The Repairing & Restoration of Violins Part 10

The first thing is to hunt among some pieces of old ribs for a part that will match well. This takes some time. At last an old rib is found that appears just the thing--a part of it only will be required.

The next requisite is a mould or piece of wood cut exactly to the curve of the inside of the rib; this must not be roughly done, or any idea of "near enough" being thought of; if it does not fit exactly, then the pressure to come against it will be unequal in parts. If cut from a little block of soft wood the cutting will not take long, and the trouble be amply repaid by the result.

An exterior mould will be as necessary as an interior, and if the original rib is of fairly equal substance, the two moulds may be tried one against the other, and should fit nicely.

The ragged openings and rotten part of the original rib having been carefully examined with regard to the size of the fresh piece to be inserted, a line is marked by soft chalk as to the position and extent to be covered by the fresh wood. The aperture to admit the fresh piece of rib must be determined upon exactly, and be cut with the utmost neatness. Before doing this, however, the question must be gone into, and settled definitely, as to whether the fresh piece is to be pressed on from the outside or from the inside.

The choice must be in favour of the more convenient, or that which will be most likely to lead to the best results. As the sides of the aperture taken longitudinally must be cut at an acute angle and not upright, the convenience of cutting the edges of the opening from the outside will be decidedly better and more handy for obtaining the desirable sharpness of edge.

As a matter of course, the piece must be tried on again and again until it is clearly a good fit all round. When in a satisfactory state it will, when tried finally, be elevated a trifle above the surrounding wood.

The angle at which the upper and lower portions fit has no need to be cut so acutely as at the ends.

Everything being ready, including some strong clean glue, this latter will require painting over the surfaces that are to be closed together until absorption has ceased, and not before this are the parts to be brought home, or the absorption or soaking into the wood will continue, leaving no glue for holding the two surfaces.

When quite ready, the interior block of wood or mould will be held in position by the hand.

As usual, the piece of paper on the face of the mould will be used for preventing the glue holding on to it. The piece of fresh rib is now placed in position, and the outer mould (faced with paper, of course), applied. The screw cramps are now affixed, tightly wound up, and left for drying.

After ascertaining that all the glued parts are perfectly dry and therefore hard, the cramps, moulds and paper may be removed. If any paper should be found adhering a moistened rag will easily remove it.

The next proceeding will be that of levelling down and removing any unevenness, on the outside especially. If the fitting has been very accurately effected there will not remain much to do in this line. For the inside a piece of gla.s.s-paper folded over a curved block of wood, or the actual mould that has been in use, will serve the purpose if not too large. This can be rubbed backward and forward till the surface is level. For the outside a slightly different treatment will be preferable, that is, a portion of gla.s.s-paper of the finest grain placed as before in front of a block of wood. There is no necessity for it being a very close fit so long as it is even in surface.

This should have some oil of a drying nature put on the surface, a little dabbed on with the tip of the finger will be enough.

A fine surface, after a little pa.s.sing backward and forward over it, adding a little oil now and then, will be obtained.

The advantage of the use of oil is, firstly, the ease in use and the smoothness of the surface and absence of harshness, secondly, as it will have penetrated the wood to some extent it will prevent the varnish, that eventually will have to be applied, from sinking into the pores.

Many otherwise excellent repairs have been spoilt from the neglect of this simple precaution; without it, the gla.s.s-paper leaves a dry, finely torn or raw surface which absorbs very readily the coloured varnish that will, in sinking, look much more intense, uneven and totally unlike the surrounding old varnish, which, it is most desirable, should be as closely as possible imitated.

All these particulars, rules, and precautions, having been carefully attended to by James, the instrument is at last brought by him in as advanced a state as possible to his master, the latter always reserving to himself the final touches or finis.h.i.+ng and regulating.

About this time another caller, an amateur in a state of great excitement, brings a violin case hurriedly in, and coming up to the chief without any ceremony, says, while undoing the buckle of the straps binding the leather covering: "Oh, my favourite violin is ruined, its back is broken, and I feel sure you can't do it up; it is a Venetian Montagnana that I have had so many years, and that you--yes, even you--admired. You don't say much as a rule in favour of anything I bring you, but you said this was the only good thing I had about me; it is past your power to put right again, I am afraid." "Then why did you bring it to me," says the chief, "if it is impossible for me to remedy the breakage? let me see it."

The case having been nervously opened by the owner, the violin, after a glance, is lifted out by the chief, the owner looking on in a state of great perturbation. "Please be very careful," he says, as the practised hand of the master turns it about, looks at it here and there, over one way and then the other. "Why, its back is not broken; where is the fracture?"--"Don't you see, all the way down, it is quite loose and open?"

Another turn round or so, and the chief exclaims, "Oh, you mean the joint of the back is open--that is not broken; I did not see it at first as the light was going in the same direction; we can put that right again for you."--"Here, James!" he calls out, "just look at this; is it past our mending?" James casts his eye over it for a second or two, and says, "No sir, I've done up that kind o' thing over and over again."

Then, turning to the owner, "Two against one, you see."

The amateur looks at the instrument with great earnestness for a moment or two, then observes: "You will have, I suppose, to take it all to pieces to do that kind of repair, eh?"

"Oh no," replied the chief, "we shall close that up without undoing any part of it except taking the strings and sound-post away." At this moment he has inserted the post-setter and pushed the post a little, which proceeding causes the back to open wider, the mouth of the owner opening widely also, accompanied by an increase in the general appearance of anguish.

"There now," says the repairer, "just that little extra pressure from the sound-post enables us to see how far the opening extends; it is not all the way along, and there does not appear to be anything to prevent it coming together evenly again."

The chief now dexterously, with the point of the "setter," takes the sound-post out, the owner looking on with some amount of astonishment.

"You call in the day after to-morrow, sir, and I hope you will find it as right as ever."

These words have a cheering effect on the owner. "You are sure that will not be too soon," he observes. "Oh no," replies the other, "we shall put three or four studs along the centre, inside, and that will prevent it going again."

"But how," rejoins the owner, "are you going to put studs along the joint inside without opening the instrument?"--he was getting interested.

"Well, you leave that to us, sir, and we will tell you afterwards."

This was said in consequence of a fear that the amateur would be using the time of the establishment, and as a result the amateur and owner walked away satisfied.

CHAPTER XVII.

INSERTION OF STUDS ALONG THE JOINT INSIDE WITHOUT OPENING THE VIOLIN--LINING OR VENEERING A THIN BACK.

At the appointed time, not any earlier, the amateur makes his appearance, inquiring somewhat anxiously as to whether the violin was finished, or more precisely speaking from fear, whether the repairer had succeeded in restoring the instrument to playing order? "Oh, yes,"

is the response, "and goes better than it could have done for some time back. You see its complaint has been coming on for some time, beginning with a slight opening at the lower part, and continuous playing with the strain of tuning up now and then extended it, until the time when it became of such magnitude that you could not help observing it. Being gradual in its progress, the tone getting worse by gentle degrees, was also un.o.bserved by you."

On this, the violin being handed to its owner, a close examination is made all over the outside, and through the sound-holes.

"Well, really," the owner at last breaks out with, "it is most beautifully done! I should not have thought it possible, and however did you manage to get all those little squares of wood ranged in a line inside, and you said you would do it without breaking open the violin, and--tell me how it was done!"

"Then I will keep my promise if you have patience. It is not a very difficult matter to those used to such things; you see the first thing was to get the outer part clear of any impurities that would prevent the glue from getting a tight hold of the surfaces that are to be held in contact; the next, to work some strong glue along the course of the joint, this by gentle and regular pressure alternately each side of the line, is gradually drawn in, the whole length is then wiped with a cloth and pressure applied to keep the joint closed, and the whole allowed to dry. When so, the interior is attended to, a clean damp brush, small enough to pa.s.s down either of the sound-holes, is worked backwards for a short time along the joint, just enough to remove the slight acc.u.mulation of dust and prepare the wood for the reception of glue. Then the little squares of sycamore being ready, are p.r.i.c.ked in the centre with this pointed iron wire, and taken up one by one; on each occasion a globule of strong glue is dropped on the under surface.

"The wire with its attachment of stud and globule is carefully pa.s.sed down through the sound-hole, which one must depend much on circ.u.mstances and light available, being cautiously lowered until the little square of wood is exactly over the joint and gently pressed down on to it.

"Care is taken, of course, to place it on the exact spot; if not accurately in position, a slight push with the same wire or another or greater strength is given, and then a little more pressure on the top.

"When this is done, others are inserted in the same way, and as far along the joint as can be reached with the wires. After having dried, the glue which had oozed up round the square will be found to have decreased so much as to be but little perceptible--thus you see how it was done. Do not try this yourself unless you have become expert by long practice in repairing generally, as you may probably find this more taxing to your nerves than you may be aware of, besides finding it a difficult and dirty job getting any mislaid pieces out again."

This last piece of friendly advice is quite to the taste of the amateur, who, being a non-practical man, is wise in abstaining from meddling in directions for which he has no natural bent, and unlike the numerous tribe of would-be repairers who think that any person who can use glue and cut a piece of wood can engage in the restoration of such a small instrument as a violin.

Our amateur, when arrived home, naturally enough shows his restored violin to his friends, one of whom has been looking at it for some time, and at last says: "That's the repairer for me, where does he live? My violin is sadly in want of proper attention, and I think it requires stronger measures for its cure than yours."

The address is readily given, and the instrument duly taken round to our chief and his a.s.sistant. The statement having been made as to recommendation, after an inspection of the very nice restoration of his friend's violin, the new-comer takes out his violin from its case and places it before the chief, who turns it over and over, looking at each fraction of an inch without seeing much the matter with it.

The owner at last breaks in with the remark that a violin maker residing where he lately came from had told him that the instrument would never go properly unless the back was re-lined--that was perhaps the term used.

The chief then rejoins: "I think the repairer was very likely hitting the mark when he said that; this is one of those old violins of the Brescian school, which are often too thin in the back for modern usage, and there is no other resource but that of lining--or veneering, some would call it--the back. If you like I will open it, and ascertain whether it is so with this instrument."

Consent is given, and the chief goes to the back of his premises, and returns with a much-worn table knife. Sitting calmly down before the new arrival, and resting the instrument face downwards on his lap, he proceeds with sundry slow but strong thrusts of the knife round the junction of the ribs with the upper table; the cracking sounds emitted as the knife gradually works its way along are rather trying to the owner, who, however, has confidence in the reputation of the master-hand at the kind of work. After a little extra pus.h.i.+ng here and there, and lifting gently to ascertain whether the parting is complete, the upper table is at last lifted quite clear of the rest.

The owner at once asks, "Is the back in a very bad state?" "Well," is the reply, "it is in such a dirty condition that it is not possible to tell.--Here, James, bring me that water and sponge!" These being at once brought, with a cloth in addition, the chief at once begins bathing the inside, giving a heavier rub in different parts, as some appearances suggest the extra treatment.

At last, after some few minutes of this application, the cloth is applied, and the interior a.s.sumes a cleaner aspect.

"Never being cleaned out since it was made, I should think," is the observation, "excepting once," he adds, as his practised eye lights on a small, but thick stud resting over a small crack at one side, "and that was a very long time ago, possibly a hundred and fifty years."

"Does it require the 'lining'--I think that is what it was called?"