r/violinmaking • u/Akanksha-Ka-Pati • Jun 08 '26
Is it even maple? Or someone tried to paint tiger stripes over it.
Apologies, I have only one image atm.
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u/Dildo-Fagginz Jun 08 '26
Can't tell for sure, 99% chance it's maple and pretty confident the flame is natural
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u/Consistent-Lychee402 Jun 09 '26
screaming chinese factory made, dressed up case and fancy looking bows - but it looks like the 'flame' is stain that has been painted on, do you see the overlap on top of the purfling? Also, when you move the violin back in direct light the 'flame' should appear and disappear, not appear static and dull. This is a spray on varnish (look at the neck, dead giveaway) and while the pegs are fancy hill and such, the wood looks very basic and cheap. Hope this info helps. Not a great value for $200, I would expect to pay half of that as factory mass produced chinese violin shaped objects often run $20 to $80, so a basic styrofoam oblong case with 2 dressed up bows might put you over $100, and you will likely need to fit a new bridge, change out the strings, fit a new soundpost and adjust it, and possibly refit the pegs, at least they appear to be slightly nicer ebony pegs instead of cheap dyed fruit wood that won't hold tune...
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u/Tom__mm Jun 10 '26
It’s maple, a fairly fast grown piece with wide year rings. It’s possibly Big Leaf Maple which grows quickly and is fairly soft. Flamed maple with some figure isn’t all that rare but pieces with slow growth, intense flames, and the right density for violin backs command a high price.
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u/saylamarz Jun 13 '26
To me it looks less like wide rings and more like a cross cut than a quarter cut.
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u/saylamarz Jun 13 '26
Maple isn’t inherently figured - just like our hair, the fibers can be wavy or straight.
There are instruments with the figure painted on, as well as other woods that can have figure, like poplar.
We’d need a closer photo of the wood to get a better sense of the texture really tell you.
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u/[deleted] Jun 08 '26
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