stumpkicker - Posted - 06/05/2010:  04:54:03

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Most important, I seem to remember a post about using water and steam to straighten out a warped bridge.. Does anyone else remember seeing it and know where it is?

Also, back in the 90's, I seem to remember a bridge that had a feet attached to the bodyby little rods so the feet would move to fit the fiddle body. Does anyone else remember them and know if they still exist?

Thanks

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Edited by - wormbower on 06/05/2010 18:39:52

giannaviolins - Posted - 06/05/2010:  05:29:46

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One can sometimes use a light pass with water on the compressed side and 15 seconds in a microwave may do it.

I'd rather just put on a new bridge myself.

ajisai - Posted - 06/05/2010:  05:37:18

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Is this the kind of bridge you mean? swstrings.com/catalog/showPart...upId=SAN2 I have something similar on my fiddle. (It came on it.)

And this might be the thread you meant: fiddlehangout.com/topic/5790/#97834 (My bridge is actually a bit warped and my teacher's talked about how he's seen them straightened with steam.)

FiddleDoug - Posted - 06/05/2010:  06:24:38

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Bridges with "self adjusting" feet are available, but the feet still need to be fitted to the arch curve, and the height and thickness still need to be fitted to the instrument.

PeterG - Posted - 06/05/2010:  06:26:29

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You can also try an iron, with the steam setting on, but I won't garantee results. Wet the bridge first.
Voodoo, has the right of it, when a bridge is warping, its time to start thinking about a new one.

WoodshopFiddler - Posted - 06/05/2010:  18:16:36

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I have successfully straightened bridges on my fiddles with a steam iron with no ill effects (yet). Place the bridge on a flat surface with the cupped side up, lay a damp/wet cloth on the bridge and apply the iron on as low a setting as you can and still get steam.

If you overdo this ironing thing then the bridge will cup the other direction so moderation is the key.

giannaviolins - Posted - 06/05/2010:  18:42:24

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Important to figure out why the bridge warped in the first place. A bit of double crowning goes a long way.

woodwiz - Posted - 06/05/2010:  19:54:05

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Perfectly good bridges will warp if they are not kept straight for very long. A lot of our rental customers let their bridges lean, so they warp. We routinely straighten these bridges by saturating them with steam on a rack over a pan for a few minutes, then clamping them to something straight. I back crown bridges by about 1/2 mm because it looks better. We don't back crown rental bridges, and if they are kept straight, they don't seem to warp at all. We have about a thousand rental instruments out at any one time, and lack of a back crown doesn't seem to make any difference with warpage. The force vectors just don't induce warpage unless the bridge is leaning pretty badly. Of course, we use decent bridges, even on our rental instruments. The Teller and the German fake "Aubert" one and three star bridges are so soft they seem to warp in a heartbeat, even if you leave them thick.

dogmageek - Posted - 06/05/2010:  20:13:26

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Put the bridge in a pan of water.
Bring to a boil, remove from
heat, Let stand for 10-20 min
then remove bridge from water.
Clamp between a couple of blocks
of wood until dry.
48-72 hours.
Unclamp.
Voila

[repeat when warp returns]

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Edited by - dogmageek on 06/05/2010 20:14:35

3fiddles - Posted - 06/09/2010:  16:27:43

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i can't wait to put a new bridge on someone else's violin...

woodwiz - Posted - 06/10/2010:  06:49:13

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quote:

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Originally posted by dogmageek

Put the bridge in a pan of water.
Bring to a boil, remove from
heat, Let stand for 10-20 min
then remove bridge from water.
Clamp between a couple of blocks
of wood until dry.
48-72 hours.
Unclamp.
Voila

[repeat when warp returns]

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Steam works a lot faster, and doesn't waterlog the wood. About 5 minutes to steam, a couple of hours to dry. In general wood working, steam bending works, where soaking just doesn't.

A well cut bridge that's not allowed to lean generally won't warp, unless it's just too thin or too soft.

giannaviolins - Posted - 06/10/2010:  07:08:52

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Doesn't take much steam to shift a thin piece of wood.

We used to use steam to bend 3" plus timbers without any real trouble. Just lots of steam for a good while, and lots of hands with thick gloves. A long plank gets to be like rubber - for a short time!

tonyelder - Posted - 06/10/2010:  07:38:14

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flutedbeams.com/discovery.html

extreme bending

artcarnie - Posted - 06/30/2010:  21:25:19

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Thanks everybody, I am going to try the water and iron method only because that's all I got. If that doesn't work. I guess I just cut another bridge. Mines lasted a good three years with lots of playing. It's also super thin because everything else is super thick. Let us say it's a cheap fiddle from Romania made by communists.

artcarnie - Posted - 06/30/2010:  21:37:36

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That didn't take long. Worked great! The Iron method. I know this is just a one time quick fix and soon I'll need a new bridge and maybe a new fiddle. Thanks John

dancinbear - Posted - 09/08/2010:  14:37:43

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I've looked around a bit before posting but have a question. What is crowning and double crowning? Just noticed my bridge is warped. I don't have the 50 bucks my luthier would charge to cut a new bridge. The feet are totally flat on the belly so I don't think it warped from leaning. I have a blank bridge and Paul Newson's Violin Setup DVD. Thinking of either trying to flatten the bridge with steam or cut a new one. Any thoughts? I'm pretty handy but a little nervous about fitting one my self. The bridge that is on it is a Ecolier Despiau and I just had it put on in June. I'm not even sure if I should have the same luthier fit a new one. Could there have been a problem with how he cut it to make it warp so quickly?

carlb - Posted - 09/08/2010:  14:44:29

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quote:

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Originally posted by artcarnie

That didn't take long. Worked great! The Iron method. I know this is just a one time quick fix and soon I'll need a new bridge and maybe a new fiddle. Thanks John

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Please let us know how long it a time it took for the warp to return. Mine was usually within a week.

dancinbear - Posted - 09/08/2010:  15:18:14

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If there's a good chance it will return that quickly I think I may opt for cutting a new one.

woodwiz - Posted - 09/08/2010:  16:09:31

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A bridge that is too thin or too soft or that has bad grain will not hold up. But a good bridge can hold up for a very long time when it is straightened right and kept right. I talked to the guys in the repair shop, and none of us have ever had one come back that we steamed. But then we don't steam out crummy bridges; we recommend replacement.

When you steam a bridge until it is almost rubbery, it tends to straighten out on its own, I just clamp them by the base to a board with a spring clamp to dry overnight. Some of the other guys just dry them on a hot surface, flipping them frequently. I never have time for that.

The really cheap German bridges are the worst ones for warping, IME, and I don't even try to steam those.

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Edited by - woodwiz on 09/08/2010 18:04:51

Barry1963 - Posted - 09/08/2010:  17:32:05

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WoodWiz ::The really cheap German bridges are the worst ones for warping, IME, and I don't even try to steam those.


who makes the best quality bridges ?













[/quote]

dancinbear - Posted - 09/08/2010:  17:40:22

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Woodwiz, do you think I might be able to fit a bridge pretty well myself using the Paul Newson's Violin Setup DVD? I have some woodworking skills, been carving about 20 years now.

woodwiz - Posted - 09/08/2010:  18:12:56

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quote:

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Originally posted by Barry1963


who makes the best quality bridges ?

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Aubert (France, not the German "aubert" model) , Despiau, Milo Stamm I probably left someone out.

An Aubert no 5 is plenty good enough to start with, and a no. 7 is good enough for anybody but high level players.

Despiau standard (one tree) grade are also plenty good until you develop some real skill.

woodwiz - Posted - 09/08/2010:  18:33:22

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quote:

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Originally posted by dancinbear

Woodwiz, do you think I might be able to fit a bridge pretty well myself using the Paul Newson's Violin Setup DVD? I have some woodworking skills, been carving about 20 years now.

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Haven't seen the DVD. Carving bridges is not so much carving skills as it is seeing skills and sharpening skills. And, you gotta start somewhere..............

It helps to have a couple of very good knives, a long skinny one (1-1/2 to 2 inches?) for the cutouts, and a broader one with a slightly curved edge for the feet. Regular wood carving knives can be adapted. Hobby knives can work, sort of, but they put you behind the curve from the start.

The skinny one should be so sharp.... I don't know how to describe it. Sharp enough to cut a hanging hair, or close to it? My bridge knife cuts pretty hard maple like butter. The broader blade can have a stronger bevel but still needs to be sharp enough to shave without pulling. You also need a very sharp small block plane, a couple of files - mousetail and a flat one. Good tools make the job go a lot faster. A disc sander can be handy.

If you can just get the feet to fit accurately and square (the seeing part) get a good top curve, and get the bridge to nominal thicknesses, you'll be off to a good start. The bridge will work. You can refine your work over the next 1000 or so.

I first started cutting bridges over 20 years ago, but didn't cut a lot of them, fixing violins on the side and selling a few. What really helps is to do tons of student bridges to get the basics down and to learn to see. At least, it worked for me. I'm about halfway to cutting really good bridges. Mine work for the player, hold up well, and get good sound, but there's a long way to go yet.

I'm not trying to be intimidating or obscure, it's just that there are bridges, and there are bridges. Just about anybody can make a bridge that holds the strings up, but there are so many levels above that. The way I make fiddles sound good for people is about 90% attention to detail on basic operations. No real secrets, but the results speak for themselves.

So yes, you could probably cut a workable bridge, but it probably won't work near as good as it could. It'll take a while, and a lot of bridges, to get up to the level of good, at least IME.

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Edited by - woodwiz on 09/08/2010 18:43:07