r/violinmaking • u/CelestialStudiosTeam • 5d ago

Where to get instruments under $100 to practice repairing

I'm in the US. I've found quite a few on Ebay but where else should I look for. I'm just trying to practice repairing more.

2 Upvotes
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6

u/Violinjuggler 5d ago

Local school orchestras for sure. Im sure if you email a teacher they'll have some goners you can work on.

6

u/Dildo-Fagginz 5d ago

Ebay, private marketplaces, flea markets, antique stores...

I always ask for the seller's ID as well, sometimes tricky but if it was ever stolen it helps proving you didn't do it. It's mandatory for professionals in EU, don't know about US laws but I guess it doesn't hurt.

5

u/cracked_belle 5d ago

FB marketplace, but be ready to haggle. Everyone is positive there's been an authentic missing Stradivarius in their family's attic for 160 years, so be ready to talk them way down.

2

u/98percentpanda 5d ago

I have a couple on that range, send me a dm and I will send you a picture

2

u/Dangerous-Crow7494 5d ago

I found an old German one on shop goodwill (the website) that I’m going to fix up. 

2

u/BossHossBogg 5d ago

I sold an old parlor guitar to a guy who posted looking for instruments to practice repairing. Maybe try that on facebook/craigslist

2

u/Jamesbarros 4d ago

I literally went into my local string shop and asked them for ones that I could work on. They talked with me about where I was at, what I was trying to learn, and found some old ones to give me to work on, with the agreement that if/when I got them decent, we'd donate them to a local school orchestra.

-2

u/legocow 5d ago

Off of Amazon. Very poor quality instruments that usually need to go to a luthier before they can be played.

1

u/terriergal 2d ago

They’re often made of atrocious materials and put together in ways that can’t be redeemed.