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(3 votes) 
Honorary tenured advisor
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If the violin isn't cleaned regularly, then, after a time, rosin dust can build up and cake on the top.
What do you use to remove the rosin build-up without harming the finish?
My immediate need is to clean a thin rosin build-up from what seems to be a spirit-varnish finish.
I know at least one other member who also needs to do some cleaning, so let the discussion be general, but please state the assumptions for applying your particular method.
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I use a bit of liquid tide laundry detergent...
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wiping mine down when Im finished for the day is part of playing just as tuning is before I play.
There is no shame in playing twinkle, youre playing Mozart
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Howdy ,
Visit Pierre's shop here and you'll find cleaner and polish that works well ...there is cleaner / polish too , which is what i use ....
Be sure to use circular motion when applying and removing the product ...leave it on fer a bit ...let the product do it's job , not pressure and elbow grease ...repeat as needed ...removes a little rosin at a time so just keep at it ...
Happy fiddlin ,
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@Barry I am getting better. I used to freak if there was dust. Then it was like my badge of honor... Now I do the same as you, except I do miss some days.
@Tucson1 Thank you. Nice tip... I feel like my violin needs a polish. I have just been so leary of doing anything but a cloth. But I feel it needs something. I don't have rosin built up.
Fishnrods ... Tide eh? good to know.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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fiddlershop sells anton scheuster cleaner/polish it works quite well. Easiest just to wipe your instrument down after use, I wipe mine oncea week or so. The detergent thing if for old instruments that have 70 plus years worth of abuse.....
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There is no shame in playing twinkle, youre playing Mozart
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I haven't really run into that problem, yet. Like Barry, I wipe the instrument down when I play it. Once over with soft cotton glove and then with a silk rag. My acoustic violin, anyway.
My electric violin.. well.. It lives on the kitchen table instead of in a case. So rosin is the least of it's problems. It's gotten grease, butter, flour, jelly, peanut butter, kool-aid, and etc on it. Been run off with by a toddler who was playing it like an electric guitar and had sticky hands. However, it is not wood, and doesn't have anything like a quality wood finish on it. It gets cleaned with duct tape, rubbing alcohol, paper towels and maybe a bit of ArmorAll if I want it looking particularly nice.
But you really should NOT use that sort of stuff on anything like nice wood and a spirit varnish, or other quality wood finish. LOL
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
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Nice video @Barry Barry. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Great playing. Thanks for posting it.
But I can't help but think that you may have posted it in the wrong thread 
Seen it all. Done it all. Can't remember most of 
..... What was I saying???? 
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I use the cleaner and polish from the Fiddlershop. It works very well.
I also use a rosin that doesn't give a lot of dust and I try to not over rosin.
Seen it all. Done it all. Can't remember most of ..... What was I saying????
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Ferret said
Nice video @Barry Barry. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Great playing. Thanks for posting it.But I can't help but think that you may have posted it in the wrong thread
read the opening comment "care for it well"
There is no shame in playing twinkle, youre playing Mozart
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Barry said
Ferret said
Nice video @Barry Barry. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Great playing. Thanks for posting it.But I can't help but think that you may have posted it in the wrong thread
read the opening comment "care for it well"
@Barry
Point taken. But a bit obscure, bordering on cryptic. And if you blinked, you missed it
Would have been a better used to promote the use of metronomes 
But a darn good video 
Seen it all. Done it all. Can't remember most of ..... What was I saying????
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hey, a bit obscure is my MO
There is no shame in playing twinkle, youre playing Mozart
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I forgot to mention that the low dust rosin that I'm using is Pirastro Piranito
Have been using it from almost day 1
And I'm still on the same block
Seen it all. Done it all. Can't remember most of ..... What was I saying????
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Hi Ferret. On the top of Rosin. I have my same Rosin. One cake that I bought from Fiddleshop, and a cake of Bakers Rosin. I have most of the cakes left on both.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Covering two points.
Looks like "Chubby" has never cleaned the rosin off his fiddle and listen to his comment at 1:55. There is hope for learning on your own.
Ken.
I guess there are three points. The last being "natural" talent. @2:03, "What talent I have, the Lord gave me".
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Thanks for the video Ken @fiddlestix really enjoyed it. Is it 'natural' talent or 'given' talent. 
That's a lot of rosin build up there... mine is definitely not that bad.
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Did you know that the reason the old timers never cleaned it off was because rosin was hard to come by and they could just run their bow across the fiddle belly in times of need.
There is no shame in playing twinkle, youre playing Mozart
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