Violin Forum/Message Board

ctviolin · Posted: Thu Aug 15, 2013 9:30 pm Post subject:

By the way;

The top was joined in about twenty minutes - perfectly - no sweat - soft wood goes easily, and quickly.

The bottom maple plate(s) took a new plane blade sharpening, and a couple of days of playing with, to get the halves to match perfectly...

So, on to gluing.
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ctviolin · Posted: Fri Aug 16, 2013 3:15 pm Post subject:

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ctviolin · Posted: Fri Aug 30, 2013 3:10 pm Post subject:

Well, for this violin I've decided to go for the 1716 Strad violin, the Messiah. I'll be using the Messiah poster from the Strad magazine, and information for the mold, & some ect.'s, from Sacconi's book.

I'm cutting block material now, from some quarter sawn Bigleaf Maple stock that I got from Bruce Harvie some time ago.

Photos to follow.
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kjb · Super Member Joined: 06 Feb 2013 Posts: 385

are using wood for the soft jaws on your vise?

ctviolin · Posted: Sat Aug 31, 2013 8:11 am Post subject:

ctviolin · Posted: Sat Aug 31, 2013 8:24 am Post subject:

Raw - quarter sawn - blockwood; (with a straight split)

Measuring for blocks;

Cut;

Blockwood ready to go;

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ctviolin · Posted: Wed Sep 04, 2013 2:56 pm Post subject:

Just so everyone knows, this thread has not died.

More photos to follow.
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L P Reedy · Posted: Wed Sep 04, 2013 6:52 pm Post subject:

Are you actually using maple for blocks? I did that a couple of times but then went back to willow.

ctviolin · Posted: Wed Sep 04, 2013 10:11 pm Post subject:

L P Reedy · Posted: Thu Sep 05, 2013 4:58 pm Post subject:

ctviolin · Posted: Thu Sep 05, 2013 5:04 pm Post subject:

"From some quarter sawn Sitka Spruce."

There, now I feel a teeny tiny bit better.
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ctviolin · Posted: Thu Sep 05, 2013 5:12 pm Post subject:

ctviolin · Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 10:41 am Post subject:

Well, I've chosen the messiah to copy.

So here's the Strad centerfold of it. I've photo copied it at 100% a bunch of times in order to have enough copies of it to get a reliable picture of it pasted up, in order to work on it.
What I have done, is to make a copy of the back plate, and I have chosen (arbitrarily) the right hand side of the photo as my favorite side, so I will put a copy of the right hand side face up and one of the right hand side, face down (the one that looks like blank paper) in order to have an exactly equal pattern to work from.
I don't care if the original outline, as a whole, has inequalities on the differing sides - I want to make what I believe the original maker was attempting (Strad, in other words) which is an equally balanced object.
So, I have cut the photo out, on the inside of the purfling, in order to get approximately where the mold outline was.
As you can see, it is pasted up on a board that will become the actual mold.The board is 1" thick (well actually it's 7/8" thick) by 16" long, by 11" wide.
It was the only size board available at the local home Depot, and it cost slightly under twenty dollars. Luckily they sell such wood by the foot, so you don't have to buy an entire board, but can buy just exactly what you need.
S I am continuing to make an acceptable mold that I can use to make my copy of the Messiah.

Is this the correct or the best way to do it?
Who cares?
It's what I'm going to do anyway.
I have learned one thing in my years as a violin maker, and that is not to worry about all of the possible theoretical misgivings, and to just think first, and act second, and then to make third. Well the third aspect or point of this, is really involved in the second point. Think first and act second, it's simple.
I'm saying this for anyone out there thinking that it may be too involved or complex for them to do or attempt. When, in actuality, really, making a violin is something anyone can do.
And not to ever get stuck wondering if what you've decided is best, is or isn't best. Such information will come as you actually get to the building. And the building is what makes you a violin maker, more than anything else does, or will do.
Build.
That's right, build. Make violins.
I sound like a nut case, right? Oh well, in this case, it's exactly what I am.

The Strad poster, the xeroxes, and the wood for the mold.;

Cutting the xerox in half, I'll get rid of the left had side of the picture and then cut out another right hand side and put it upside down and tape it to the on face up. They are both cut out on the line that is inside the purfling...

So this is what it lookds like at this point;

Next I'll go ahead and cut this outline in the shape of an appropriate mold, and then I'll glue in blocks, that I'll cut out of the block material I showed and cut to height here, in the last set of photos I posted.
Am I being too meticulous here, showing everything I do? Is this too much or is this boring?
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DonLeister · Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 12:38 pm Post subject:

No, not boring. It's all interesting to me.
Are you going to copy the low arching? You can just answer me when you get there.
Thanks for sharing and 'make a mess!'

Chet Bishop · Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 2:03 pm Post subject:

The "Soil" and the "Dolphin also have low archings...and are very successful.
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