Fixing Student Violins and a Small Cello for Nottingham Music Hub: Sustainability in action

When not editing the Internet Journal of criminology and writing books on science fraud, I repair  violins and cellos for Nottingham Music Hub. Other violins I repair and donate some to self-employed music teachers. I don't charge anything for this work. Nottingham Music Hub is a charitable music organisation.

Here are some of this week's patients, a mix of  3/4 size Stentor student violins, one needed the fingerboard re-gluing, the other had pegbox cracked in two, a 1/4 size cello with he bottom half coming unglued and an old 3/4 size Lark violin that needed a sound post crack fixing, the bottom re-gluing at the seam and a new sound post. All need re-touching with the right shade of spirit varnish varnish.  All repaired with traditional hot hide glue. 

1/4 Size Stentor Cello - re-glued an open seam.


Re-attaching a fingerboard to a 3/4 size Stentor violin



Lark - Emerging sound post crack glued on the outside and then clamped


Gluing the bottom plate before removing the top (table)

Broken end block (tailpiece pin block) inside 3/4 size Lark violin before fixing


Lark sound post incorrectly positioned (should be perfectly vertical not sloping). Most likely cause of the sound post crack to bottom plate of violin if it was forced into place) View through the endpin
 (tail piece hole).



Preparing for parchment cleats on emerging (now glued) Lark sound-post crack

        Re-hot hide gluing and clamping of the top plate (table) of Lark (3/4 size violin.

I think the above violin spent a week in a lion's cage, or else a badger has been playing it. I will have to give it a lick of golden spirit varnish.


All this is sustainability in action. 

Visit my other violin blog site: Super Sustainable Student Violins to see some of my violin collection being played and for some advice on buying a student violin: Here

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