Violin Forum/Message Board

[Jack Rushing]

What is the best , or easiest way to remove an old mis-aligned sound post
patch in the back that is starting to crack? It is about sixty mms long and
about thirty mms wide. I would like to try taking a shot at replacing it.

[Michael Darnton]

The general procedure is to make a plaster cast of the back for support in cutting and gluing, using, for instance, saran wrap as a protective barrier, building a wall to hold the plaster, and being sure to reinforce the plaster and put on a wood backing for clamping, while it's still wet. You will/may have to adjust the plaster after it's dry if there's a step or distortion at or near the crack, by scraping, filling, scraping and filling, until it's right. That's the short form description of making casts.

Then you clamp in the back, carve out the old patch, clean and glue the crack, and fit a new patch.

For the crack, after you glue it and it's dry, then cover it with one layer of paper packing tape to hold it together while you fit the patch. Afterwards the tape is easy to soak off.

This is not a real easy job, and I've given a very sketchy and simplified description of the process.
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[Jack Rushing]

Very good description. I didn't think it would be an easy job. Thanks