bsed - Posted - 12/31/2017:  09:12:39

How do you tell good from bad? What do you like to use---and WHY? What brand would you recommend---and why do you like it?

I was doing some practicing today, and my bow starts sliding back & forth between the bridge & fingerboard. So I figured I needed rosin. I've been pretty unhappy with this particular rosin (L'Opera Jade, retails for $12.99), and today, applying fresh stuff to my bow didn't help.

Now it's real cold outside and I keep the house cool (57-60) when my wife isn't home, so I suppose that could have an effect. The amount of hair on the bow didn't seem to matter. I used a bow with not a lot of hair (because I'm playing a tune where I seem to break a lot of hairs) and I used a bow with more hair on it. Didn't seem to matter.

What's your take?

amwildman - Posted - 12/31/2017:  10:26:38

I use Kaplan Dark. Based on my personal experience as well as my friend's, dark rosins seem to work better in the winter, and not so well in the summer.

Some cellists swear by dark for half the year and light for the other half.

I know Kaplan and Hill both make dark and light versions of their rosin. Lots of choices out there, too many even.

amwildman - Posted - 12/31/2017:  10:29:08

I'm not sure how humidity might affect rosin grab. My area doesn't have humidity issues so I've never paid attention.

ChickenMan - Posted - 12/31/2017:  11:39:09

I use Andrea Solo - "half cake" for $20ish. It seems to hold up to weather and humidity, but like Aaron, I still have some Kaplan dark that was my go to winter rosin. Thus weekend I played for a dance without issue using the solo. It was minus 10 or some such nonsense outside, still is today, and feels like zero humidity. 

The Andrea really changed things for me concerning some attack issues I was having, especially on back and forth string crossings.

bluenote23 - Posted - 12/31/2017:  15:22:02

I have Kaplan Dark, Salchow and Andrea Solo. I may be just a beginner but I find the Andrea is way more grippy and gives me more tone. And with temperatures of -30C outside here, it's not so warm in the house. 

If you feel that the rosin is not sticking to the hair, did you try taking sandpaper to the rosin and running the bow through the rosin dust?

Edited by - bluenote23 on 12/31/2017 15:23:29

Brian Wood - Posted - 12/31/2017:  15:56:48

I've used different rosins but what I find makes the biggest difference is not putting too much on. I give 4 swipes (up, down, up, down) every 2 or 3 hours of play, or when I notice I am losing the grab. You always need some, but less is more with rosin. I find the brand doesn't make as much difference as not overdoing whatever you're using.

amwildman - Posted - 12/31/2017:  16:06:22

I have found that brand/type and weather do indeed play a big role. During the summer, my E string would squeal incessantly (and I mean really bad) unless I rosined the heck out of my bows. Now that the weather has turned cold, the squeal has stopped entirely, both with a bunch of rosin and without.

I used to say that I would make whatever rosin work and that messing around with such things wasn't helping me to be a better player. I'm still about as anti-tinkerer as you can get, but I'm starting to see a bit of wiggle room for experimentation. I've only used 2 rosins in 12 years playing, both of which are dark. Once the weather warms up, I'll check out some light rosin to see if it makes any difference or if the squeal returns.

DeamhanFola - Posted - 01/05/2018:  09:58:07

Give Melos light a try. I use it year-round: IMO the perfect balance between smoothness and grab, with little dust. (That said, I rosin lightly, about the same amount as abinga. I also clean off strings and fiddle top religiously.)

Have tried many rosins out there and Melos suits my playing best. Tried the Andreas, and the Hills, but the dark of the latter built up quickly even with my economical application and got too crunchy for my liking. (I play Irish trad exclusively, so YMMV if you play a genre that really prizes the grit.)

Brian Wood - Posted - 01/05/2018:  10:35:07

quote:

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Originally posted by DeamhanFola

 

Have tried many rosins out there and Melos suits my playing best. Tried the Andreas, and the Hills, but the dark of the latter built up quickly even with my economical application and got too crunchy for my liking. (I play Irish trad exclusively, so YMMV if you play a genre that really prizes the grit.)

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In terms of dark or light rosin, it seems to depend on the season or your climate. For what it's worth I've been using D'Addario Dark year round for a couple years and it's been fine. Very little dust. I'm in Northern Ca.

captainhook - Posted - 01/05/2018:  14:35:29

I've used Pirastro Gold (NOT goldflex) for 10 or 12 years (maybe longer, I don't remember) and have been pretty happy. Doesn't take much, very little dust. It is a little darker than most light rosin but definitely not dark. But the best rosin seems to depend on the way you play.

Fiddler - Posted - 01/05/2018:  20:45:39

I have been using Magic Rosin for the past several years. I really like it! It is uncharacteristically crystal clear, but it performs very well for me. It produces very little dust. I don't feel or hear much difference in different playing conditions - humidity, temperature, etc.

Edited by - Fiddler on 01/05/2018 20:46:06

robinja - Posted - 01/06/2018:  19:19:36

Hill light for me. I use it fairly sparingly, never had a problem with it, so never bothered trying anything else.

davebones - Posted - 01/13/2018:  20:55:15

My luthier strongly emphasizes cleaning the strings each time you play by putting a cloth under the strings next to the bridge and wiping the strings in the area the bow touches from the end of the fingerboard to the bridge, in that one direction only, using very small bit of alcohol on cotton. If you go back and forth, you dissolve the rosin in one direction, and then paint it on the string when reversing. Take great care with alcohol as it is a solvent for many violin finishes. This practice does not degrade the string, and keeps rosin from building up on the wound strings, especially.

He studied bow making with William Salchow and Hans Nabel, and has a very busy shop taking care of members of the Portland Symphony Orchestra string sections, so I trust his advice. He also points out that most amateurs rosin their bows much too often and clean their strings too little. Clean strings require very little new rosin on a bow once it is adequately rosined. I was having problems with a skating, scratchy bow, and thought it was the bow. Once I tried his method I discovered my bow is fine, and the skating and scratchy noises have disappeared.

bees - Posted - 01/14/2018:  09:02:48

I'm with Fiddler - It's Magic Rosin for me. Works great, very little dust. Don't use very much of it.

RinconMtnErnie - Posted - 02/01/2018:  19:51:51

Hill Dark is what I keep going back to, though I do experiment with others. For example I have some Super-Sensitive Clarity that I use on my daily practice bow, while I use Hill Dark on my better playing-out bow. Although I have a difficult time telling one rosin from another, I know when I don't like a particular rosin. I dislike rosins that are too hard. I generally play in air conditioned spaces, so I don't worry about the "dark rosin in the winter, light rosin in the summer" thing.

James T - Posted - 03/01/2018:  06:07:42

Matt at the Electric Fiddle shop recommended Magic Rosin for me and I love it , very little needed great grip , low dust

BanjoBrad - Posted - 03/01/2018:  13:52:03

I use Hill Dark also. It was something that the Folk Shop recommended when I asked about rosins when I first started. Until then I used the little cake that came with the fiddle. Seems to work for me, so I haven't bothered to switch.

I do have to say that I've been using the same cake since 2003, but that shows how much attention I give to my fiddle. When the bow starts sliding or squeaking/going noiseless, I add some rosin.

fujers - Posted - 03/01/2018:  14:07:45

I'm cheap..well I'm not really cheap because I got my fiddle from a Sears catalog. But I just use Super Sensitive..works for me and you pay $25 a cake? You must have money. Jerry

fiddlemn - Posted - 03/01/2018:  18:44:50

I use Bernadel and I like it. Has a good amount of grab without as much dust. When was the last time you had your bow rehaired? Maybe it’s time?