Please visit the Don Rickert Musician Shop.
Note: Listed price is for the initial deposit, which includes includes gut string by one of several Master String Makers specializing in gut strings AND special offers on Master Bows. We will contact you about additional required work for the conversion, which is generally in the $200 - $300 range.
What does a fiddle properly set up for early 20th Century playing sound like? (YouTube)
Troy Parker on a Don Rickert Fiddle and Michael Fox on his "Dulcijo", a kind of diatonic banjo...very cool instrument!
Our Experience with Gut-Strung Fiddles
We have many years of experience in the use of old-style pure gut strings on fiddles. Dr. Don Rickert, who used to play fiddle in many Civil War re-enactments in Maryland and Virginia, played on a pure gut-strung fiddle (with a silver-wound g) with an overall 19th Century setup for many years.
A Few Words about Instrument Condition
As with all fiddle retro-setups by Don Rickert Lutherie, the late 18th Century to mid-19th Century Fiddle Setup starts with a structurally sound high-quality fiddle either provided by you or a new instrument purchased from us (see article, Instrument Quality and Condition for Historic Fiddle Setup by Don Rickert Lutherie)
About Early 20th Century Fiddles
The early 20th Century was the Golden Age of what we now call "Roots" or "Old Time" fiddling.
By the time the 20th Century rolled around, the idea of a “standard” setup was a thing of the past. The idea of a different setup for a fiddle than for a violin began to really take hold. An Early 20th Century fiddle would typically be gut strung (all four strings), have standard wooden tuning pegs and, of course, no chin rest or shoulder rest, as they had not yet been invented. The lower, flatter bridge began to appear, becoming the major differentiator between a fiddle and a violin, besides the instrument hold and bowing technique. As the two photos of players illustrate, some continued to hold the instrument under the chin, as in the 19th Century, and some reverted back to a more Baroque-style instrument position of the late 18th and early 19th Centuries.
Two Innovations Often Seen on Early 20th Century Fiddles
The two major variations one would see early 20th Century fiddles were the steel e-string (the a, d and g still gut) and geared tuning machines were a bit more common than in the 19th Century. The exact year of the introduction of the fine tuner for the single steel e-string is shrouded in mystery. A photo of a fiddle with geared tuners and a photo of the new geared tuners we use appear below:
Click on an image for a full-size view.
Fine Tuner for the e-string
The violin fine tuner was invented in the 20th Century for steel strings. Fine tuners on the tail piece do not help a bit with gut strings. We honestly do not know the exact year of the introduction of the fine tuner nor the identity of the inventor. Given the mystery about fine tuners, if you opt for a period-appropriate steel e-string, we will install a high-quality fine tuner (such as a Wittner) for the e-string only.
You may choose to have the period setup on a fine new instrument purchased from us...
OR you may wish to use a vintage fiddle for the conversion
What an Early 20th Century Fiddle Setup Includes:
- Tuning Pegs
- Traditional Tuning Pegs
- Peg hole reaming and new perfectly matching pegs drilled for gut strings
On our new instruments with a perfect peg fit, only enlargement of the string holes in the pegs is necessary
- Peg hole reaming and new perfectly matching pegs drilled for gut strings
- Geared Tuning Machines
- There are some cases where a new instrument is the only way to go, such as making a retro fiddle from the mid-19th Century through early 20th Century with geared tuning machines. This is because the hole spacing for antique-style violin tuning machines is different than a standard peg spacing, requiring permanent modification to the fiddle's peg box.
- Traditional Tuning Pegs
- New bridge for gut strings or a bridge for a steel e" and gut a', d' and g strings
- For instruments that have been strung with metal strings, the bridge is almost always cut too low for gut strings (or even synthetic strings) and must be replaced.
- We will work with you for the desired curvature of the bridge. If you want an extremely flat bridge, you will have to convince us that this is really a good idea...it is generally not a good idea when using gut strings.
- Removal of the chin rest
- Replacement of the tail piece if necessary
- Often, the existing tail piece can be kept.
- Replacement of the existing nylon or metal tail gut with genuine gut
- Optional…only done if absolute authenticity is necessary. Modern nylon and stainless steel tail guts are far superior to real gut, as they do not stretch and allow adjustments…adjustability is VERY important to the setup of a gut-strung violin or fiddle.
- Removal of the fine-tuners
- Fine tuners cannot be used with old-style pure gut strings. If you opt for a steel e-string, we wil install a single fine tuner for the e-string.
- Experimentation with various gauges of strings for the best sound on your instrument
- It is assumed that, for ALL of our retro-setups, that the player will be using the following tunings:
Standard: e” a’ d’ g
A Cross-tuning: e” a’ e’ a
G-D Cross-tuning: d’ g’ d’ g
D tuning e” a’ d’ a
Being able to accommodate all of these common tunings used in early 20th Century fiddling without a lot of string breakage calls for e” and a’ strings of a medium-heavy gauge (for tuning lower) and light-medium gauged d’ and g strings for tuning higher in the A Cross-tuning. When a steel e-string is used, this compicates matters a bit; however we have experience with this setup.
- Installation and break-in of the chosen string set
- We use only the finest period gut strings by one of several Master String Makers specializing in gut strings. The gut strings we use are known for their excellent craftsmanship, intonation, resistance to breakage (this has to do with the string polishing process) and stability…in other words, they stay in tune very well for gut strings. When stringing with a steel e-string, we have a number of options to choose from and will install the one that works best on your instrument and playing style.
- Gut strings will NEVER stay in tune as well as modern metal strings; however the strings we use will amaze you with their stability. A really well-made gut string, such as Dlugolecki’s, actually stays in tune pretty well after a break-in period.
- Necessary Sound post adjustments
- If your sound post needs replacing, a new sound post costs about $75.
- Adjustment of the tail gut to achieve optimal tone and volume from your instrument
- Adjusting the distance between the tailpiece and bridge is a painstaking process and necessary to achieve optimal sonority from the instrument. To achieve optimal resonance, the distance between where the strings are tied onto the tail piece should be 1/6 of the playing length (for starters). Fine tuning of the tailpiece position (by lengthening or shortening the tail gut) is accomplished by iterative testing until plucking the a’ string between the tailpiece and the bridge is precisely 3 octaves higher than plucking the open e” string. This is why we prefer the use of a modern nylon or stainless steel tail gut, which allow for easier adjustment and re-adjustment once the strings and tail gut are fully broken-in (i.e. stretched as far as they are going to stretch).
- Yes, this takes time to get right…it is part of what you are paying for when you come to Don Rickert Lutherie for an historic fiddle setup.
The Bows
Except for a Modern Setup, in which case we strongly recommend a high-performance carbon fiber bow, a high-quality period-appropriate wooden bow is the way to go.
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