When to rehair?

kmanley_29649 · #1 02-06-2010, 07:33 PM

I'm fairly new to arco, and I was wondering when a bow needs to be rehaired. I've had the bow sense I got my bass about two years ago (I've started bowing often for about two months), but they were both used, so I don't know how old the hair may be. Also, I've noticed that some (but just a few) of the strings are loose, and don't line up with the others when it is tightened. Is it getting to be time to have it rehaired, or will it be good to go for a little longer?

Dave Irwin · #2 02-09-2010, 09:48 PM

I wouldn't worry about the loose hair. If they get in the way you can pull them.
Changing bow hair is a good way to screw up you're sound if you are happy with it but since you are new to arco, it could also be an interesting experiment. (for around $60 where I live)

Best though if you can get with an experienced arco player and get their opinion.

Phil Rowan · #3 02-09-2010, 10:15 PM

I just got a re-hair and it's always the same.. it makes an already great bow even better. It sounds much fuller, warmer and darker that before (last time I had it re-haired was Jan '09). I play a good deal of arco, and generally get mine re-haired once a year, but I may switch to twice a year because it's just such a joy to play with fresh hair on a good bow. Of course, this is IME and YMMV, but I'd say if you're starting to use the bow more and want to learn some decent arco technique, a fresh re-hair will only help.

Depending on how much you play arco and how well you care for the bow (for example, it's good for the hair to keep the bow out of its case whenever it's not in use), a re-hair could last you 8 months to well over a year.

kmanley_29649 · #4 02-10-2010, 05:49 AM

Thanks for the advice. I'm thinking that I may stick with what I have for now and save that money to go towards a better bow. I've heard a lot of good things about this one, so I may give it a try.

Phil Rowan · #5 02-10-2010, 11:46 AM

can you tell who the maker is? any way you could put up a picture?

kmanley_29649 · #6 02-10-2010, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil Rowan

can you tell who the maker is? any way you could put up a picture?

I'm not sure of the maker, but it's the Brazilwood bow from Bob Gollihur's site, and I think he may be the most trusted man in the world of bass, so I'd imagine it's good quality, though probably not the very best quality, but I really don't need that. It should at least be better than my fiberglass Glasser bow. I'd go with the German grip, for what it's worth.

Phil Rowan · #7 02-10-2010, 01:16 PM

sorry kenny, should have specified.. i meant the maker and a photo of your bow. but now that you mention it's a fiberglass bow, never mind about the photo/maker, and yes, save up for that gollihur bow.

Phil Rowan · #8 02-10-2010, 02:01 PM

Btw, there's a Gollihur German bow for sale in the TB classifieds.

kmanley_29649 · #9 03-01-2010, 11:34 AM

Due to everyone's input, I've decided to save up for the Gollihur bow. One thing I just ralized, though, is that I still have no idea how to know when a bow needs to be rehaired. Obviously I'm not going to have it done to my current bow, but for future reference, what are the signs that a rehair needs to be done?

Phil Rowan · #10 03-01-2010, 05:14 PM

IME, after about a year of heavy playing, the bow hair loses some of its.. richness in tone? or perhaps its darkness and grab, and ease of play. Also, whereas new bow hair is "tight" even when loosened (meaning the hair's not over-stretched due to its knots, which are inside the tip/frog, being all out of whack), old hair might be all loose, some seeming longer than others. Those knots can become out-of-whack when bow hair's ripped out straight from where it goes into the tip/frog . A re-hair gives you a pretty wide band of fresh hair = much better grab & sound). Depending on who did/the quality of the 1st bow hairing, some may even get re-hair as soon as they get a new bow.

I had a lesson w/ John Feeney a month back, and after I broke a hair or two, he said to take the broken hair, clamp it down with your thumb on the frog/tip, and break it from there.. so that you end up with an inch or less of that old broken hair coming out of the tip/frog. He said if you pull it straight out from where it goes into the frog/tip (the way I'd always done it) it messes with the knots, and the more you do that, the more messed up the band of hair can get.

Feral Feline · #11 03-02-2010, 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil Rowan

...
I had a lesson w/ John Feeney a month back, and after I broke a hair or two, he said to take the broken hair, clamp it down with your thumb on the frog/tip, and break it from there.. so that you end up with an inch or less of that old broken hair coming out of the tip/frog. He said if you pull it straight out from where it goes into the frog/tip (the way I'd always done it) it messes with the knots, and the more you do that, the more messed up the band of hair can get.

+1

Clip, don't yank.

The fiddler in my band told me to clip loose hairs after he saw me yanking out a stray hair. Nail clipper works; naturally you want to be careful not to nick adjacent strings with the clipper.

Don Higdon · #12 03-06-2010, 06:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil Rowan

I had a lesson w/ John Feeney a month back,...

You lucky SOB. John is talented and unheralded; an amazing player. Have you ever played his Toenniges?
Sorry to go off topic.

Phil Rowan · #13 03-06-2010, 07:08 PM

John is such a cool cat.. I didn't play his Toenniges.. maybe next time. All his basses are strung with guts (one of them w/ plain D & G), and quite a few (if not all) had a low C string but without an extension.

I need to go see Orchestra of St Luke's sometime.

Don Higdon · #14 03-06-2010, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil Rowan

I need to go see Orchestra of St Luke's sometime.

If you do, you can check out another monster, Lew Paer. You could sell tickets to watch him warm up. Ridiculously good.

Heifetzbass · #15 03-08-2010, 10:46 AM

Kmanley,

If you need any local help, just let me know.
BG

King Chris · #16 03-08-2010, 09:16 PM

As far as the rehair goes, it all depends on your playing style, frequency, the quality of hair and the quality of the job done. I play a lot, typically 6-8 hours of arco playing a day, everyday. with a good rehair with decent hair I try to make it last 4-5 months. If I had the money, I"d probably do it every three. I would say just watch to see how much they stretch, which can be gauged by how far back your frog goes from your winding. A little stretch isn't a big deal but it lets you know how much abuse the hair is taking and/or how much the humidity has changed. Also, pay attention to the width of the band becuase as you break them off the band will start getting narrower and thinner.
I would also say that it is a feel thing that you will develop. If it starts becoming harder to play and you are applying more rosin to get the same volume then they may be getting old. Also the tamber will change as others have mentioned. These things are gradual so you usually won't pick up on them right away but when you do get it rehaired, you end up thinking it makes the bow sound amazing when really, that's just how much the hair has changed and you haven't really noticed because it was so slow.
There are many different ways to tell and I"m sure some people will negate everything I just said but that's how I would go about it. Take it as you may =)

arcobigj · #17 03-09-2010, 02:29 AM

Kmanley,
In case you still want to rehair your current bow, I recently had mine done at a local shop in Anderson. If I remember correctly, the price was about $60 as afore mentioned. I am sure there are shops closer to you in Taylors that will do an excellent job as well. Good luck.

kmanley_29649 · #18 03-09-2010, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arcobigj

Kmanley,
In case you still want to rehair your current bow, I recently had mine done at a local shop in Anderson. If I remember correctly, the price was about $60 as afore mentioned. I am sure there are shops closer to you in Taylors that will do an excellent job as well. Good luck.

I think I'm going to stick with it and save the money for a new bow.