Oil Varnish

In the last post, I stripped and stained my pre-1914 Suzuki Nippon violin. Don't worry, everyone, someone else sanded off the original finish first, not me. But that does remind me to write a disclaimer -- ya'll, don't refinish a violin. Not for looks, not for fun, not because it's missing in one spot -- the sound is in that old varnish. It also ruins the value and every violin expert you meet will say, "Hmph, SOMEONE refinished that violin. Such a shame. Ruined it."

That being said, let's proceed...

I did an ultra-thin coat of oil varnish as a ground. I was tired of water-soluble things. This is after two coats.



In between coats (all coats are thinned with turpentine), I polished with the pumice. The less-shiny half is the polished half.



The first coat I did was too diluted so I put on another coat that was too thick. This too-thick coat developed bubbles and trapped dust. Yuck.

The stuff I have comes out of the bottle exactly like honey. Turns out, you are supposed to dilute it a little (not a lot, which is what I did the first time) with turpentine to make what is called wiping varnish. This makes the bubbles release easier and dries faster so less dust gets in and runs don't have a chance to develop. Not to mention, it goes on much more smoothly.


So, to sum up, for oil varnish, do lots of fairly thin coats and polish, polish, polish between. Build it up slowly. Give it time to dry between. Be patient, and it will look beautiful.

Next post: Fitting a bridge.