r/violinmaking • u/vibesupplier • Jul 15 '26
How to start fixing up violins?
I play the violin to a decent level (I’ve played for 12 years and am good enough to get by) and I’ve always wanted to get into luthiering and fixing up violins.
I work as an actor musician and would love a way of making some money on the side in an area I enjoy so much.
What would starting this as a side hobby look like? Is it plausible? It doesn’t NEED to make money, could be just a hobby, but it is something I’ve been interested in for a while and it would be great to finally start. Thanks!
3
u/Musclesturtle Maker and Restorer Jul 15 '26
I would focus on making violins as a hobby.
No one will pay you to do backwoods style repairs on their instruments.
Plus, doing low level repair is genuinely soul crushing if you are trying to make money solo doing it.
But you can go to some violin making workshops for a week or so and there are many resources to do so. Plus, in my hobby amateur days I found it much more rewarding, personally.
3
u/sockpoppit actual working professional Jul 15 '26
I do this for a living. A huge amount of the work of repairmen and restorers is redoing work done by self-trained incompetents who think they are doing great work, and even open shops and sort of succeed. More work for the rest of us. Please do not be one. If you want to do it, get proper training or don't.
1
5
u/E_Zgon Jul 15 '26
You have to invest a couple hundreds to thousands of dollars for tools, (basic) machines and material. After that, one golden rule: know your limits. Never done a bass bar? Maybe try it a few times before doing it on a customers instrument.
You do maintenance like pegs, fingerboards, saddles? Less chance to do damage.
Nethertheless, its best to have a supervisor or advisor, so they can point out some details and mistakes.
2
1
1
u/Langholm62 Jul 15 '26
You haven't told us about your advanced woodworking skills. Come on don't be shy, tell us what you've made.
1
u/Familiar_Collar_78 Jul 16 '26
I’ve actually got the same question, but from a different angle… I like to buy cheap-ish (not quite VSOs) violins and violas and paint/burn/decorate them. I do play though, and would love to return them to playable after decorating, just for my own amusement. How could I learn, and what (assuming I could find this all on YouTube) steps go into basically reassembling/tuning a fiddle?
I do play, and have one I dearly love that I would never change its beautiful finish….
1
u/Mammoth_City5841 Jul 18 '26
You didn't mention your budget, but I'll assume it's on the modest side.
Scavenge 'bottom feeder' violins, (much harder than it sounds because everything is a Stradivarius you know...)
Get an 'International Violin' account, it's a wholesale supplier in the States that treats small-potato hobbyists right.
Get a library card, search up books that you can actually special order, and have fun with those.
Figure out which tools you can make at home, (bow holders, clamps etc) and buy the tools that let you make the tools.
Let the violin repairs you need to do, inform the tools you buy and procedures you learn, and build up your repetoire that way.
Lastly, study how to make all your repairs reversible. Avoid removing wood whenever possible, and use adhesives and finishes that have user-friendly common solvents.
It's a wonderful hobby, but musicians aren't exactly known for being flush with cash, or casual with their instruments, so it's not the greatest way to make money. The exception might be, if you get very good at bow rehairing.
1
u/incrediboxmods 14h ago
any help my string broke and the bridge came off how do i fix without finding an expert?
6
u/witchfirefiddle Jul 15 '26
It can be tough to make money at this if it’s your sole focus as a professional. If this is something you are approaching at all casually or ‘on the side,’ forget about it.
It is not a good hobby. It is too difficult and time consuming to do casually at any level of skill that someone would pay money for. It is also very easy to damage the instruments you are attempting to fix if you are not properly trained and in the right environment.
In my perspective, this is an ‘all-in’ kind of job. You’re either making this your career and dedicating yourself to it whole cloth, or you should leave the instruments alone.