October 20, 20196 yr Author comment_205831 37 minutes ago, Kevin Beitz said: I used hellman's varnish... Can't say if that's good or bad for a violin... That's very bad for a violin! Report
October 20, 20196 yr comment_205834 3 minutes ago, John Morris said: That's very bad for a violin! Only if it's to be played. Report
October 20, 20196 yr comment_205843 29 minutes ago, John Morris said: That's very bad for a violin! So what is good ? Report
October 20, 20196 yr comment_205857 33 minutes ago, Kevin Beitz said: So what is good ? A spirit varnish is recommended. It's essentially a lacquer. Report
October 20, 20196 yr Author comment_205862 If your not careful, you can destroy the tonal quality of a violin, it takes decades of wood seasoning for a quality tone to materialize. Even the spirit varnish is not recommended for all finishes. Older violins had only a very light coat of shellac as varnishes were not discovered yet. So if we come into an older violin that has beautiful tone, incredible tone, and with our best intentions we set out to refinish it, we strip off the hundred year old shellac, and coat it with a varnish, the tonal quality is destroyed by muffling the wood with the varnish. I am not completely informed on the subject though only by reading. Refinishing and restoring these instruments is truly an art. Kevin, I wasn't laughing at you, but with you. Report
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