Tag Archives: viol bow lenght

How to shorten the playing length of the bow hair

After some time, especially when it’s raining all the time, the hair on your bow can become too long. Adjust the hair length is part of the service I provide when you play an Acacia bow so don’t hesitate to contact me, come and see me and it will be fixed in a few minutes.
BUT … if you live at the other side of the world you can also do it yourself.


What do you need ? Clamps, button thread, scissors, a chisel or a knife, and before all : a gimlet.
Fix your bow on a table or working bench. Take the frog out. Turn the gimlet into the tiny hole in the wedge which fixes the hair in the stick. When it grips into the wedge, gently but firmly pull the wedge out. It might resist, feel the right determination to get it out.
Then you put the thread around the hair left of the existing ligature. Keep one end between your teeth, turn around the hair between six and ten times and finish with two or three knots.
Cut the ends, comb the hair to get it straight and fold it back into the mortise. Put the wedge in place, push it down with a knife or chisel and put the frog back in place.
You can put some rosin between frog and stick to get the right friction.

Please let me know your experience !

The video is HD to get all the details. The music is from Marcabru “L’Autrier una sebissa”, CD Longpré el bosquel https://coenengelhard.com/cds/