Violin Forum/Message Board

[spystyle]

Hello from Maine,

As far as I've read, inexpensive violins, or violins with replacement bridges, commonly have a very high bridge.

Yesterday I received an "eBay violin" with a very high bridge. It was a 3/4 violin and the bridge was about 6mm higher than my other 3/4 violin. So I simply traced one bridge onto the other and cut the high bridge down. It worked. But I would have preferred to use a template to get it precisely right.

So I Googled up a printable bridge curve template*:



But it does not address the heights!

My question is, what should the height of each template be?

Once I know the heights I will create printable templates and share them here, so in the unlikely event that one of you lutheirs doesn't have bridge templates you can print and make your own

Cheers,
Craig

*I have tested that JPG, it prints at the correct size in "Paint Shop Pro", but if printed through the web browser it is shrunk about 30mm... Weird. So if you print that use a good image editing program and tell the program to print at 100% size. Then you can check the width with a digital caliper or similar, the line at the top should be about 91mm (+/- 0.5mm)

[arglebargle]

Hello
A bridge template is only for the curve of the bridge.
The height can vary with each violin, depending on the construction.
A standard 4/4 bridge height should stand about 27 mm high, when measured from the fingerboard with a straight edge extended to the bridge.
Good luck.

[Andres Sender]

Just as all information in the violin world is not equally true or valuable, so it is with templates or plans. Much depends on where they came from.

[spystyle]

Hey I got it!

I got a picture of a bridge, then I resized it to be the same width as each template, while keeping aspect ratio, this reveals the height



Cheers,
Craig

*I have tested that JPG, it prints at the correct size in "Paint Shop Pro", but if printed through the web browser it is shrunk about 30mm... Weird. So if you print that use a good image editing program and tell the program to print at 100% size. Then you can check the width with a digital caliper or similar, the line at the top should be about 91mm (+/- 0.5mm)

[FiddleDoug]

As was mentioned earlier in this thread, the bridge height varies from violin to violin. You CAN NOT take a height template and apply it to all violins.
The first thing you need to do is fit the feet of the bridge EXACTLY to the arch of the instrument. Next you place the bridge on the instrument and sight down the fingerboard and place a mark on the bridge to give about 4 mm clearance for the E string, and another with about 6 mm clearance for the G string. Then you use the bridge template curve to connect the two marks.
Carve the bridge to these initial rough fittings, mark the correct string spacings, and string up the E and G strings with a couple of old strings. Measure the string clearances for the E and G strings. Hold the strings up with a bridge jack, remove the bridge and make adjustments. Replace the bridge and remeasure the clearances. When you get the clearances correct, remove the bridge again, and do the final shaping, and put a parchment on the E string, lubricate the grooves with graphite. Install the bridge, replace the old fit up strings with the real strings, and you're good to go. Sound too complicated? If so, take it to a luthier who knows how to do it. That's why a replacement bridge isn't cheap.
_________________
Doug Wall

www.wallindependent.com

[Leif Luscombe]

Henry Strobel's book Useful Measurements for Violin Makers is a very useful shop guide with these measurements, patterns and many more.

http://www.violins.ca/books/books_strobel.html
_________________
Leif Luscombe
Violin Maker and Dealer
The Violin Forum Moderator

[Jack H.]

[spystyle]

Thank you all for the replies.

I get it now, The template is for the curve, but the height is dictated by measuring the strings in relation to the fingerboard.

I see

Cheers,
Craig

[kuehn]

Fitting a new bridge is complicated by the fact that not every neck and fingerboard is at the identical or correct height. SO....the new bridge must be fitted to match the fingerboard height. There is a simple way to do this. First fit the feet of the new bridge, getting them curved to match the violin top and parallel to the top. Once the feet are done, you are now ready to mark the bridge for the first trim. Get a wooden pencil. Hold the bridge in place between the notches in the F-holes. Hold the wooden pencil flat on the finger board and slide it up to the bridge to make a mark on each end of the bridge. This will give you marks that are approximately 3.5mm above the fingerboard. Use a ruler and put a new mark 2.0mm above the mark on the G-string end; this gives you a height of about 5.5mm (3.5mm + 2.0mm = 5.5mm). Take a pencil compass and set its pivot and the point 42mm apart (giving you a 42mm radius). Draw a 42mm radius on a 3x5 card and cut it out with scissors. Now take your card-stock 42mm radius and line it up with the two pencil marks on the bridge (be sure to use the higher pencil mark on the bass side). Draw a line using the card-stock to connect the two pencil marks. Cut a little bit high of this line to allow for notching and final trimming. With strings in place, measure the height of the E-string above the fingerboard at the bridge end of the fingerboard (should be 3.5mm or so) and the G-string (should be 5.5mm or so. If they are still high (which is probably going to be the case) note how much correction is needed an final trim that amount from the bridge. Use you 42mm card-stock radius if you need to move the line down a bit. That's it..... Brian.