Bow Maker?

Hey John Aniano!

Adam Cherubini, NJ

>We were putting together a 6 board chest in Pennsbury manor this weekend. The glue was getting cold, I had this dinky hammer (made from a cold chisel I think) and I was trying like mad not to split the front and back pieces (and not curse in front of our visitors).

Dave H. was holding it but it was awful unwieldy (all his stitches are out, all digits present and accounted for) when who strolls in but own John Aniano!

What a great help he was and what a fine fine craftsman as well. I'm always happy to see him.

Thanks for you help this weekend, John. We could have used your help on Sunday, though. Got the chest done and painted, but I struggled with the snipe hinges. Everytime I put those things in I sweat it. There I was wacking away with my dinky hammer, while the Irish tenor singing on the stage by the river was giving me the evil eye.

Adam

Time to go take off the puffy shirt and funny pants

His website

Wiley Horne--Glendora CA

>Hi R.J.,

Adam is so right. He's a fine guy. Here's his website. In addition to his profession of making bows, he makes some cool specialty tools. Take a look at the 'bamboo leaf knife'.

Wiley

Or.... *LINK*

David Miller from Iowa

>When uncultured hunter gatherer types like myself hear (read) "bow maker" we don't think musical instruments.


Custom Bows

John Aniano

R.J.Whelan

>I met an interesting chap yesterday; he is a professional maker of stringed instruments (violins being the smallest and cellos the largest); I�m told he is pretty well known and that his violins sell in the range of $30-40,000.

I was able to examine two of his violins and one bow he�d renovated and another he built himself. The workmanship was incredible; I had no idea the bows were so complex.

By coincidence another gentleman had stopped in to visit and had brought me a few feet of the most beautiful curly Koa I�ve ever seen (every inch is consistently curly). This is the type of material you don�t want to rush into cutting; it may be months before I get an idea for something worthy of this beautiful wood. (the preceding was a drive-by gloat).

When the violin maker saw the Koa we got into long discussion about the merits of Koa when used as guitar backs and he went out to his car and brought in a piece for fiddleback maple and gave it to me � another piece with unbelievable figure (second gloat in one post).

During the course of the conversation we went off on a tangent about finishing and he graciously gave me a formula for finish I�m very anxious to try (sworn to secrecy).

I showed him John�s website and he was quite impressed with his bows �. rj

Re: Bow Maker?

Joe Rogers, Northern Virginia

>I have to say RJ that archery came to mind when you asked about bows. That said I recently read a Smithsonian Magazine article that expressed the concern about the (crs episode here) ??paobrazil?? wood being overharvested and that the most recognized bowyers (musical) were uniting in the renewable harvest aspects of the desired wood. The article was most specific in the qualities of the wood and that the best bows are made using this raw material due to some unique qualities. I had no idea that the qualities of the wood were so important. Like fine instruments, fine bows are necessary for beautiful string music. JR

Re: Bow Maker?

R.J.Whelan

>Joe ... I learned that the bows are built straight and then a reverse bow is introduced with heat which I assume also tends to case harden the Pernambuco.

Interestingly the adjustable part of the bow is called a "frog". Both of the bows I saw had the frog made from Ivory. The scarcity of antique ivory is forcing many bowmakers to turn to Mastadon bone for a similar look and sonic character.

It's kind of neat talking to someone else making their living in/with wood and learning all of these obscure little differences. I think the only things we had in common (from an actual technique and practices view) was the use of hide glue. He really liked my Blue Spruce chisels, BTW.

I didn't get much work done but I can't remember a more pleasant couple of hours in the shop ... rj

Re: Bow Maker?

Joe Rogers, Northern Virginia

>Yes!Pernambuco. That was another name for the wood. Evidently the early bowyers used to haunt the docks looking for crates to try different woods. The strength and ability to create the back bend were unequalled by other woods. The article was enlightening and entertaining. Didn't expect to find an article about woodworking (of a sort) in Smithsonian. Thanks for the help with the species of wood.JR

BTW professionals hunt for great vintage bows as much as the stringed instruments!

Re: bowmaking...

John Aniano, in Central NJ

>R.J. et. al.,

Interesting story about the violin/bow maker you met! Sort of uncommon of him to be involved in both the instrument and bow portions of the business.

Yes, the bows are complex. Not as much as the violin in my opinion, but different in many aspects. Regarding the wood, pau Brazil or pernambuco, it has to be properly cut, air dried for years and carefully graded. The ebony for the frogs also has to be split to get the straightest grain and air dried for years before use. Regarding the curve, it is indeed bent using dry heat using a variety of heat sources from heat guns to alcohol lamps. I don't know about any "case hardening" that occurs because the bow can be repeatedly bent and straightened to suit a particular player or simply repair bows that lose their shape over time.

There are a number of specialty bowmaking "tricks", tools and techniques I've been learning and trying to adapt for my own use. Many of the "tricks" relate to how the metal and wood parts are fitted together. Lots of small tools - planes, chisels, knives, etc. generally made for or modified for bowmaking are used. I learn new stuff all the time. Some day, I hope to put it all down and maybe even write a book on the subject. There are only 2 or 3 books I know of about bowmaking.

And you are right; hide glue is used quite a bit in a bow's construction. Many folks use CA glue for certain jobs, myself included, but hide glue can do it all. Actually, a year ago I learned about fish glue (available from Kremer Pigments in NYC) and this prepared liquid glue is amazingly versatile. Great "grab" and it really holds even dissimilar materials such as metal and wood quite well.

If there are any other bowmaking questions, I can try to respond,

John

Re: Hey John Aniano!

John Aniano, in Central NJ

>Adam,

Glad I could be of some small service to you on Saturday in my role of "human clamp"!

I wish I had infinite amounts of time: I'd enjoy demonstrating at Pennsbury with you guys! I guess I'd then have to get my own set of the funny clothes you and Dave wear, right?

Seriously, someday, I would like to help out with some volunteer group such as Pennsbury or the good folks at Allair Village. Someday...

Over and out,

John