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mike jarboe - Posted - 06/29/2010: 06:19:53
I live in New York state (unfortunately) and play old-time. When I went to the fiddlers convention in Mount Airy, N.C., this year, I noticed on a particularly hot and steamy night that i eventually just ran out of bow...couldn't get the hair tight enough to get as much slack out of the bow as I wanted. Like playing with noodles instead of horsehair.
I explained the problem to a fiddlemaker who had a booth there, and he rehaired the bow for me. That night, weather was similar, but I had no problems.
I don't think the bow was that short of hair at all, but I have been much happier with its reaction to heat and humidity since getting the work done.
Pardon if this is a silly question (I have been playing a long time but really have no idea what goes on "under the hood" with fiddles and bows), but would a luthier doing a bow set it up differently according to the climate where the shop is? The difference was remarkable. And I trust the person who did the original work to have done a good job, even though she mainly works on violinists' instruments. Or could that be it...the setup on a violinist's bow would be a little different because he or she is less likely to be wailing away outside in the middle of a night with 90 percent humidity?
Edited by - mike jarboe on 06/29/2010 06:27:31
carlb - Posted - 06/29/2010: 06:51:54
One time when I was having a bow re-haired, I specifically asked for it to be done so that the hair was just a little tight when the frog was completely loose. They honored my request and over the next month the hair lengthened a bit so it was loose when the frog was backed off. However, that re-hairing worked well, but the next time I had that bow re-haired, I forgot to ask to have that done and now I've got a small piece of wood (like matchstick size) under the hair, at the tip, which is necessary to keep my hair tight on those humid days (a trick that a bow maker taught me).
bj - Posted - 06/29/2010: 07:07:43
Ah, the old 99% humidity slack hair issue. That's why I'm glad I've got one carbon fiber bow, which seems to hold tension even when it's steamy out. I think it's a combination of both bowhair length/quality and the CF stick, which doesn't change in humidity like wood does.
Carl's trick does work in a pinch. I've used it, and a paper match is perfect for this, usually readily available when camping.
Re differences in bow rehairing, I suspect there can be differences, but whether they're intentional or not is an interesting question. I imagine a bow rehair done in an air conditioned shop may come out differently than that field rehair in a tent done on a steamy evening might, even if done by the same guy.
Edited by - bj on 06/29/2010 07:08:42
woodwiz - Posted - 06/29/2010: 07:20:35
If there is still enough hair, it is a simple matter to shorten it just a bit, rather than rehair.
When you rehair a bow, you try to set the hair length appropriate to the humidity of the season, shorter in summer, looser in winter. But most bows are used in climate controlled conditions, and aren't subject to high outdoor humidity, which causes the hairs to lengthen.
mike jarboe - Posted - 06/29/2010: 07:21:12
I have a wood bow and a carbon fiber bow, and I have been playing the wood bow of late. I didn't think of switching to the CF bow. Thanks for the tip, Carl.
ironworker - Posted - 06/29/2010: 07:24:43
glad you liked Don's work,Mike- can't remember if you watched or not, but his attention to detail in a rehair is
really something else. not too much hair, not too little, and no crossed hairs.
bow hair does become a bit "strechier" as the humidity increases,for sure.
it also streches on its own,as a result of normal tightening/loosening.
a tight bow in humid conditions willl put a little extra stress on the hair, and lenghten it a bit more.
ask someone what rental epuipment looks like after kids forget to loosen the bow, and put it away for the summer!
hope to catch up again this summer- Clifftop's a "possible" right now.
michael ford
mike jarboe - Posted - 06/29/2010: 09:31:33
Michael, thanks for the note. Unfortunately, Clifftop is an "impossible" for me due to work stuff. :(
devilsbox - Posted - 06/29/2010: 15:38:44
quote:
Originally posted by ironworker
glad you liked Don's work,Mike-
michael ford
Hey Mike, I am so glad you stopped me while headed to another place to get my bow rehaired. Don did a great job and my 2nd bow is now my 1st. Will be rehairing my former 1st bow by him at Mt Airy next year if he is there. I also had a bridge replace by him after someone set there guitar case on top of my fiddle case and bent the bridge on my fiddle almost in half. I had him lower the action too. What a joy to play now. I highly recommend Don Leister!!!
mike jarboe - Posted - 06/29/2010: 17:52:47
Second that emotion on Don Leister's work. He'll be at Clifftop (but I won't be). Bring all your fiddles and get them makeovers while you are there.
devilsbox - Posted - 07/01/2010: 13:02:25
Next year I'm going to bring Don a fiddle that I started out on. Pegs are stuck. Love that one for sure but seldom can play it.
ironworker - Posted - 07/01/2010: 13:41:25
Larry, it's easy as pie to stick it in a case and send it to him. no worries, mate.
give him a holler, ya'll will work it out.
Why wait a year to play that fiddle?
hoping to see ya'll from up in the frozen wastes down here in VA soon.
mike jarboe - Posted - 07/03/2010: 19:43:12
OMG, Mike...you would trust a cased fiddle to the shipping gods? You are more trusting than I am!
giannaviolins - Posted - 07/03/2010: 19:48:07
There's no problem shipping violins in or out of case if done sensibly. Few are built and sold in the same spot.
devilsbox - Posted - 07/05/2010: 02:38:49
I've had two shipped from CA to NH with no problems.
flyboy - Posted - 07/06/2010: 06:51:15
I think this might be the right place to ask this question about bows. I was recently at my Luther's and I was asking them about weather or not my bow needed rehaired. They said that the bow had a sufficient amount of hair left on it but that they often rehaired a bow every 6 months because the hair looses a lot of the "grab" or bite as the (microscopic) barbs or roughness of the hair wears smooth. I thought there seemed to be some truth to this as I have a couple of bows that still have hair but have not been rehaired for a couple of years and they do not seem to have the same pull as they once had. I find myself pulling harder with more pressure and applying more rosin but not really helping. Also they said to never touch the hair with your fingers and transmit oils from your hands. I practice daily how often should I get rehaired. I also have noticed the problem with the slack in the hair I tend to like my bow hair tight anyway. Also I am looking for a new bow either carbon or wood as long as they are light and well made. Can anyone recommend a super bow in the $200-500 range. I often buy from Shar Music.com and have had good service and prices. Thanks
john timpany - Posted - 07/08/2010: 10:22:43
quote:
Originally posted by flyboy
every 6 months because the hair looses a lot of the "grab"
they said to never touch the hair with your fingers and transmit oils from your hands.
how often should I get rehaired.
$200-500 range.
Well, I used to make bows many years ago (I never really liked making fiddles much), and the bow I use still, is one of my own. I made it to my own style of playing. I need to 'respring' it every 5 years or so, depending on how much I use it. I have two wooden bows, and if I think my bow is sliding about a bit rather than 'grabbing' I try the other bow just to compare - It's mostly me playing badly :) If I am playing hard, and English style can pretty aggressive on the hair ( well so can American too) then I loose the hair quickly and since I rehair my own bows, it's only about a 15/20 minute job. It's really therapeutic when you wet the hair and use the back of a comb to flatten it into a ribbon. Makes me wish I had a girlfriend hahaha. If you watch the shampoo ads on TV they sometimes show you how the scales sit on each human hair, and yes, they flake off naturally and more so when the bow is used. I find it impossible to say how often a bow should be rehaired, since it's down to how the player feels, and sometimes I think 'times' and 'sell by dates' don't work to our advantage, but to the sellers advantage. I don't touch my bow hair anyway, since it puts rosin on my fingers. I wouldn't suggest a price range either, since just like fiddles, a bow is down to 'feel' and not price. I used to ask players to play in front of me so I could just watch their bowing and hopefully see (like when you go for an eyesight test) if they needed to alter the weight at one end or another, then I would give them a different bow weight to try out. If it didn't suit after a month, they could always come back for an exchange. On ebay Flyboy, was a bundle of second hand bows going for only a few dollars, they all need rehairing and aren't worth me buying since I don't really want to buy and sell stuff, but if you learnt to rehair, (a hank of reasonable white mares hair from Mongolia is about $4.50 or so) you could end up with a good few bows to try out different weights and for backups. If you don't fancy that, well second hand shops sell old 'student' fiddles for peanuts round here, and they often come with case and bow (I bought one last week for £10) and it's a cheap way of getting a backup bow/fiddle and tryinging them out. The backup bow I keep in my case is too light for me, so I am slowly looking for a heavier one. Hope this helps.
Edited by - john timpany on 07/08/2010 10:26:20
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