Hello, My name is Jim aka Captain Crunch. I live in Toledo, Ohio, married, 4 children, and I work in the construction trades. Kind of an old fart at 57years old. It's even scarry to say that. Time passes too quickly. But we are never too old to improve and try new things. I've played a little bit of rythem guitar in the past. I'm two weeks into learning how to play the violin. It's been a challenge, but with continual practice I'm actually getting better in that I'm gaining a little bow control, a couple of scales and some variations of Twinkle Twinke. Yea I'm proud of myself... you all can chuckle if you like. The videos and other beginners info on this site have been a real encouragement to me. And the Fingering game is a great learning aid. Thank you Fiddlerman for all the time and work involved here. I know this is something you love to do.

I didn't want to spend a lot of money on an instrument so I purchased a Cicilio MV400 package on Ebay for $89.00. Used it for a week and sent it back. The chin rest was very uncomfortable. The top of the body had a dent in it that had been varnished over very thickly to the point where the varnish had runs in it. I had a general dislike of some of the ringing sounds on the E sting. I would lay in bed at night trying to fall asleep and the recorder in my head would play that screeching noise. At first I said it was the fiddlers fault rather than the fiddle. Perhaps it was a mix of both. Either way I was being discouraged and had to make a change. I returned it and purchased a Chinese made Musino violin in new condition from a pawn shop for about the same amount of money. The Musino is cosmetically superior, not a single flaw. It is noticably lighter, and sounds much better. I'm happy with my decision. A positive word is deserving. Midini Musical Instruments accepted my return with no hassels and no questions asked. The lady I spoke to on the phone was very nice to me and professional. They honor their 30 day warrenty. When I get more skilled I plan on buying a quality (more expensive) instrument, but China works fine for me right now. Btw, I also bought a used Lothar Seifert bow in excellent condition on an Ebay auction for $65.00. I feels really nice and seems to be quite responsive.

I know that being steady and consistent with my practice times will pay off. I'm between jobs right now so I'm making good use of the free time. Ok, this is all for right now. I have some questions about strings, but I'll post that on one of message areas re: equipment. Thanks for reading my ramblings....more to come later.