The breaking point

August 3, 2006 at 8:57 PM

I have recently received a wonderful incentive to practice more! My bow, pictured below, has somehow tragically aquired three cracks in the tip. I dunno if they're visible in the photo, but I did my best. If you look really closely, you can see a crack perpendicular to the grain, going across the top of the shaft, and where that ends, about a third of the way through the shaft, you can see another crack about 1 cm long going with the grain. The is a similar fracture on the other side. So....the more I practice, the more likely the bow is to break, and the sooner I can collect insurance and buy a new bow! :-) What do I think will complete the job? Ahh....maybe some Paganini with aggressive and violent - I mean, brilliant and flashy - riccocet? :-D

Or, I could listen to my teacher and play with a big, full, gorgeous sound ALL the time, thereby increasing both the tension on the stick and the likelyhood of a soon demise for my faithful bow.... ;-D

From Richard Hellinger
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 12:39 AM

I would suggest getting a carbon fiber bow. There are some good ones out there. I dont personally use them but they are very stiff and strong. They are very good for someone that uses a lot of pressure on their bow.

From Pieter Viljoen
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 1:57 AM

Breaking your bow on purpose is basically fraud, and insurance doesn't cover wear and tear to my knowledge.

Also, if your playing is such that your bow is breaking, then your playing has some massive problems.

From Jenna Potts
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 3:21 AM

I'm not going to break it on purpose, just play it until it breaks. And my playing didn't do it, it was knocked across a floor rather violently, though admittedly accidently, by someone very much other than myself who wasn't being careful.

From Jim W. Miller
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 5:35 AM

Why are you saying if it breaks and when it breaks? It's already broken. Where in the fine print does it say you've got to show multiple pieces?

From Jenna Potts
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 10:45 AM

On a slightly irrelevant note, isn't the grain beautiful? I love the pattern of the shaft.

From Elizabeth Smith
Posted on August 4, 2006 at 11:39 PM

Jenna,

I agree with Jim. Your bow is already broken. You can make your insurance claim and have it repaired or replaced now.

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