Welcome to our forum. A Message To Our New and Prospective Members . Check out our Forum Rules. Lets keep this forum an enjoyable place to visit.

Check out our 2023 Group Christmas Project HERE

AAA
Avatar
Please consider registering
guest
sp_LogInOut Log Insp_Registration Register
Register | Lost password?
Advanced Search
Forum Scope




Match



Forum Options



Minimum search word length is 3 characters - maximum search word length is 84 characters
sp_Feed Topic RSSsp_TopicIcon
Bow hair colour shade
A discussion about the colour of the bow hair and its impact on sound/playability
Topic Rating: 0 Topic Rating: 0 Topic Rating: 0 Topic Rating: 0 Topic Rating: 0 Topic Rating: 0 (0 votes) 
Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 19, 2014 - 11:04 am
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

So, are there any people here who have tried different colour "options" on the same bow? Was there any real difference? 

I am not taking into consideration synthetic, processed or bleached bow hair, I am wondering about hair that are approximately on the light side (from beige to almost light brown and orange) vs hair which seem to be really dark, from brownish to almost black....

Is this just a matter of appearance?

Avatar
Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
November 19, 2014 - 8:34 pm
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429

Darker hair is usually more coarse and grabs better. There was a period where I used black hair on my bow.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 10:56 am
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

Fiddlerman said
Darker hair is usually more coarse and grabs better. There was a period where I used black hair on my bow.

Interesting :)

Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?

Avatar
Uzi
Georgia

Honorary tenured advisor
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 11:14 am
Member Since: January 19, 2014
Forum Posts: 973
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

The dark hair is normally what's found on bows for the double bass and sometimes cello.  Generally, the less course white hair is used for violins and violas.  However, be aware that some hair that is sold (or so I am told) has been bleached and should be avoided.  How one can tell if it has been bleached, I cannot say. 

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright

Avatar
Uzi
Georgia

Honorary tenured advisor
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 1:33 pm
Member Since: January 19, 2014
Forum Posts: 973
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

This topic reminds me of a question about bow hair that occurred to me the other day.  The little hooks on the hair are what cause it to be course and hold the rosin.  Assuming that they get worn away and not very many hairs have been broken, why don't people just flip the hairs over and use the other side instead of using all new hair?  Or do they?

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright

Avatar
MrYikes
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 4:24 pm
Member Since: February 11, 2014
Forum Posts: 633
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

My take on this, Uzi is that bleach dissolves the little projections and if left on the hair too long will also dissolve the hair.  On the worn out bow hair, you wear out 3 sides: top and both sides, by the pushing and pulling the bow.  If you flop the hair over all you gain is a new top; the sides are still worn out.  But as you are aware, I'm just guessing.

Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 5:32 pm
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

@Uzi I think that bleached hair could be,  you know, too much "even" and similar to each other. There would be no apparent variations in colour. When my bow is rehaired and there is no rosin, I usually spot many colours, even in the same "thread" of hair. I have come across bows with all of their hair at the very same colour, which seemed a bit weird. 

@MrYikes , I think that you're right, but this could not only be the case. I mean, I find rehairing a tricky task, and I think that having to align the hair in this exact position (opposite to what they were before) could complicate it even more...

 

P.S I am also guessing...:)

Avatar
Fiddlestix
Michigan, USA

King
Members

Regulars
November 20, 2014 - 5:42 pm
Member Since: January 21, 2012
Forum Posts: 2647
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

Never use bleached hair.

Here is an article on horse hair for stringed instruments.

http://www.cpr.org/classical/b.....ayer-s-bow

 

Ken.

Avatar
Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
November 20, 2014 - 7:14 pm
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429

Hermes said
Interesting :)
Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?

I wanted more power and a better bounce. My technique was good enough to smooth the bow changes and my violins didn't sound coarse so it suited me fine. Several people were doing the same thing in the orchestra at the time and I thought it was worth a try. I might still do it today if I had great quality black hair readily available. Not sure why I stopped. Probably one of my favorite bow makers didn't have the good stuff in stock and I forgot about it after that. The most common is the finer white Mongolian horse hair on all violin, viola and cello bows. As Uzi mentioned above, the black hair is sometimes used on bass bows for that added grip on those thick heavy strings.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 21, 2014 - 6:31 am
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
10sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

Fiddlerman said

Hermes said
Interesting :)
Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?

I wanted more power and a better bounce. My technique was good enough to smooth the bow changes and my violins didn't sound coarse so it suited me fine. Several people were doing the same thing in the orchestra at the time and I thought it was worth a try. I might still do it today if I had great quality black hair readily available. Not sure why I stopped. Probably one of my favorite bow makers didn't have the good stuff in stock and I forgot about it after that. The most common is the finer white Mongolian horse hair on all violin, viola and cello bows. As Uzi mentioned above, the black hair is sometimes used on bass bows for that added grip on those thick heavy strings.

I see...I think I'm going to experiment with this, whenever I get the chance...I hope my luthier agrees as well cool He usually stocks only one hair type, that corresponds to his quality standards, and it's mainly white.

Thank you :)

Avatar
bfurman

Advanced member
Members
November 21, 2014 - 1:23 pm
Member Since: August 27, 2014
Forum Posts: 84
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
11sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

@Uzi

My educated guess is that it's not just the underside of the bundle that gets worn.  Fibers twist as they vibrate, so the wear will occur all around.  Perhaps the very topmost fibers are somewhat protected, but even they are rubbing against the fibers below them.

Besides, the cost of a rehair is mostly in the labor....

Avatar
Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
November 21, 2014 - 9:18 pm
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429
12sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

Today I tested a synthetic hair that I really liked. Progress.....
More to come later.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 22, 2014 - 9:23 am
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
13sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

@Fiddlestix , interesting article, I'll quote this: Once a string player finds a person who rehairs a bow just the way they like it, they may never have their bow rehaired by anyone else. Ever. 

Yeah! amuse I suppose, that the main reason you'd ever have someone else rehair your bows could me moving in a different place etc.

 

@Fiddlerman , any info about this trial you mentioned? price? brand? :)

Avatar
Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
November 22, 2014 - 9:42 pm
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429
14sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

Saving the details for the review. But it's a Revelle bow.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

Avatar
Hermes
Athens, Greece

Regular advisor
Members

Regulars
November 23, 2014 - 6:54 pm
Member Since: August 28, 2014
Forum Posts: 139
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
15sp_Permalink sp_Print
0

Fiddlerman said
Saving the details for the review. But it's a Revelle bow.

great....at least, I love video reviews devil

Forum Timezone: America/New_York
Most Users Ever Online: 696
Currently Online: Mouse, stringy, nykteria
Guest(s) 112
Currently Browsing this Page:
1 Guest(s)
Members Birthdays
sp_BirthdayIcon
Today Michael Browder, EBurrell
Upcoming Sofia Leo, TKDennis, FiddleDetroit, CookiesViolin, JPferrman, Designer 88, LyleA, Stephen, Dorque, Trisha, Elaisa, Gordon Shumway, dougga, Russionleo, JohnG
Top Posters:
ELCBK: 7759
ABitRusty: 3915
Mad_Wed: 2849
Barry: 2690
Fiddlestix: 2647
Oliver: 2439
Gordon Shumway: 2425
DanielB: 2379
Mark: 2149
damfino: 2113
Member Stats:
Guest Posters: 3
Members: 31662
Moderators: 0
Admins: 7
Forum Stats:
Groups: 16
Forums: 81
Topics: 10589
Posts: 134217
Newest Members:
SoCal335, Jan Howard, edwardcheng, Oscar Stern, bryanhanson, bittruster, fiddlecastro, jackdaniel, romanmills08, creativestringsinfo
Administrators: Fiddlerman: 16429, KindaScratchy: 1760, coolpinkone: 4180, BillyG: 3744, MrsFiddlerman: 2, Jimmie Bjorling: 0, Mouse: 5306