Copy of Stradivarius violin 2

*updated February 6, 2024

This violin was given to me on January 24, 2024. It is far more better shape than the first one I had received but the case it came in wasn’t the greatest – very old style but not practical to today’s standards.

A new case was purchased as there wasn’t really any cushion for the violin to sit on in the old one.

I did tune it up and gave it a test run – even though I don’t know how to play violin and it did sound good to me, at least. The good thing now is that having a second violin on hand, when I finish restoring the first one, I can compare the two – it could be a way for me to know if the soundboard needs to be changed on the first one.

For the most part, the body is in great condition, there is a small spot that the varnish has come off…maybe it got hit or something but nothing serious. After taking off the chin rest, I found out that a portion of the wood on that spot had been replaced some time ago. Visually, it is hidden when the chin rest is on and seems to be professionally done as it was colour matched to the rest of the body.

The bow and bridge that came with this violin was bent so I purchased a carbon fiber bridge and I learned that supposedly it doesn’t transmit the sound very well into the top plate afterwards. I did also bring in a Maple bridge and just need to carve it, I had already shaped the feet to the contour of the top plate.

A carbon fiber tailpiece was purchased as well as a carbon fiber bow.

As for the tailpiece, I am reading that a titanium tailpiece enhances the E string greatly. I would like to purchase one to try out, but considering that I don’t play the violin myself, it is not something that would be worth it. Maybe if I started to build violins sometime in the future.

But when the Maple bridge is finished, I will have somebody try the violin with the two different bridges and different bows to have real feedback – not something read from the internet.

Here is the violin cleaned with Hills and son varnish polish, new strings, the carbon fiber bridge and tailpiece installed, a new Ebony chin rest and the carbon fiber bow beside it.

A set of Wittner finetune pegs has been ordered for this violin.

I carved the Maple bridge by comparing it to the carbon fiber bridge and the bridge that was on the violin initially. There is still a lot to learn but I am grateful that I had been lucky to get two violins given to me to get familiar with how they are.

Violins and guitars are two completely different instruments. They have their similarities but are different in many ways as well.

Here is the violin with a Maple bridge installed.