the other. The studs are shaped and the bass bar is refitted over the studs. The only luthiers who make use of that wasteful practice in current times are those that make fakes.
Violin repair, violin restoration services uk wide tim toft violins. There is much discussion about the bar tension, placement, and thickness. Body crack repair varies as it depends on severity, where it is located and what needs to happen for effective repair. Even when repairing a crack running under the bass bar, the bass bar is to be. Fiddle talk violin discussion forum playing the violin. It strengthens the front plate and helps transmit low frequency vibrations from the string to the body of the instrument. Both a musician and from a family of wood workers, i was drawn to violin making from an early age. I was wondering, why a modern italian violin with a somewhat big name.
Cello bass bar crack repair wallace violins wallace violins. The proper way would be to remove the entire top by separating it from its ribs, apply animal glue to the crack joint, and secure the crack further from opening in the future by means of studs or cleats beneath the crack. Do not draw a continuous line since it creates an optical illusion for the fitting of the bass bar. Antonio strad violin wont settle for making a violin as good as new. However, on the same note, the strength of a good hide glue joint is almost unmatched it can easily be stronger than the wood itself. Basebar crack repair mark jennings violin viola and cello maker, mullion, cornwall. The violin society of america 2015 scholarship recipients. Why diy wont do when your violin suffers a major malfunction. One of the mysterious steps in violin making is setting the bass bar. Ease of assembly and an outstanding price make this one of our most popular kits. Make sure the center of the bass bar is not elevated more than 6 mm from the plate on the left side as you will use a 6 mm washer to transfer the arching onto the bass bar. Interesting, i see that a jarring impact to the bridge can affect either or both sides of the table, at the bass bar as well as the soundpost area, and of course through to the back via the soundpost well.
Mar 01, 2009 but these pressure pointsthe top, along the length of the bass bar and over the soundpost, and the back, where the bottom of the post rests, are designed to be flexible, in order to conduct and amplify the vibrations. Cello bass bar crack repair wallace violins wallace. The bass bar function is to reinforcing the belly of the violin beneath the line of the largest g string, directly under the foot of the bridge. Hidden inside the top, the bass bar is one of the elegantly sculpted parts of the violin. A good position is crucial for both the sound and structural integrity. Often you have to make some compromises and lean the bridge to match the angle of the neck and still overhang the bass bar while sitting on the acoustical center of the. Fine european tone wood for violin, viola, cello and bass. Once again this presents a problem for the violinist to make the tone even enough to make the phrase work. Unlabeled new violin with bass bar crack for repair. These instruments are so bad they often make learning the instrument difficult if not impossible. Jun 28, 2011 taking an entire top off and having to reassemble the pieces together, including readjusting bridge and soundest position didnt seem at all like a worthwhile effort for a relatively short crack on a viola that didnt bear the name stainer, stradivari or any other big german or italian name. How to make a violin step by step instructions by william bartruff, violin maker foreword. If youre a firsttimer, this kit is a fine head start and a convenient alternative to building from scratch. The violin society of america previous scholarship.
Using a template, use pinpricks to create the outline of. Despite their solid appearance that guarantees rigidity are very light. Today violin maker derek roberts makes the bass bar and fits it to the inside of the front plate. Follow derek roberts progress as he works from choosing the wood to the completed violin in the white.
Extreme weather can cause open seams and even bad cracks that are. Therefore the violin becomes deep and rich in the lower register yet bright and brilliant in the upper register. A new bass bar is fitted and then the crack is given extra support by gluing a series of spruce studs along the crack. New violin bass bar clamp luthier tools, violin making. The author alexis schilbach, based in switzerland, is a master violin maker and. The large crack on the top of the violin ran along the bass bar, so cooper had to remove it to fix the break. First, gevorkian had to put a protective layer of very thin aluminum foil over the top of my violin so that he could use it to make a plaster cast of my violin top.
Violin making and repairs for the novice notes from the bench by david s. When perfectly fitted, the bar is glued into place with violin making glue, usually perpendicular to the predominant contact surface as the curvature changes throughout the length of the bass bar. At the ends it is often a either a dryness crack, like a saddle crack, extending upward, or due to the weakness of the top just adjacent to the bar, which is inherent to the violin design, but can be exacerbated by a thin top, weird, arching, or ill fitting of the bar. If you have a crack in a violin, you cant necessarily just glue it shut. But that flexibility makes them vulnerable to a sudden impact, which can result in a crack. These very qualities are responsible for many of the small violin repairs humidity and dryness can weaken the glue joints, making regluing of loose joints necessary. I recognize that a bass bar crack is a serious crack, and will devalue an instrument. I contacted and they sent out a replacement immediately. The player doesnt want some notes that surge or some notes that practically disappear. It is also structurally more solid than the traditional way of building a violin. In a perfect world every full size violin would have a 41.
But these pressure pointsthe top, along the length of the bass bar and over the soundpost, and the back, where the bottom of the post rests, are designed to be flexible, in order to conduct and amplify the vibrations. Violin shops had to retrofit older instrumentswhich, at this point, included pretty much anything made prior to the late18th centurywith new bass bars. It helps transmit low frequency vibrations from the string to the body of the instrument. It is a remarkable feat of sound engineering conceived by the old master makers.
Using a template, use pinpricks to create the outline of the scroll shape. With quite a few cracks the bassbar crack and the line underneath the. The usual repair consists of removing the old bass bar, gluing the crack, fitting a new bass bar, cleating the crack, fitting t. How to make a violin william bartruff, violin maker. In addition to making hand crafted instruments, hershey violins performs all major and minor repair services on the string instrument family. This required arching correction for the top of my violin, to smooth out those bumps caused by the uneven buckling across the top of the violin. It strengthens the front plate and helps transmit low frequency vibrations from.
Learn how violinmakers place the bass bar on fine violins, violas and cellos in. Best value violin repair clamps great deals on violin. Professional edge clamp for repairing cracks close to the edges. Discover over 827 of our best selection of luthier clamps on with topselling luthier clamps brands. Split a piece of spruce 350 x 20 x 8 mm, ideally the same spruce you used for the top plate plane down the sides so that they run perfectly parallel to each other and the thickness if the bar is about 6 mm for a flatter arch or 5. To read in full, download now on desktop computer or via the the strad app, or buy the print edition. The essence of my patent is i discovered how to build up the bass of the violin by adding wood to the bottom part of the bass bar away from the surface.
Shop the top 25 most popular luthier clamps at the best prices. One day, from curiosity i mapped out how a normal bar, which has a sweeping, scooped look on the contoured violin top, would look if it were on a flat top rather than an arched one, by. This item is sold asdescribed this item is sold asdescribed and cannot be returned unless it arrives in a condition different from how it was described or photographed. What was wrong with the old one was that it wasnt quite long or large enough and slightly installed crooked. With over 35 years experience, we are vastly the superior choice for a major refurbishment as well as smaller and equally vital repairs on anything from instruments to bows. Thais on a christian bayon violin with his new bass bar. Jan 22, 20 dalton potter explains the function of the bass bar in sound production for string instruments. The bass bar runs almost the length of the violin and sits directly under the instruments gstring. They carry a large selection of quality violins, violin parts, bows, construction woods, finishes, accessories, technical books, strings, and much more.
This is an extract from a longer article in the strads february 2018 issue. Also all factors that can not be changed after the top is. Cello bassbar crack repair may 2017 this cello had a large bass bar crack. Violin top crack repair fixing a short crack on a violin. Lashof the title says for the novice but the information in this well written book is very advanced but written in a way that is very practical. Discover over 555 of our best selection of violin repair clamps on with topselling violin repair clamps brands. Some violins, called benchmade instruments, are made by a single individual, either a master maker, or an advanced amateur working alone.
Atlantic violin supplies, located in new brunswick, canada, is a violin supply business providing value and service since 1993. The bass bar serves to prop up the arching as well as tune the plate and put it in balance. Stringed instrument blog michael darnton violin maker. How to prepare hide glue for musical instrument repairs. Piedmont violins vintage and custom made instruments. I understand that the majority of all violins out there at least. When the kit came in i discovered a crack running down the bottom of the violin. Install the bass bar traditional violin makers use heated hide glue, but its dif.
Make sure the crack is clean and remove minor chips so that you can get a good clamped fit. Beat the repairs price increase choose your bass, violin, viola, or cello from qbc. Jeongwoon graduated from the mittenwald school of violin making in 2011. Graduate with distinction newark school of violin making. Lorraine did a great job repairing a crack along the bass bar of my cello which required hours of. Padded wood spools used for gluing the top and back of the instrument. Airmail via economy china post office about 2045 business days ship to worldwide. Fitting the bar is perhaps the most precise step in making an instrument. Besides the crack, the fiddle needed a chest patch and a new bass bar to fit the corrected shape. It has to support the top, and it also distributes the vibrations to the rest of the top. Go to youtube and look up putting a kettlebell on a violin. Hide glue for musical instruments dry, granular form.
Mark out the position of the bass bar on the plate, see the circles in fig. Notice the slight tilt, causing the bar run a bit across the grain, reinforcing the arch even more. Best value luthier clamps great deals on luthier clamps. Violin making and repairs for the novice by david s.
Jan 17, 2015 violin bass bar fitting how to trimming violin rib corners video. Pegbox cracks varies according to severity and number of peg holes needing bushing. Usually,we use epacket delivery from chinaabout 720 business days ship to the usa, canada, france, australia, russia, uk. Now line up the bass bar blank along that mark and draw three more corresponding lines on the inside of the top next to the bass bar on the joint side. If you want to make a violin or viola for that matter, the first thing you will need is to find one to copy. Bassbar cracks usually start at either the ends or the middle duh, but for different reasons. Only after three years of violinmaking school was i admitted to the repair shop. The soundposts became thicker, and bass bars much more substantial. The bass bar runs right under the bass foot of the bridge. George martin and the workshop reseting a double bass neck, ep 3 duration. Find all china products on sale from youyang musical.
Im also well aware, and have done, the standard repair for a bass bar crack. Setting the bass bar in fiona one of the mysterious steps in violin making is setting the bass bar. If the instrument suffers an impact in the bridge, it will be comunicated to the bar and to the soundpost, resulting in a bass crack or in a post crack. Currently in his third year of school levi has completed 2 violins, 1 viola and is finishing building a cello. A cellist from georgia wrote us that although she prefers older cellos, she doesnt want to own a cello with repairs in certain areas, or a lot of repairs in general. Bow parts bow hair bundles and individual hanks frogs buttons, screws and eyelets tips, slides and pearl eyes. It takes a lot thicker piece of spruce with an integrated bass bar. Stone, fwiw, i just had my violin redone, and it had a bass bar that was replaced. Repair prices for instruments purchased from qbc will remain at the old rates for now. My clients are not well off, and dont play the violin, although her. It was caused by some sort of fall or shock to the instrument.
This series of articles shows how a violin is made by hand by a professional violin maker in the traditional way. One day, from curiosity i mapped out how a normal bar, which has a sweeping, scooped look on the contoured violin top, would look if it were on a flat top rather than an arched one, by mapping the heights on a flat line, and was i surprised. Bass bar cracks can distort the shape of the instruments top because of the strain of. How to judge if a violin has a good tone peter zaret and. The top of the violin, sound post, and bass bar are made out of spruce. Not much has changed in the past few hundred years of violin making, cooper said. The purpose of this guide is to give basic information about violin making. Maine violin maker repairs a cherished instrument portland. Dalton potter, violin make and owner of the potter violin com.
Despite the fact that id been making violins for more than 40 years, i still felt that i had not yet completely understood the key functions of the bass bar. This is a crack that runs along the length of the bassbar on the top of the instrument. Does it sound on par with other examples by the maker in sound. The bar plays a key role in shaping the instruments sound. The aspiring violin maker will have the opportunity to build a full size instrument from start to finish with the help of step by step tutorials accompanied by drawn images.
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