Carruthers Violins logo
Violin Making
Kerfed end block counter forms

Kerfed end block counter forms

When clamping the ribs at the lower block there is a tendency for the counter form to push the ribs apart, turning what should be a close fitting joint into an embarrassing gap. This is especially true if the counter-form has a smaller radius than the end block. The...

Rasps for violin making

Rasps for violin making

This has been my favorite tool discovery of the year, I ordered on a whim and found my self using them a lot. Corradi Rasps are very nicely made, quite straight, with consistent curves. The teeth are set to give a random scratch pattern, they are very sharp and...

Top Carve

Top Carve

Yesterday, Andrew Carruthers Violins showed me the elbow grease behind making cellos. Posted by Greg Olwell on Friday, February 12, 2016

Sap pockets in violin wood – no yolk

Sap pockets in violin wood – no yolk

This morning for breakfast I got a double yolked egg which is supposed to be rare and lucky, an hour later I was carving into an apparently perfect piece of spruce for a a cello top when I uncovered a sap pocket. This was definitely not a lucky event but it wasn’t as unlucky as it could have been.

Holding violin while trimming edges

Holding violin while trimming edges

For those who like to do the edge work and purfling after closing the box. It took me a while to figure out how to hold the body. This works for cello too, though I have to stand on a box to reach around the lower bouts Andy iPhone