Chief's Log: Storedate 5.22.11.17

Case 1:  Heftone LoJo 5-string banjo bass was in for setup and adjustments. Mr. Ron Pulcer is posing for us with his prize Heftie. Having made a half dozen or so banjo basses, I explained a number of the merits of the Heftone design — the rigid construction and adjustable tailpiece downpressure being… neat-o (sorry, Reese, you're rubbing-off on me).

Case 2: A brand-new Epiphone SG “Muse” model in metallic-flake-pearl-white was in for setup. I’m damned impressed that a ~$450 guitar is built this well. It hurts.

Case 3: A 1907 John Morse violin was in to get its very-warped bridge replaced. I had an 1880s bridge on hand which refit to it nicely.

The owner wanted the strings swapped but… after cleaning them up… there was no need. It’s always fascinating to me how long a decent set of fiddle strings can last with cleanings now and then… they usually just start sounding bad from too much rosin building-up.

I kept the new one about the same heft/thickness as the old one. I slightly angle the feet so that the bridge leans slightly aft under tension and this usually helps keep it from flopping forward so much.