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The Repair & Restoration of a Willam Howarth (1894) Double Bass |
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The following pictures cover the complete restoration/rebuild of a double bass which as you can see has incurred a considerable amount of damage and aggravated by the 'false starts` of two other repairers who have only made the situation worse. This job was unusual in the extent of damage and the fact it arrived in a cardboard box in pieces.
Whist not typical of the problems I commonly encounter as a repairer / luthier I have included it here as it illustrates many advanced repair techniques rarely required on the same instrument, demonstrates exactly how much of the original instrument can be saved and I hope of interest to any one looking at this web site.
The photo right is what I was confronted with in early Dec. 2002 for an estimate. By mid December the estimate (quotation) had been calculated and approved with the client (The Contrabass Shoppe) and work started just before Christmas.
I started with the making of the forms on which to repair one centre rib and a bottom rib. In the photo below the form has been made up for the centre rib fragments to be assembled and repaired on. The utmost accuracy is required in producing these forms as the finished repaired ribs will be exactly the same shape.
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Above shows some of the pieces of this rib still attached to a former 'repair'.
In the photo below a sheet of paper has been first placed on the form to pervent any glue sticking the work to it. The largest single piece of this rib (icluding one top corner block) has been clamped to the mould.
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Photo above and right, more pieces have been added 'dry' (not glued) as it is continually necessary to finely adjust the relative positions of the fragments with each successive piece added, many of these fragments had quite badly distorted during their years in pieces, without the form it would be impossible to perform such an 'assembly' job with any precision. Once all the original fragments available were clamped to the form work could start fitting the studs (internal reinforcing pieces) to hold the fragments together, these studs were lightened later. As it can be seen from these photos it probably isn't possible to have too many clamps of different shapes and sizes!
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The photo above shows the bottom left hand rib as 'supplied' by the client. A similar job was necessary for this rib as it was in many pieces and also had badly distorted in the intervening years. Pieces were fitted to both ribs where fragments were missing, then new linings and corner blocks were fitted where necessary.
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In the photo above the back has had the centre joint re-shot (planed) and new braces fitted. The 'break' (splayed top of back) has been refitted with the appropriate internal work. The back is clamped to a flat panel as it was distorted. By arranging the back flat like this it was possible to assemble the ribs using the back itself as the pattern so ensuring a perfect fit.
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In the above photo work has continued with the fitting of the two top ribs.
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Above, a new centre rib has been fitted as somewhere between a third and a half of the original was missing and it was considered not worth repairing, the back still being clamped to a flat panel.
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If you refer to the first photo it can be seen that a large piece of the front was missing. In the photo above left new wood has been fitted and rough carved and the outline has been established using the now completed ribs as the pattern.
Next the groove for the purfling was cut, the purfling fitted, arching finished off, 'f' hole cut, the edge has been left square until after the front is glued on, above right.
Left is the internal view of the front and its repairs showing sound post patch, pieces of half-edging, studs, bass bar and the large flank piece.
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The photos right and below are of the finished restored instrument, after the fitting of a neck graft with new fingerboard, a considerable amount of varnish touching in, re machining and fitting of machine heads with brass plates, new end pin, bridge and sound post. The instrument was finished in June 2003.
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