Violin Forum/Message Board

[John Cadd]

When I was ten ,my teacher handed me his Gagliano violin and his bow to see how I played them .The bow distracted me when I felt the soft sticky bow grip .I always remember that . I have used harder black rubber grips but always thought they should be soft and sticky . This week I ordered some natural Latex rubber tubing to try that out . I saw a complaint about Latex paint being sticky and that pleased me. I think I am on the right track . The Latex is most likely to wear out quicker but it`s so cheap it`s not a problem . I will cut pieces off a one metre strip as an experiment . I have seen something similar on Itzak Perlman`s bow . Worth a try .
Tube size 8mm internal ,
12mm external

[John Cadd]

The one metre length of natural Latex rubber tube arrived yesterday . It was a perfect snug grip on the bow stick .It will be easier to fit without the small leather patch on normal bows . The metal windings are no problem . But for £3 ,15 a metre it`s certainly worth a try . The normal hold on a bow is shown in a photo of Jascha Heifetz . His thumb is on the stick and touching the frog. Just leave enough room for the frog to slacken the hair tension . You could call this forgotten technology ,but I`m fairly sure Itzak Perlman uses something similar .
Edit Jan 2025. In a Perlman video about bow holds you can see a closeup of his bow with a latex tube fitted . The tube is riding up over the end of the frog .

[roseblack22]

[John Cadd]

The latex absolutely works . It`s very cheap too .My teacher must have used it for a long time. It was very sticky .He was a real virtuoso . There is nothing special about the leather on bows.I peeled that off . It made the bow too lumpy .It`s clearly on Itzak`s bow. See if you can ask him about it on a video .

[John Cadd]

A simple comparison ,like before and after .I put Latex tube on 2 bows that I use most . When I use a bow witout latex tube it just feels very uncomfortable . It is still easy to use but that first feeling is very clear .