My "new" old bow

For the past several weeks, I've been having shops and makers send me close to thirty bows all in all to audition. It's been a somewhat intimidating process having so many great bows all at once. I tried bows from Reid Hudson, Pierre-Yves Fuchs, Roy Quade, Bernard Walke, Bisch, Steve Reiley, La Pierre, Morizot, George Rubino, and quite a few others. What ended up making a tremendous difference in my selection process was having my bass teacher come over and playing many of these on my bass for me to listen. Prior to doing this, I was fairly settled on the Roy Quade bow. What I found though was that out front, the sound from most bows diffused and became fuzzy and lost in the room the farther you got from the bass. A select few had this mass like quality however that remained clear and strong no matter the distance. It was these bows that actually seemed quieter when actually playing the bass. The two bows that had this quality were the Fuchs and an unstamped bow attributed to Victor Fetique. The more I compared the other bows to these bows, I became increasingly dissatisfied with the other bows. Ultimately, I picked the Fetique for it's sweeter sound and more comfortable playability, but the Fuchs was definately no slouch. The moral of the story for all you bow shoppers is to have other people play your bows on your bass while you stand back and listen from different distances. Here the pics of the bow.





Now, I realize that this is an attributed bow and that there is always a risk that the bow is not going to have a great resale value and yada yada. I negotiated this bow for what I consider to be a good price, and I am confident in my decision. The bottom line is that this is my favorite of the bows I tried, and I'm buying it to play, not to sell it.

 

The Fuchs I tried was from Robertsons, but I can't say for sure if it's the one you tried. They really are fantastic, and I could have been happy with the Fuchs. It's funny though because I started out not really being that impressed with it.

 

The Fetique is from the David Gage shop so it's not the one at Robertsons. I sent the Quade back maybe a week ago via 2 day air so it might be the one you have now. The Quade was very pleasing to play. The sound was very open, clear, and loud to player. It the msot responsive and agile out of all the bows I tried. If I hadn't had the chance to hear someone else play it for me, I would have probably gotten that bow. The fetique has a strong core sound with mass too it, but has a sweet mature sound as well. the Fuchs is all core and sounds very chunky, but in a good way. The Quade had a beautiful, open, clear sounding tone, but I found the sound kind of died off at a distance. In terms of playability, the Quade beats the other two, but only marginally. I actually find doing complicated spiccato strokes such as the bariolage to be easier on the fetique as well. On your bass, it might be a different story, but I implore that you have a peer play your bass and you stand back and listen as well.

I think you are the person who sent me those Walke bows. I tried some Prochowniks from George Vance and when I peeled off the shipping label, I noticed your name on the old label below it. It's like we're following each others tracks...Anyway, good luck on your bow hunt, it's an exciting and rewarding experience. I know I have learned a lot just from trying all these great bows.

 

Indeed they are. Congratulations on your new bow!

 

It did have three seperate appraisals, but I will look into the sources you gave me. Thank you.