i love this channel even as someone who’s kind of lost their love of their instrument, it restores the feeling of respect i have towards this hunk of wood to know someone put hard labor and effort into this, and here i am taking it for granted. as well as with the maintenance tips, it also helps me take much better care of my instrument and makes me realize how badly i was treating it
Wind players should be aware that the acid and oils from their hands can wear through the varnish/plating on their instruments as well. It's always a good idea to wash your hands before playing, and wipe the instrument off afterwards.
It's really great that you're explaining these things to us because it makes us less ignorant about our own instruments. When we are so ignorant it makes us more dependent on luthiers and possibly get flustered when things go wrong.
luthiers should only be doing work on things that we cant really do on our own.. i play guitar and some people genuinely pay a luthier like 40-60$ to adjust the action, which is essentially just turning a few screws in the bridge of the guitar.. fret leveling/recrowning/polishing on the other hand?? you spend hours and its very risky on your own.. same principle for violin.
I have made good experience with cleaning petrol (Reinigungsbenzin) to remove oil and grease. It does not affect the varnish too much - at least much less than acetone.
I noticed a handpatch few years into my instrument, from then on I hold my violin with my thumb on the circular underbase and four fingers on the strings for minimal contact
For cleaning gunk, crud and nicotine of instruments, I use 'Luthier Professional Varnish Cleaner'. I don't know what they put in that stuff, but it lifts of even the worst gunk in one go without much effort. Yes, it even takes of thick layers of nicotine...!!
This gave me the thought to check my old student instrument from years ago. I noticed the coating starting to wear so I will take it in the next time I go to my lutheir. Thanks Olaf!
Firstly each instrument is like a person I know to me, so I recognise them easily... But yes, I have to be highly organised and make sure that everything is labelled. I use my order numbers from my accounting software to keep track of each instrument. I also try to get instruments in when I can actually work on them, so I don't store too many pending repairs.
Wonderful channel. When you are showing sanding or polishing the camera remains directed at you and not on what you’re doing so we don’t get to see the sanding or polishing. Even though it’s only a couple of seconds maybe you could lower the camera so we could see it. Thanks for these interesting videos.
My old violin looks like it had a hand patch on the rib, because the varnish color is worn off. But it has clear varnish over it. I've been playing this violin for at least 10 yrs and haven't worn through the touch up varnish. But will keep an eye 👁 on it 😉
3:05 - 3:17 I've seen that before, it was not pretty. The shop owner still bent over backwards though but he tried his best to explain what was going on.
I have probably the dirtiest “chin patch” on a baroque violin, that even you may have ever seen. How dirty? So dirty that the annual rings of the spruce have different wearing in the early and late wood part of each ring - like a potatoe chip. And after seeing your video, now I know why the lower bout came apart almost immediately after a luthier put it back together. I had thought it was because I had failed to use gut strings and the instrument couldn’t take the tension. Interestingly, the hand patch you described shows best in a black light, where the varnish(?) doesn’t glow green in that spot.
Hi Olaf, would you ever consider doing a viseo to explain one or more of your varnish recipes, or is that too personal (being your secret sauce and all)? Also, I really like your primary craving knife. Where did you get that, or did you just make it yourself? Thak you for all of your words of wisdom. Now I ALWAYS wash my hands before playing my violin. That's a really good policy I think.
Loving your blue frame glasses 👓!!! I am guilty of holding my violin from the side and have a huge hand patch. Mine is not an expensive violin tho, and the one luthier I knew kinda went out of business or simply doesn't reply my requests to visit her shop, oh well!
My closest experience with a hand-patched violin was a 1721 Stradivari, whose most famous player was Jean Marie Leclair, Jean Marie died in 1764, stabbed in the back while played this instrument. The musician's body was found hugging the violin, when he had already left an indelible mark on it, which is why it has been called "the black violin". The sound of that violin I could describe as marvelous. Regards from Chile!!!!
Take a tip from gun restorers. Carefully soak the area with acetone. Non oily fingernaill polish remover. is the same thing. I am not a fan of sandpaper, many guns and other items have been ruined with sandpaper.
Olaf: it'll leave this awful patch Luthiers: oh that's hot were going to add that to the brand new ones Truly the ripped denim on the luthier world lol
Hi Olaf, great video. Fellow luthier here, also in Australia! I wanted to hear your thoughts on the hand patch that is on the great Il Cannone? No varnish left on that poor upper bout/shoulder and of course the overhang on both the top and bottom have been worn so thin in the same area that it's almost flush with the ribs! In your opinion (if it were your property) - would you add one of those clear veneers to the shoulder? Or leave it as is? It's usually hanging up in a case but I find that it's being played more and more these days (in which case we should do a little preservation). I remember years ago when people asked me who else had played it and I said hmm.. "Shlomo Mintz played it and that documentary is on RUclips". Now people ask me who's played it and I can instantly say "Shlomo Mintz, Maxim Vengerov, In Mo Yang, Kevin Zhu, Francesca Dego, Giulio Plotino" (in fact you might've met that particular fellow Italian/Australian lad!) .... and the list is only going to build and I'm sure I've left out many players.
Adam savage told a story about how some people (him included) have a type of perspiration that tints model foam yellow. In the industry, they call it piss hands haha
How does this translate to the bow? I guess the only glue on a bow is protected by the thumb leather, but if the wood absorbs oils it must change the resonance, right? Since it's much harder to protect the bow from sweat, should the varnish be retouched religiously on a tight schedule? Or should tradition be sacrificed to modern materials such as spar varnish or epoxy?
My bows have some serious discoloration and wear at the frog end from decades of playing. I've seen photos of some bows where the wood has worn away quite significantly. I haven't seen any detailed discussions on cleaning and protection though. The pernambuco is a naturally oily wood, and the only glues which stick are epoxy and cyanoacrylate, and they wear quite well against us. I've only heard of shellac being used for finishing, and that wears much quicker than resin vanishes. Which means they do need similar levels of care! Definitely a good parallel topic that I'd like to know more about too.
Hi Olaf, I was just curious how you initially judge whether a violin’s varnish is sturdy or not. Can you tell by the appearance alone? Or is it something you discover while cleaning the instrument? Thanks!
Hello Olaf, thank you for this interesting video. I have a question thereupon. I have an old violin (around 1850) that i like very much. It has a bit of hand patch on the upper rib but what worries me the most is, you know, the sort of furrow along the side of the fingerboard that some violins get when they have been played for years by someone who would let his pinky rub against the table when going high on the E string. On this one it is deep and the wood is bare. I had my luthier putting a cover like you do in the video but it looks like it doesn't hold because after a while it seems like the layer had disappeared. It can't be me because I dont have the bad "pinky-rubbing" habit. Could this relate to what you explained at the beginning of the video about the glue not holding? What can be done at this point? Thanks again and sorry for my bad English.
@@AskOlaftheViolinmaker and what about the ebony fingerboard? Cheap violins don't have an ebony fingerboard, it's probably just painted the dark colour.
Thanks for the video it was informative I wanted to know if you tried the new version of pirastro perpetual (cadenza) strings and what’s your opinion about them ?
Funny when I was growing up I was told the opposite. Keep your hands away from the neck because that makes it go out of tune. Rest your hand on the he body!!! I never knew
Olaf, this is a question you get a lot, but as someone who's got a little experience with woodworking and crafting (have built and repaired electric guitars + wiring, know some DIY carpentry, understand various paint types and applications, have worked with materials like antler and horn). How would I go about getting into the instrument repair business? Are there any essential tools or pieces of advice you could offer?
Hi Olaf, I've been pretty careful to avoid touching the handpatch on my violin, and like you suggested, I hold my violin by the neck during rehearsals. However, this causes the wood on the neck to develop rough patches because my hands tend to sweat a lot. I've had luthiers smooth it out a few times, but the roughness always comes back in a few months. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks!
@@AskOlaftheViolinmaker I see, thanks! My teacher has clear plastic on the handpatch, but I've never heard of installing it on the neck as well. I'll ask my luthier next time I get that patch smoothed out!
i love this channel even as someone who’s kind of lost their love of their instrument, it restores the feeling of respect i have towards this hunk of wood to know someone put hard labor and effort into this, and here i am taking it for granted. as well as with the maintenance tips, it also helps me take much better care of my instrument and makes me realize how badly i was treating it
Im the same haha
Wind players should be aware that the acid and oils from their hands can wear through the varnish/plating on their instruments as well. It's always a good idea to wash your hands before playing, and wipe the instrument off afterwards.
My sweat destroys the plating on the keys. I’ve eaten right through my clarinet to the yucky metal underneath. So true!
It's really great that you're explaining these things to us because it makes us less ignorant about our own instruments. When we are so ignorant it makes us more dependent on luthiers and possibly get flustered when things go wrong.
luthiers should only be doing work on things that we cant really do on our own.. i play guitar and some people genuinely pay a luthier like 40-60$ to adjust the action, which is essentially just turning a few screws in the bridge of the guitar.. fret leveling/recrowning/polishing on the other hand?? you spend hours and its very risky on your own.. same principle for violin.
I have made good experience with cleaning petrol (Reinigungsbenzin) to remove oil and grease. It does not affect the varnish too much - at least much less than acetone.
I noticed a handpatch few years into my instrument, from then on I hold my violin with my thumb on the circular underbase and four fingers on the strings for minimal contact
I'm actually no violin player, but this is one of the coolest chanels on yt! :-)
For cleaning gunk, crud and nicotine of instruments, I use 'Luthier Professional Varnish Cleaner'. I don't know what they put in that stuff, but it lifts of even the worst gunk in one go without much effort. Yes, it even takes of thick layers of nicotine...!!
Great to hear... It all depends on the kind of varnish your instrument has. Some varnishes wear off really easily and can be affected by cleaners.
This gave me the thought to check my old student instrument from years ago. I noticed the coating starting to wear so I will take it in the next time I go to my lutheir. Thanks Olaf!
Hi Olaf, this is an excellent informative video! Thanks for making it.
Kind regards.
Thank you for this. I didn’t know I’ve been handling my violin wrong all this time.
My instrument would be a great candidate for your cleaning video. It's been at the luthier for 7 weeks.
I am interested to see how you organize all of your clients violins and don't get them confused.
Firstly each instrument is like a person I know to me, so I recognise them easily...
But yes, I have to be highly organised and make sure that everything is labelled.
I use my order numbers from my accounting software to keep track of each instrument.
I also try to get instruments in when I can actually work on them, so I don't store too many pending repairs.
Olaf: they were FURIOUS!
Me: I bet they came unglued...
Wonderful channel. When you are showing sanding or polishing the camera remains directed at you and not on what you’re doing so we don’t get to see the sanding or polishing. Even though it’s only a couple of seconds maybe you could lower the camera so we could see it. Thanks for these interesting videos.
My old violin looks like it had a hand patch on the rib, because the varnish color is worn off. But it has clear varnish over it. I've been playing this violin for at least 10 yrs and haven't worn through the touch up varnish. But will keep an eye 👁 on it 😉
3:05 - 3:17 I've seen that before, it was not pretty. The shop owner still bent over backwards though but he tried his best to explain what was going on.
I have probably the dirtiest “chin patch” on a baroque violin, that even you may have ever seen. How dirty? So dirty that the annual rings of the spruce have different wearing in the early and late wood part of each ring - like a potatoe chip. And after seeing your video, now I know why the lower bout came apart almost immediately after a luthier put it back together. I had thought it was because I had failed to use gut strings and the instrument couldn’t take the tension. Interestingly, the hand patch you described shows best in a black light, where the varnish(?) doesn’t glow green in that spot.
Hi Olaf, would you ever consider doing a viseo to explain one or more of your varnish recipes, or is that too personal (being your secret sauce and all)?
Also, I really like your primary craving knife. Where did you get that, or did you just make it yourself?
Thak you for all of your words of wisdom. Now I ALWAYS wash my hands before playing my violin. That's a really good policy I think.
Loving your blue frame glasses 👓!!!
I am guilty of holding my violin from the side and have a huge hand patch. Mine is not an expensive violin tho, and the one luthier I knew kinda went out of business or simply doesn't reply my requests to visit her shop, oh well!
My closest experience with a hand-patched violin was a 1721 Stradivari, whose most famous player was Jean Marie Leclair, Jean Marie died in 1764, stabbed in the back while played this instrument. The musician's body was found hugging the violin, when he had already left an indelible mark on it, which is why it has been called "the black violin". The sound of that violin I could describe as marvelous. Regards from Chile!!!!
Take a tip from gun restorers. Carefully soak the area with acetone. Non oily fingernaill polish remover. is the same thing. I am not a fan of sandpaper, many guns and other items have been ruined with sandpaper.
It looks like a Caussin workshop violin to me, it's the weird antiquing of the varnish that reminds me of Caussin workshop instruments I've seen.
Olaf: it'll leave this awful patch
Luthiers: oh that's hot were going to add that to the brand new ones
Truly the ripped denim on the luthier world lol
Absolutely... Antiquing is huge... People just love the look of old instruments
Oh no... in 50 years someone's going to see my cello with the shape of me sleeping on it 😴
"There's a little bell there" OMGG
Really interested in the instrument cleaning process.
Horrifying to see just how far body oils can travel through the wood.
Could you let us know what kinds of cleaners, varnishes, and polishes you use?
I have just the violin for you to do a great video on! Lol an old Mathew Hardie Violin
Hi Olaf, great video. Fellow luthier here, also in Australia!
I wanted to hear your thoughts on the hand patch that is on the great Il Cannone? No varnish left on that poor upper bout/shoulder and of course the overhang on both the top and bottom have been worn so thin in the same area that it's almost flush with the ribs!
In your opinion (if it were your property) - would you add one of those clear veneers to the shoulder? Or leave it as is? It's usually hanging up in a case but I find that it's being played more and more these days (in which case we should do a little preservation).
I remember years ago when people asked me who else had played it and I said hmm.. "Shlomo Mintz played it and that documentary is on RUclips". Now people ask me who's played it and I can instantly say "Shlomo Mintz, Maxim Vengerov, In Mo Yang, Kevin Zhu, Francesca Dego, Giulio Plotino" (in fact you might've met that particular fellow Italian/Australian lad!) .... and the list is only going to build and I'm sure I've left out many players.
Adam savage told a story about how some people (him included) have a type of perspiration that tints model foam yellow. In the industry, they call it piss hands haha
How does this translate to the bow? I guess the only glue on a bow is protected by the thumb leather, but if the wood absorbs oils it must change the resonance, right? Since it's much harder to protect the bow from sweat, should the varnish be retouched religiously on a tight schedule? Or should tradition be sacrificed to modern materials such as spar varnish or epoxy?
My bows have some serious discoloration and wear at the frog end from decades of playing. I've seen photos of some bows where the wood has worn away quite significantly.
I haven't seen any detailed discussions on cleaning and protection though.
The pernambuco is a naturally oily wood, and the only glues which stick are epoxy and cyanoacrylate, and they wear quite well against us.
I've only heard of shellac being used for finishing, and that wears much quicker than resin vanishes. Which means they do need similar levels of care!
Definitely a good parallel topic that I'd like to know more about too.
Hi Olaf, I was just curious how you initially judge whether a violin’s varnish is sturdy or not. Can you tell by the appearance alone? Or is it something you discover while cleaning the instrument? Thanks!
How do you prevent 'hand patches' on your own brand of instruments ?
"hand patch on an old German violin" me sat here with my old German violin,, don't call me out like this 🤣🤣
Thanks! Happy Christmas & New Year! 🌞😎✌️🎻🎅🏻
1:48 lmaooooo love brett eating chips
Hello Olaf, thank you for this interesting video. I have a question thereupon. I have an old violin (around 1850) that i like very much. It has a bit of hand patch on the upper rib but what worries me the most is, you know, the sort of furrow along the side of the fingerboard that some violins get when they have been played for years by someone who would let his pinky rub against the table when going high on the E string. On this one it is deep and the wood is bare. I had my luthier putting a cover like you do in the video but it looks like it doesn't hold because after a while it seems like the layer had disappeared. It can't be me because I dont have the bad "pinky-rubbing" habit. Could this relate to what you explained at the beginning of the video about the glue not holding? What can be done at this point? Thanks again and sorry for my bad English.
The neck doesn't have varnish. Does that area absorb your sweat?
It can... It is usually oiled with linseed oil.
@@AskOlaftheViolinmaker and what about the ebony fingerboard? Cheap violins don't have an ebony fingerboard, it's probably just painted the dark colour.
When you sand the varnish, what grit sandpaper do you use?
Thanks for the video it was informative
I wanted to know if you tried the new version of pirastro perpetual (cadenza) strings and what’s your opinion about them ?
Fantastic!!
Funny when I was growing up I was told the opposite. Keep your hands away from the neck because that makes it go out of tune. Rest your hand on the he body!!! I never knew
Olaf, this is a question you get a lot, but as someone who's got a little experience with woodworking and crafting (have built and repaired electric guitars + wiring, know some DIY carpentry, understand various paint types and applications, have worked with materials like antler and horn). How would I go about getting into the instrument repair business? Are there any essential tools or pieces of advice you could offer?
and remember, while wiping down your instrument, 🎼don’t forget that spot here - cause Olaf said so! 🎵😉
Microfiber cloth is expensive compared to lint free cotton rags. Do you wash your microfiber cloth?
Definitely...
Oppps, I wish you had uplaoded this video sooner... I also have a little bit of a hand patch
Hi Olaf,
I've been pretty careful to avoid touching the handpatch on my violin, and like you suggested, I hold my violin by the neck during rehearsals. However, this causes the wood on the neck to develop rough patches because my hands tend to sweat a lot. I've had luthiers smooth it out a few times, but the roughness always comes back in a few months. Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks!
You could try going to the violinmaker before it gets rough. Some players get clear plastic installed over the area
@@AskOlaftheViolinmaker I see, thanks! My teacher has clear plastic on the handpatch, but I've never heard of installing it on the neck as well. I'll ask my luthier next time I get that patch smoothed out!
@@AskOlaftheViolinmaker I can't picture having clear plastic on the violin. Is thats something that is applied to the finish? Might affect the tone?
How do you know if you need to plane fingerboard?
How much to "polish " whole violin. Did that mean new varnish all over?
Wow. This is all people not taking good care of their instruments. Basically, don't wait until the varnish gets that bad.
"I have had _furious_ customers"
Those customers have no right to get upset over damage caused by their inability to care for their instrument.
Unfortunately they didn't know... It can make it difficult.
These days I point it out before I do any gluing... 😀
I have 87 year old German. I played every day this hot summer. I was sweaty 🥵. Now the hand patch is dirty gray looking and kinda 'fyzzy'.
Get that fixed lol
@@supernoodles908 I am . I plan to bring it in in Jan. I have to played places this Dec and they will keep it a few days.
I always rub my hands with baby powder before playing
I've a solution : stay in 1st position hahahaha