Advice on buying violin bow needed

[Cindy in FL.]

Ds16 had his violin bow break today. He has been playing for 9 years and is a fair violinist. (He enjoys it, but doesn't love it or practice as much as he should.). When we bought his last violin, bow, and case it cost about $1600. I don't want to spend a lot of money on a bow, but want it to be decent.

 

Any advice on the kind of bow to get, amount to spend, and where to shop would be greatly appreciated!

 

Cindy

[elfgivas]

for dd age 12, having played for five years, we bought a carbon fiber bow sight unseen from sharmusic.com. approx. cost ~ $ 85

 

for dd age 14, having played for five years, but who loves it, we drove 1.5 hours to a good music shop with her violin, and they brought her bows to try. that was five times more expensive. but the sound quality as at least five times as good.....

 

hth,

ann

[blondeviolin]

Does he have a private instructor? If so, I would ask there first. S/he probably is familiar with the places to buy good quality bows. I prefer specific woods and maybe composite depending. Everyone is different, though.

[Cindy in FL.]

Thanks, Ann. I was afraid that might be the case. Maybe someone else has had good luck ordering online. I'd love to avoid the trek to the nearest violin shop and paying $100s if I can.

 

Cindy

[Cindy in FL.]

Yes, he does and I'll try to contact him tomorrow as well. Always like to pick the old Hive Mind brain, too. There's a wealth of wisdom on these boards!

 

Cindy

 

Does he have a private instructor? If so, I would ask there first. S/he probably is familiar with the places to buy good quality bows. I prefer specific woods and maybe composite depending. Everyone is different, though.

[tjarnold]

As a professional violinist and violin teacher, I would definitely agree that you consult his private teacher for his/her advice.

 

I personally have ordered from Shar for many years. They have very good customer service and a wide selection of bows. For my daughter, I bought a carbon fiber composite bow for around $70 about a year ago. I, too, was skeptical of carbon fiber, but have decided that in the lower price range ($25-$150), one actually gets more quality and value for the money than if one bought a wooden bow. Of course, if you want to spend more, then I'd recommend a wooden bow (probably of pernambuco wood).

 

I've done numerous teacher trials with Shar. They are fairly easy to set up and do allow a student to try several bows and/or instruments.

 

How did his bow break?

 

Tiffany

[Cindy in FL.]

I don't really know how it happened, but all the hair came off with a small piece of wood attached. It detached from the far end (not by his hand). I wondered if he had over tightened it?

 

I'll ask his teacher about the carbon fiber bows, too.

 

Thanks,

 

Cindy

 

As a professional violinist and violin teacher, I would definitely agree that you consult his private teacher for his/her advice.

 

I personally have ordered from Shar for many years. They have very good customer service and a wide selection of bows. For my daughter, I bought a carbon fiber composite bow for around $70 about a year ago. I, too, was skeptical of carbon fiber, but have decided that in the lower price range ($25-$150), one actually gets more quality and value for the money than if one bought a wooden bow. Of course, if you want to spend more, then I'd recommend a wooden bow (probably of pernambuco wood).

 

I've done numerous teacher trials with Shar. They are fairly easy to set up and do allow a student to try several bows and/or instruments.

 

How did his bow break?

 

Tiffany

[tjarnold]

I don't really know how it happened, but all the hair came off with a small piece of wood attached. It detached from the far end (not by his hand). I wondered if he had over tightened it?

 

 

It's also possible that the bow would just need to be rehaired. However, considering that a rehair in my area goes for a minimum of $40, it might be a better deal just to buy a new bow, particularly if the bow in question isn't of a high quality anyway.

 

Tiffany

[Greenmama2]

It's also possible that the bow would just need to be rehaired. However, considering that a rehair in my area goes for a minimum of $40, it might be a better deal just to buy a new bow, particularly if the bow in question isn't of a high quality anyway.

 

Tiffany

I would take his current bow to a luthier to ask if it could be repaired (after calling his teacher).

[Cindy in FL.]

Last night I did not look at the bow closely. I just saw all the hair hanging off with a small chunk of "wood" attached to the end. When I looked at it this morning, the chunk was actually the part that holds the hair into the hole at the end of the bow. I was able to bend the bow and reinsert the hair and the plug and it seems alright. We'll see when he practices today.

 

He has group class tonight so I'll have him ask his teacher about it.

 

Thanks,

 

Cindy