How to Make Violin | DIY Violin Guide

How to make a violin at home. In this post, I would like to guide you through all the steps I followed to make a violin. Then I’ll share with you the reason I built this, my experiences, what Kept me moving forward when I lost confidence, and some of my mistakes which you are advised to avoid, and then I will answer some frequently asked questions related to violin. Let’s get started.

This blog is all about renewable energy projects. However, every once in a while I do some hobby projects. This year I got a chance to join a violin class with my friends Sanal and Aswin. And guess what, we joined an institute.

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When I got this chance to hold these amazing musical instruments in my hands I felt a strange inspiration to make one of them. Even though I am not good at woodworking and acoustics I decided to give it a try. But I had no idea, where do I begin.

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The Inspiration for Making a Violin

When you want something the whole universe will conspire to achieve that dream. This is the quote I always found amazing. When the creative inspiration decides to fulfil its materialization through a channel ( here creative people like you) you will see that the tools and circumstances you need to finish the work come to you without any effort.

You should read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert if you want to know how creative inspiration originates and find its channel and finally materialize. 

The first step to creating something from nothing is the decision from your side. Decide and trust your ability to do that. Even after I decided to make a violin I didn’t have that confidence. My friends believed in me. It wasn’t enough. I need a strong purpose to do anything.

Creating something, publishing on youtube, getting views, showing ads, and making money out of it, that’s not what I crave the most. I know you feel the same. The process through which you achieve your desired outcome is always worth spending time on.

By the way, the work is complete and You may have some doubts. I know you want to know the steps I followed to make this violin. Many of my friends asked similar questions:

Frequenly Asked Questions related to Violin Making

• What type of wood is used to make violins and which one did you use?
• Why quarter sawn Wood is used to make a violin?
• What is the name of the different violin parts?
• Why is hide glue used in violin making and which glue did I use?
• What are the purposes of the sound post and bass bar?
• How do I determine the thickness of both plates along the surface?
• Why do we varnish the Violin?

I am Explaining the making of a violin assuming that you have an understanding of the components of a violin. The structure that connects the top and bottom plates is known as the ribs. It is a 1.5 mm thick wood strip bent in the shape of the violin. Luthiers use bending iron to do this. I can’t afford to buy a bending iron just to make a single violin. So I used a soldering iron rod to bend the rib strips. Fixing the top and bottom plates is easy if we use a mold.

Oh, I nearly forgot to mention. Where did I learn to make a violin? Before that, I would like to share with you a universal truth about creativity. When a creative inspiration decides to manifest through someone, You can easily recognize that. How? You will find that all the tools and materials needed for that work to be created will gravitate towards you without much effort. Many of you may have experienced it.

As soon as I decided to make a violin by myself, I stumbled upon a website called makingtheviolin..com, which explained everything You need to build a violin by yourself. Tools, materials, steps, real-size templates, and everything. I can Undoubtedly say that without that guide I wouldn’t be able to finish my work. Whoever is behind that tutorial, Thank you, Guys.

What are the Violin parts?

If you are going to make a violin you must know each and every part in detail. I will give you a short introduction to it. A violin has,

• Scroll. The decorative top of the violin. It’s most often carved in the shape of a scroll but is sometimes carved in another shape, such as a person’s head.
• Pegs. Four wooden pegs around which the strings are wound. They are used to tune the instrument’s strings. Tightening a string raises its pitch; loosening a string lowers its pitch.
• Peg box. The enclosure in which the strings are wound onto the pegs.
• Nut. A small piece of wood between the pegbox and fingerboard. It has four notches, one for each string to emerge over the fingerboard.
• Neck. The part of the violin between the body of the violin and the pegbox and scroll.
• Fingerboard. The surface where the fingers press down on the strings. It’s generally made of ebony.
• Top. The front of the violin. In most violins, the top is made from spruce wood and the back is made from maple wood.
• Ribs. The thin strips of wood around the sides of the violin, connecting the top and the back to form the soundbox of the violin.
• Strings. A violin has four strings tuned in intervals of fifths. From lowest to highest (left to right) they are G, D, A, and E. The strings are made from a variety of materials, including steel, synthetic materials and/or animal gut. They are strung over the fingerboard, from the pegs to the tailpiece.
• Purfling. A thin strip of three-ply wood is inlaid in a channel around the edge of the violin to protect the instrument from damage. It may look like an outline drawn around the edge of the violin, but its purpose is actually more protective than decorative.
• Corner blocks. Wooden blocks inside the violin stabilize the construction of the instrument.
• F-holes. The two holes from which sound emerges from the violin. They are shaped like cursive fs. These, combined with the violin’s hollow build, promote resonance.
• Bridge. A decorative but functional piece of maple wood that balances underneath the strings and transmits vibrations from the strings into the body of the instrument to create sound. The bridge of the violin is not glued on, it is held in place by tension. The force that the strings exert on the bridge is equal to about 90 pounds.
• Soundpost. A wooden post is located inside the violin, under the right side of the bridge. It is crucial for transmitting vibrations of the strings into the body of the violin to create sound, and its placement can change the quality of that sound, in terms of volume and/or tone quality.
• Fine tuner(s). Small tuners are located on the tailpiece. They tune the violin but in smaller increments than the pegs do. Smaller violins often have fine tuners for all strings, but full-size violins tend to have them only for the E string.
• Tailpiece. The somewhat triangular piece of wood where the strings are attached on the lower end of the violin.
• Tailpiece gut. The cord attaches the tailpiece to the violin.
• Chin rest. A shaped piece of wood or plastic on which you rest your chin and jawbone. It’s attached near the tailpiece.
• Saddle. A block on the inside of the violin helps support the tailgut and the tension of the strings.

How to Make a Violin: Step By Step

So, we are going to make a real violin. I’ve already given you an idea about the main parts of a violin. Measurements play a vital role in the successful completion of this project. I suggest you visit makingtheviolin.com to download all the templates I’ve used. Here I will compare their instructions. Actual project. Let’s get started.

First I had to make a decision about the wood I am going to make my violin. Which wood luthiers use to make a violin? The most commonly used wood species for violin manufacture are spruce, willow, maple, ebony, and rosewood. In general, maple is used for the backplate, rib, neck, and scroll, while spruce is an ideal wood for the front plate of a violin.

But these are foreign woods. I searched if there’s any locally available wood to make violins in India. Now I don’t remember the website. But somewhere it says that in India both teak and jackfruit wood is widely used in violin making. Both of these woods are easily accessible to me as well. Teak is easy to work with than jackfruit wood. That’s why I decided to use Teak wood.

Then the next question came into my mind. I’ve heard that there’s not even a single screw in a violin. All parts are glued together. What type of glue is used in violin making, and why is that?

Professional luthiers use hide glue to make violins. Hide glue is an adhesive made from animal connective tissue. Technically it’s a protein colloid glue formed by boiling down the collagen from skins, bones, tendons, and other tissues. The result is similar to gelatin. Animals commonly used include horses.

Luthiers use Hide glues while making a violin by keeping repair in mind. An instrument like a violin is made to survive generations. Hide glue is strong but if we dismantle the instrument for repair it won’t affect the joints. But if we use modern high adhesives which form a stronger compound than wood in the joints dismantling will be a risky job.

Since I am not making a violin for performance or for the next generations I decided to try this project with any modern wood glues. Who knows if it’s going to survive generations? But I have a gut feeling, this violin is going to be sold in an auction after decades for an x million dollars. Who knows. haha. Just Kidding.

I talked to my carpenter friends about the different wood glues they use. They use Woodfill, Fevicol, and sometimes Araldite. I did a test and found out that, Woodfill is too fast, Araldite doesn’t work well with moisture and Fevicol is the best choice for this project. It’s slow and strong.

But I have a confession to make. I am writing this tutorial after finishing the work. I now regret that I should have used hide glue for joining the components. I don’t know why, but I feel so. That’s why I will definitely create another violin the luthier’s way. Using the actual wood and actual glue.

1. Mould Marking and Cutting

Everything needs a mold. Even if it’s a Toy or the world’s most expensive car engine. They are made after crafting a mold. The sole point of making a mold is that we will have a benchmark. We can get the correct dimensions in the final product by carefully crafting the mold first.

Here for making this violin we’ve to make a mold out of plywood. So that we can easily create the rib structure and perfectly glue both the front and back plate together. Buy Plywood with 12-18 mm diameter. You can download the mold template from here.

It is in real size. So that you can take the printout of the template on A3 size paper. Then cut a piece of plywood in the shape of the template. Carefully finish the areas for fixing the top, bottom, and side blocks.

2. Rib Making and Fixing

A rib structure is what holds both plates together. After cutting the mould we’ve to cut 2 mm thick teak strips. Luthiers use different wood, not teak. We will come to the different types of wood used to make different parts of a violin. After cutting the wood strips bend them using a bending iron and glue them to the corner and end blocks. These blocks are also from specific wood and cut into the required shape to get maximum stability.

Back plate Making and Gluing

Cut Backplate out of a large piece of teak wood. Then, cut it into the required template using a gypsum cutter. And use an angle grinder and sander to remove excess wood. Finally, glue the backplate to the rib structure after fixing the linings to the backside of the rib.

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Lining bending and gluing

Glue the linings to both sides of the ribs before fixing the plates to them. Linings provide strength to the rib and extra glueing surface when fixing front and backplates.

Front Plate Cutting and Shaping

Download the template and cut wood using gypsum and carve it into the required shape and thickness. The thickness chart is shown in the video.

Cutting f holes and finish

f-holes play an important role in the tone of the violin. Download the template and mark the f-holes on the front plate and carefully cut the f-holes.

Bass Bar Making &Gluing

The Bass bar passes through right below the bass foot of the violin bridge. Watch the video to see the size and shape of the bass bar. Glue into the front plate.

Front and Back Plate Gluing

For glueing violin makers recommend hide glue. They use hide glue because it will be much easier to dismantle and repair in the future. Modern glues are harder and it will be difficult to dismantle the violin if the need for a repair arises. But here I used Fevicol.

Neck and Scroll Shaping

Neck and scroll give the violin a beautiful sight. The pegbox is carved on the neckpiece of the violin. Carefully carve the pegbox and make holes for the pegs.

Gluing FingerBoard and fixing to body

You can buy a ready-made fingerboard from a violin shop and glue it to the neck. Use clamps and let it fix perfectly.

Fixing Sound Post

The soundpost is situated nearly below the treble foot of the violin. Nearly 2 mm apart. Like bass bar sound post also affects the tone of the violin.

Sand all Outer body and Varnish

After glueing the fingerboard and sound post sand the entire surfer using very lower grit sandpaper until it is smooth enough to varnish. Now carefully varnish the wood. Apply 3 coats of varnish and give 24 hrs between each coat.

Connect all other components

Connect pegs, tale piece, chin rest, strings, and bridge in the correct position. Make grooves on the bridge and fingerboard end at the right position. These grooves will keep the strings in the right position at all times.

Tuning and Testing

Depending upon the type of music you are gonna play Tune the strings using any violin tuning mobile app. It’s very easy. After tuning the violin, take your bow and start practising. Make appropriate changes to the bridge position and soundpost position to get a perfect tone.

Our violin is ready. If you want to know anything about this project comment below. Watch the video if you have any doubts watch the video.

How to Make a Violin

Making a violin is a complex and intricate process that requires a high level of skill and knowledge. Here are the basic steps involved in making a violin:

1. Choosing the wood: Violins are traditionally made from spruce for the top plate and maple for the back, sides, and neck. The wood should be carefully chosen for its density, strength, and resonance.
2. Carving the plates: The top and back plates are carved from the chosen wood using specialized tools, such as knives, gouges, and planes. The shape and thickness of the plates are carefully measured and adjusted to ensure proper resonance.
3. Building the ribs: The sides of the violin are made from thin strips of maple, which are bent into shape using heat and moisture. The ribs are then glued to the top and back plates.
4. Creating the neck and scroll: The neck and scroll are carved from a separate piece of maple, which is then attached to the body of the violin.
5. Installing the fingerboard: The fingerboard is made from ebony and is attached to the neck using glue.
6. Fitting the pegs and tailpiece: The pegs and tailpiece are made from ebony and are fitted to the violin. The strings are then attached to the tailpiece and secured in place.
7. Applying the varnish: The violin is coated with a special varnish that protects the wood and enhances its appearance. The varnish is carefully applied and allowed to dry before the final finishing touches are added.
8. Setting up the violin: The final step involves setting up the violin by adjusting the bridge, soundpost, and strings to ensure proper tone and playability.

It’s worth noting that making a violin is a highly specialized craft that can take years to master. Many professional violin makers undergo extensive apprenticeships and training before they are able to produce high-quality instruments.