| Author |
Subject |
drcello
Registered User
(5/6/01 1:09:50 pm)
Reply |
removing scratches
I have some scratches on the sides
of my cello. The scratches are deep enough to remove the varnish,
but have not hurt the wood. Have any of you found a product that can
sort of "melt" the varnish enough to fill in scratches such as
these, and make them disappear? PS: My cello is not particularly
valuable, so I don't think keeping the original condition intact or
not will change the value of my instrument.
Marshall C. St. John
drcello@vei.net
Cello Heaven
|
G
M Stucka
Registered User
(5/6/01 2:29:24 pm)
Reply |
Have
you tried "nose grease"?
My cello teacher, Karl Fruh, used to
make scratches disappear by rubbing his finger on his nose and/or
forehead and then smoothing the 'oils' into the scratch. Sounds
gross, but on oil-based varnishes, this always did the trick. (I
witnessed him doing this to his Strad!!)
|
Ginger
Van 
Registered
User
(5/8/01 6:45:56 am)
Reply |
Re:
removing scratches
I learned from a friend in college
to use walnuts to fix scratches. Just raid your baking cupboard and
get a piece of walnut "meat" and break it to get a fresh side. Rub
it on your scratch and the oil makes the scratch dark. It depends on
the finish on your cello, but on mine it dissappears!
Edited by: Ginger
Van at:
5/8/01 6:45:56 am
|
bridge
Registered
User
(5/7/01 9:46:00 am)
Reply |
Re:
removing scratches
I dropped my bow once and the frog
adjuster (probably has a more offical name) left a nice two inch
scratch in the side of my $2500 student instrument. I rubbed a
little black shoe polish over it. It wiped right off of the varnish
but it turned the "white" part black. Now it looks like all of the
other stupid black marks they put on the cello on purpose to make it
look old.
|
bridge
Registered
User
(5/7/01 9:46:52 am)
Reply |
Why
doesnt' my reply go wher it's supposed to?
|
Andrea
Registered User
(5/7/01 3:18:49 pm)
Reply |
cosmetic surgery
I bought a cello a little over a
year ago that sounded fine but looked realy beat up. Around
Christmas time someone dropped a music stand on my instrument and
offered to have a luthier look at the scratch. Turned out the
luthier offered to do a cosmetic touch up on the whole instrument
for 40$CDN. I payed the difference between the music stand scratch
and the other scratches and my cello looks great! She's so beuatiful
now-it's devine! Well I guess the point is that you could get a
luthier to look at it and I felt that the 40$ I was charged was
really cheap considering the amount of work involved.
Good
luck,
Andrea
|
jdacheetah
Registered User
(5/8/01 6:21:21 am)
Reply |
"nose
grease"
I removed three scratches on my
cello last night with a little oil from my pores. I have to admit I
was a little skeptical at first, but it worked great. Thanks
drcello! 
Jeremy
|
drcello
Registered User
(5/8/01 8:17:21 pm)
Reply |
An
excellent product
I found an excellent product today
for removing minor scratches (just the same, I wouldn't try this on
a really valuable instrument!). It is called "Howard RestorAFinish,"
and may be found in Antique shoppes around the country. It comes in
two colors, cherry (light) and dark walnut. I got the dark walnut,
and rubbed it on with a cloth. The scratches get filled in,
apparently with a little color and light varnish. The scratches
disappeared, and the surface looks pretty good. It is $8.50 for a
pint, and that will probably last me for a decade. So, if you have a
not too valuable cello, as I do, this is a product that works, and I
bet it is better than "nose grease."
Marshall C. St. John
drcello@vei.net
Cello Heaven
|
Betsy
C 
Registered
User
(5/8/01 9:26:16 pm)
Reply |
Re:
Have you tried "nose grease"?
Again, Cello Chat members come
through just when needed. I dropped the frog end of my bow onto the
top of my cello last week (first ding- I guess it's really my cello
now!) so this has given me a lot of ideas to try. It really is
pretty tiny, so thankfully it is not a big deal. If Mr. Fruh feels
that nose oil is acceptable, AND on his Strad no less, how could I
lose by considering that option? I just don't want anybody to see me
doing it  . My
husband is already fascinated enough with what he considers the
'exotic' aspects of the cello. He is still kind of in awe that we
even have a cello in the house. I can't imagine his reaction if he
would see me doing that! I could always tell him it is a secret CSO
cello rite that I heard about from Gary Stucka!
|
lblake
Registered
User
(5/9/01 5:46:40 am)
Reply |
Re:
removing scratches
Last time I brought my cello in for
an adjustment, my luthier also touched up all the scratches and
polished up my whole cello. I didn't ask for it, and he didn't
charge me, either. It seems like that's part of cleaning up the
instrument, which seems routine when it's in for any real service,
too.
Since my varnish isn't oil-based, and since I don't
usually know if scratches go through the ground, too... I'm afraid
to do anything to them, myself. Anyway - the luthier doesn't seem to
have any trouble dissolving them the right amount to completely
erase any scratches my dogs have chosen to put into the side of my
cello.
|
Email This To a
Friend
Topic Commands
(Moderator only)