Repair a Violin
A violin is an expensive and delicate instrument that should be properly cared for. But sometimes, accidents happen and your violin gets damaged. Most of the time, you'll be able to fix it.
Contents
Steps
If the Bridge Has Fallen Off
- Sit down comfortably on a sturdy chair near a table where you have plenty of light.
- Lay the bridge flat on the violin (under the strings). The lowest part should be under the E string.
- Carefully, lift up the bridge so that it eventually falls off in place. You may want to loosen your strings before. You want to lift it in rotation-like motion. Do it slowly to avoid damaging the violin.
- Retune as needed. If you loosened your strings, you'll need to retune them.
If Your Violin is Way Out of Tune
- Make sure the tuning is the problem. You know it's out of tune when your tuner reads the note as a completely different note (eg. when tuning on the G-string, the tuner reads it as an F#).
- Sit down comfortably on a sturdy chair where you have plenty of light.
- Locate the keys on the top of your violin. They are usually black and difficult to move.
- Slowly and very carefully turn the keys and bring your violin the closest to the appropriate tuning as you can before moving to the next step.
- If your key breaks, don't panic! Your violin is probably cheap or is very dry and fragile. You'll need to go to the luthier.
- Tune your violin normally with the small pins near the bridge if you have them.
If a String Has Broken
- Buy another string. Be sure to buy the right string, as they don't all have the same properties (eg. the E-string is thinner than the G-string).
- Loosen the little tuning pins near the bridge if you have them.
- Insert the end with of the string with a bead on in the little hole beneath the tuning pins mentioned in the previous step. This hole is always there even if you don't have these tuning pins. Just look where the other strings are attached and you'll find it.
- Take the other end of the string and insert it in the big tuning keys at the other end of the violin. Turn it a couple of times before tuning it. Make sure it doesn't slide.
If the Tuning Keys Are Stuck
- Make sure stuck keys are the problem. If your tuning keys are stuck, you'll notice while tuning that they refuse to move and seem glued to the wood.
- Apply some graphite powder near the junction between the key and the violin. After a few twists, it should be as good as new.
- If you don't have graphite powder, you can take a regular HB pencil and draw at the junction between the key and the violin.
If the Tuning Keys Slide Too Much
- Listen to see if the sliding is the problem. You'll notice this while tuning your violin and seeing -- rather hearing -- that it's not changing anything.
- Add a little bit of rosin powder. Be careful not to put too much or it'll glue to the violin.
- Tune your violin and wait a bit restraining the key and it should be fixed.
Tips
- Always be careful when working on your violin; it is a very expensive instrument and is very delicate.
- If you're not sure about something, always think about going to the luthier to avoid getting your violin in a worse condition.
- Don't force your way on your violin; it's very fragile!
Warnings
- If your violin has a crack, has a broken bridge, has no more strings, or has any other serious problems, go to the luthier and he will be able (in most cases) to fix it.
- If your bridge fell off, hurry up to put it back in place, or the soul (a little stick inside the violin) might fall down from place and cause irreparable damage to your instrument.
