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I was just thinking about this tonight...Small thi

I was just thinking about this tonight...Small thing that was part of a big thing from a few months ago. I don’t usually show these sorts of pics much anymore just because they all start to look the same. But, this is probably the least aggressive fix to post damage I’ve ever done. It held up just fine after a bunch of adjustments, and is still doing fine. Ring caused by dampit flood. Last photo included just for kicks. #jhlviolins #violin #digitalluthiery #rolandmdx50 #cnc #desktopmanufacturing #violinrestoration #soundpost #3dscanning

Sound on... so satisfying, and always slightly ter

Sound on... so satisfying, and always slightly terrifying. Steaming out divots. #jhlviolins #steam #violin #violinrepair #luthiery #violinrestoration

A lot of my colleagues are going to say “yes, of

A lot of my colleagues are going to say “yes, of course, I’ve been doing that for years.” But for those who haven’t seen this: Single edge razor blades are super useful in trimming fill varnish on convex or flat areas of an arch... safety though is always a concern, simple tape can limit the amount of the blade exposed and reduce much of the risk to the surrounding varnish. File under “stuff I stole from guitar luthiers.” (Frank Ford’s website) #fillvarnish #retouching #violinrestoration #luthier #luthiery #violin #jhlviolins #razorblades #violinrepair

Microscope, coffee... check and check. The will t

Microscope, coffee... check and check. The will to begin tricky retouch job? That might be lacking 🤣...
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I always wondered what the view of the microscope looks like from the violin’s perspective. Looks a little like something from Wall-E. #jhlviolins #microscope #luthier #workbench #violin #violinrepair

I hope everyone is having as good of a holiday sea

I hope everyone is having as good of a holiday season as is possible this year.
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A small PSA for string players: be careful buying and using products that have glitter in them. It’s literally everywhere... and unfortunately in some hand sanitizers. After using, it will often transfer to the instrument. Shown is a late 18th century English violin with glitter starting to work its way into the varnish. I have a feeling 2021 is going to be the year of being pissed at glitter. There is no great way of removing it aside from picking out each piece. It will often burrow into softer varnishes. I was reminded of this photo this past week by both greeting cards, and hand sanitizer... anyway, happy practicing and wash your hands! #glitter #violin #microplastics #luthiery #violinrepair #varnish

Who’s a cute little clamping caul?#jhlviolins #p

Who’s a cute little clamping caul?#jhlviolins #prusamini #digitalluthiery #3dprinting #cello #violinrepair

Doing final documentation before finally getting t

You should see what the vanity and toilet looked l

You should see what the vanity and toilet looked like before I ripped them out too... woof. A lot of similarities between old houses and old instruments. Fortunately, you’ll never need to replace the sewer lateral on an old cello. #thisoldcello #cello #luthier #violinrepair #demolition

This maybe incredibly boring, and my older friends

This maybe incredibly boring, and my older friends and colleagues might be saying “Jerry, wtf?” But, as we move into another period of extended social distancing, I thought it might be useful to share how I work at a distance... which is how I’ve been working since before it was cool/necessary.
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The bulk of my clients are players, often they aren’t even in the same state as me. I might only see them at the end for pick up, or in some instances, not at all. I find the process goes much more smoothly if I take the time to explain what is wrong with their instrument, and the course of action needed to fix it with photo examples of past jobs. This often requires defining terms, showing how things are measured, or drawing simple diagrams. This gets placed into a report of sorts and emailed along with the estimate. For me, it’s been worth the time to make sure that both the owner and I are on the same page. This all gets followed up with texts and emails of progress to keep the dialogue going. #workingatadistance #violinrestoration #luthiery #violinrestorer #digitalluthiery #violinrepair #violin #viola #cello #jhlviolins

Thank you all who attended my @violinsocietyofamer

Thank you all who attended my @violinsocietyofamerica convention question and answer session on “an introduction to 3D scanners and CNC routers in violin restoration.” It was a privilege to be able to be part of the virtual convention. The ethos that has been beaten into me by my mentors is now more true than it ever has been: A rising tide raises all ships. #jhlviolins #structuredlightscanning #digitalluthiery #violinrestoration #rolandmdx50 #cncmachining #cadcam #3dscanning

This job has been floating around on my feed for a

This job has been floating around on my feed for a while... I think I’m finally ready to “tap out,” or cry “uncle” and move on to set up😂. It’s always daunting redoing previous repair work. It’s even more daunting when it’s.... well, weird.
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This graft was “keyed” into the pegbox. All of the material on the bass side in the keyed area was replacement. Fortunately, the section on the treble side was a veneer of original material that had been placed on top. Cutting into this was surreal, I didn’t know how far the new material went. So, in the case of the bass side, I opted to fill the hole before proceeding.
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Remember, friends don’t let friends do keyed grafts. #jhlviolins #neckgraft #viola #luthier #violinrestoration #violinrepair #whatsonyourbench #digitalluthiery

Another random workshop scene: about to trim fill

Another random workshop scene: about to trim fill varnish on the joints of a through patch. #jhlviolins #viola #violinrepair #violinrestoration #resins #rakinglight #luthier

Random workshop scene. #luthier #violin #tinfoil

Random workshop scene. #luthier #violin #tinfoil #flamedmaple #whatsonyourbench #pegbox

About time for a tan and some paint. This thing l

About time for a tan and some paint. This thing looks like my legs in shorts.... #neckgraft #timeforatan #luthiery #viola #violinrepair .
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Have y’all registered for the virtual VSA convention? If not, do it.

Clips from my @violinsocietyofamerica virtual conv

Clips from my @violinsocietyofamerica virtual convention presentation that I just submitted today... please go register! I’m pretty sure this is the first VSA presentation in the organizations history that someone has mentioned Hal 9000 and the Terminator in😏. #violinsocietyofamerica #violinrestoration #jhlviolins #digitalluthiery

Sorry for the radio silence, lots going on! Inclu

Sorry for the radio silence, lots going on! Including my VSA presentation which I promise will be up soon! Seen here is a click fit patch in a cello C bout. Replacement wood kindly provided by @cossmann_violins_austin thanks Julian! It was the closest thing I had to match the barn boards this thing was made out of. #cnc #rolandmdx50 #cellorestoration #davidscanner #digitalluthiery #cello #violinrepairs

Completely filling mortises is overkill when you c

Completely filling mortises is overkill when you consider how much is left in the end (particularly with a graft that’s mostly tailor made for the mortise)... but it helps with the way I think. So, I do it. What do you do that’s over the top for the sake of a work process? #overkill #jhlviolins #viola #violinrestoration #neckgraft #mortiseandtenon #quickgrips

Still my favorite marking gauge that can be made f

Still my favorite marking gauge that can be made for next to zero dollars. Even after having many other options, I still come back to this. From “The Making of Stringed Instruments: A Workshop Guide” by George Buchanan. I mentioned that book on the @omopodcast sometime ago, it’s full of useful little workbench hacks. #luthiery #fingerboard #luthier #ebony #screw #cheaptool

From Wikipedia, the current fount of modern knowle

From Wikipedia, the current fount of modern knowledge: Shepard's Prayer is attributed to Mercury Seven astronaut Alan B. Shepard, the first American in space. It is usually quoted as "Dear Lord, please don't let me f—k up”.
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This also happens to be said by luthiers. #viola #neckgraft #violinrestoration #luthier #luthiery #offwithyourhead #hideglue #mortiseandtenon

This got the most DMs of anything I’ve ever post

This got the most DMs of anything I’ve ever posted in my stories... my main motivation for making anything for use on an instrument is to lessen the “oh shit” factor of gluing: wet glue + clamp pressure = copious swearing if things don’t work out. The more preparation, the more idiot proof you can make something, the less stress you have on a glue up.
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I’ve used multiple methods over the years gluing splits like this back together. In fact, I have other purpose built jigs just for this. However, noticing that my thumb and index finger held the peg box together with minimal fuss, I thought “let’s do that.” 3D printing allowed me to make an offset clamp with about 20 minutes of my own labor, and it printed while I was busy taking care of my son. If could have been made from anything light and reasonably strong.
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The acetal “peg” makes the stress level even lower. Glue will not stick to it. It allows for idiot proof lineup. Sometimes splits like this want to slide. It also made it possible to approach the top half of the splits as a second gluing, lowering the stress on the bench monkey even further. I’ve showed these modified Japanese model maker clamps before, they are totally worth having a few around. #jhlviolins #violin #violinrestoration #luthier #digitalluthiery #3dprinting #prusamini #pegbox #crackproblems

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