The Ohio State University

Fall Semester 2019

Teacher: Robert Gillespie/April Whyte

String Instrument
Maintenance and Repair
___

16 October 2019

Vocabulary

● Luthier: String instrument makers

○ The best people to go to for repair
○ Best YouTube channels for tutorials

Important Resources

● Summer String Workshop @ OSU has training on string instrument repair

● Internship with Buckeye Brass and Winds
● Shar Music has affordable, quality string instrument setups
● YouTube

General Advice

● Have a cheap instrument to teach with to not damage your expensive main instrument
● Do not let parents purchase an instrument until high school due to growing students
and not understanding the value of purchasing a quality instrument
● Eyeglass screw for tightening chinrest
● If working in a low-income district, have shirts for students to cut up to use as cleaning
cloth
● The bridge should be centered with the fingerboard length, standing up perpendicular
and aligned with the f-hole slits
● Dirty and discoloration of strings is a sign to replace said strings
Tools and Repair Gear

● Eyeglass screw for tightening chinrests

● Pre-cut auto detail tape in bag to guide finger placements
○ Wider for cello/bass
○ Black tape after a year or two
● Old T-shirt with the back cut out serves as polishing cloth
● Rubbing or wood alcohol to clean the fingerboard and strings
● Cleaning polish for the varnished body
● Steel wool to remove rosin buildup on very old strings
● Peg dope/crayon
○ Not needed every time you restring, just when you are having loose pegs
● Pencil lead/graphite
● Needlenose pliers for violins and violas
● Pliers for cellos and bases
● Glue gun
○ Temporary solution
● Soundpost tool
○ Only do when 100% confident!
● Plastic chests of drawers for supplies
● Fishing tackle boxes or makeup boxes to store supplies inside drawers

Prevention is the Best Cure

● Only teacher touches pegs during the first year

● Remind daily to loosen bow at the end of class
● Cleaning cloth in the case of every student
● Make sure students open the case on the floor and grab the instrument by the neck
● Mindset of instrument being the family pet, not an object or toy

DANGER!!

● Rubbing or wood alcohol will remove varnish from the body

● Do not prop up the violin up against something
● Do not leave the violin on the floor unless it is under a chair
● Do not use superglue or carpenter’s glue
● Loosen the strings before you adjust the bridge
Most Common Repairs

● Replacing strings
● Bridge reset
● Tightening chinrest
● Soundpost reoset
● Pegs too tight or too loose
● Endpin stuck or inside the instrument
● Bow grip re-attachment