The Project Gutenberg EBook of Violin Making, by Walter H. Mayson

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Title: Violin Making
'The Strad' Library, No. IX.

Author: Walter H. Mayson

Release Date: March 5, 2009 [EBook #28252]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIOLIN MAKING ***

Produced by Ron Swanson

VIOLIN MAKING.

PRINTED BY J. H. LAVENDER AND CO.,
3, GREEN TERRACE, ROSEBERY AVENUE, LONDON, E.C.

[Frontispiece: Walter H. Mayson]

_"THE STRAD" LIBRARY, No. IX._

VIOLIN MAKING

BY

WALTER H. MAYSON.

WITH THIRTY-ONE ILLUSTRATIONS.

SECOND EDITION.

London:
"THE STRAD" OFFICE, 3, GREEN TERRACE, ROSEBERY AVENUE, E.C.
J. LENG & CO., 186, FLEET STREET, E.C.

New York:
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, 153-157, FIFTH AVENUE.

1909.

CONTENTS.

PAGE
INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

CHAPTER I.
SELECTION OF WOOD . . . . . . . . . . 7

CHAPTER II.
THE BACK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

CHAPTER III.
PURFLING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

CHAPTER IV.
BENDING THE PURFLING . . . . . . . . . 33

CHAPTER V.
MODELLING THE BACK . . . . . . . . . . 36

CHAPTER VI.
WORKING OUT THE BACK . . . . . . . . . 41

CHAPTER VII.
THE BELLY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

CHAPTER VIII.
THICKNESSES OF THE BELLY . . . . . . . 51

CHAPTER IX.
THE SOUNDHOLES . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

CHAPTER X.
THE BASS BAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

CHAPTER XI.
THE RIBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

CHAPTER XII.
FIXING RIBS, ETC. . . . . . . . . . . 71

CHAPTER XIII.
FIXING THE BELLY . . . . . . . . . . . 75

CHAPTER XIV.
THE SCROLL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

CHAPTER XV.
FIXING NECK, FINGERBOARD, ETC. . . . . 82

CHAPTER XVI.
OF VARNISH AND VARNISHING . . . . . . 88

CHAPTER XVII.
FITTING UP FOR USE . . . . . . . . . . 95

CHAPTER XVIII.
CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

PREFACE.

I do not like Prefaces.

They remind me somewhat of awaiting dinner in a drawing-room after a
long walk in wintry weather. It is one thing to get there an
occasional whiff of viands cooki