Inexpensive Bows on Ebay - Thoughts?

[IronSpatula]

Hey everybody,

I'm relatively new to upright bass (just learning to play arco) and I don't have my own bow yet. After doing some research here, I decided to get one of Bob G's French bows. Unfortunately, a few things have come up and I won't have $150 for a month or two.

I've found a few brazilwood bows on Ebay running from $25 to $40 and they all look pretty much identical. Some examples:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...320971727&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...321287729&rd=1

Does anybody have experience with these? Are they worth the money or should I just wait until I can get a Golihur?

[KSB - Ken Smith]

You can't tell from a picture how a Bow feels, sounds, balances or plays. You have to play them and test them. I recently tested a Bow for sale and just returned it. If not for the Bows I already own and had to compare them to, I might have bought it.

Cheap Bows will not have the balance or quality to allow you to learn to play with propper technique. Developing bad habits and training your muscles incorrectly can take years to re-train and un-learn not to mention very costly in time and lesson fees.

Get a GOOD teacher and let him help you choose a Bow. If you are not experienced with Bows and Basses, it is way too easy to buy Junk you will be sorry for later. Let someone with more experience help you make your purchase.