The following is the process I take to make most of my cutters. Here I describe the making of a cutter to form the nipples on the end of the stick for the button seat on. Also, a little info about available lathes.
Making a Cutter
Winding Materials
When adding a winding to a bow, bow makers don't just put on whatever we think looks nice. There are several considerations that each material presents including, weight, balance, sound, and feel. Gold / Silver / Nickel Wire Metal wire can be obtained in different gauges but I mostly use 32 gauge which measures about …
Bowmaking Tools
I wanted to highlight some of the eclectic and unique tools that I use for bow making. Making bows combines skills and tools from woodworking, jewelry making, and machining. It is difficult to find tools that accommodate the small scale and level of detail we work to, so a number of tools we make or modify ourselves.
Making a Ferrule
Check out the video of the process at the end of this post! Sheets of sterling silver are marked out with calipers to slightly oversized dimensions. The flat section is measured out about 2 mm wider to give the ferrule tangs to allow handling with pliers. The final 1 mm or so of fitting the …
Bending the sticks
Today I'm bending the roughed out sticks. The throat is carved out behind the head and an even octagon with rough graduations are in the stick. I use a scraper plane and file plane to remove any remaining tool marks before bending as they can open up when working the stick. Using an alcohol lamp …
Violin bow No.7 and What’s Next
Violin bow no.7 I just completed violin bow no. 7, the stick is round pernambuco with ebony and silver mounts, weighing in at 61 grams. On this bow and Violin Bow no. 6 I decided to use silver for the tip plates. When executed correctly there is a negligible weight difference between the silver and bone/mammoth ivory …
Violin Bow no. 6
Here is the latest violin bow. The stick is round pernambuco with ebony and silver mounts, weighing 61.5 grams.
Exciting Times!
This month has been pretty hectic and exciting! My wife and I are celebrating the new addition of our baby boy Lorenzo to our family. Also, my violin bow #4 is officially for sale at Psarianos Violins, Ltd. in Troy, Michigan. I've had a lot of positive feedback from local musicians, professional and non-professionals and …
Violin Bow no. 4
This 4th violin bow was completed in March. The stick is octagonal pernambuco with ebony and silver mounts, weighing in at 60.1 grams. The head and frog modeling are Sartory, though I deviated from the traditional parisian eye/solid button combination on this frog and went with a large pearl eye. There are many examples of …
Rough’n it
Violin bow no. 4 in progress. Using various planes, we bring the stick down to about 1.5 mm to 2 mm above dimension. The use of various planes are nice in that different parts of the stick work differently in different directions of planing. I like to use the Stanley 9 1/2 to take off most …
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