Bohm Waldzither restoration...

[Markkunkel]

In response to my Waldzither WTB post a while back I received a very kind reply from Tony Dixon at http://www.guitar-maker.com/. He had a Bohm, the model I was mostly seeking, in "interesting" but complete and restorable condition. As he put it, I'm attaching a couple more photos. One shows a part of the soundboard which has cracked and come away from the sides. I can fill the cracks (there are a few) with spruce splints and reglue the soundboard, but because of shrinkage in the wood, the purfling will not line up again properly. The soundboard also has a woodworm hole, but it looks very old and I don't think it's anything to worry about.

A couple of inches of the black/white edging are also missing and would need to be replaced. I may not be able to do this invisibly. There is a very similar area of damage to the back, though there is only one crack and it's not so bad as the front.

Otherwise, it is in surprisingly good condition - the neck is pretty straight and the action quite low (about 2mm at the 12th fret). It still has its original glass bridge (did you know they had glass bridges?) - often they are missing. There is no sign of sinking or distortion of the soundboard.

475mm (about 19") scale length...

Tony goes on, The finish is a bit scratched up and worn here and there (e.g. pick wear on soundboard) but probably you could make do with it if you're not too fussy and want to save money...

So we decided on a full repair of those cracks, sealing the instrument against woodworm (!), replacing the purfling/binding missing pieces, a new bridge, fret dressing, and a nice French polish to finish it off.

His e-mail today says of those last photos (received today):

One of the photos shows the bridge. I kept to a fairly traditional design.
The saddle is at a slight angle to give a bit of compensation (I did do one
with more, but the slot was too close to the edges, and it split).

The other photo shows the replaced bit of edging. The colour difference
between the original and the replaced dark diamonds is not so noticeable 'in
the flesh' as it is in the photo, which was taken with flash. Just in the
photo on the right is a repaired crack and the little bit where the purfling
doesn't quite line up.

I'm pleased the way the crack repairs have turned out. I think it's all
going to look very handsome when it's done.


Tony's aiming for mid-March and man, am I excited...the pictures look splendid.

Mark

[Tavy]

Looking very good in those last two photos, amazing how these things scrub up

My own Waldzither experiences are still in progress: http://www.johnmaddock.co.uk/waldzither/html/index.html, but looking at the way yours has scrubbed up with a new finish, it's given me even more insentive to do the same to mine!

Regards, John.

[Markkunkel]

Thanks, John... perusal of your thorough and helpful site was part of what helped me decide to give this instrument a try. Thanks for your kind words.

Mark

[Tavy]

Originally Posted by Markkunkel

Thanks, John... perusal of your thorough and helpful site was part of what helped me decide to give this instrument a try.

Oh my, I do hope you like the final instrument then!

Do post some sound samples when you have it, it's always interesting to hear how different CBOM's sound.

John.

[Markkunkel]

Hey there, John. Our friend Andy I. had something to do with it as well so if it doesn't work out you're officially off the musical hook.

And Tony has been, and continues to be, the consummate craftsman, in bringing this old instrument back to playing condition. The way he repaired the cracks, filled in the binding, and lined up that gorgeous purfling line...wow.

Will of course post a full report and additional pics...and maybe even an apologetic sound sample.

MK

[Martin Jonas]

Looking good! Once you have it back, I suggest you try playing some early music -- I've picked up my waldzither again today for the first time in a few months and played a few medieval and renaissance tunes on it (from Allen Alexander's books). The ringing resonance of the waldzither is a wonderful match for these tunes and it just echoes down the centuries. Nothing remotely like a modern CBOM, but a great tone!

Martin

[Markkunkel]

Got these pictures from Tony today... what splendid restoration work he has done! To see the before and after, even from afar digitally, is to be amazed. "Scrub up nicely," indeed!

It's all French polished and strung up and sounding good and will be on its way across the pond this week. I'll take and post some more pictures and a full report with a sound file on arrival.

Tony has another Waldzither or two under restoration and I can certainly recommend his work very very highly.

Excited!

Mark

[Tavy]

That's looking a really nice instrument Mark, I'm sure you'll be pleased!

I've just started stripping mine in preparation for a re-fret and re-finish... still in the "looking worse before it gets better stage" so wish me luck!

John.

[Markkunkel]

Thanks, John...I'm surely excited to give this one a good try.

Tony and I settled on GDAEB for now to keep the string gauges reasonable and get enough tension. Are you still pleased with tuning/string configuration on yours? Any other suggestions?

Mark

[Tavy]

Originally Posted by Markkunkel

Tony and I settled on GDAEB for now to keep the string gauges reasonable and get enough tension. Are you still pleased with tuning/string configuration on yours? Any other suggestions?

I'm sticking with DGDAE for now - I'll be interested to see how it is to play once I get some new frets in and a better setup done - I got the fingerboard levelled off yesterday so it shouldn't be too long before I can string it up again, even if only temporarily before I put the new finish on.

Re other tunings, I think the important thing is "what does it sound like?": play it for a while and see how you feel. I felt that putting a high B on my 50cm scale instrument would be too tinny and thin sounding. Should work better on a slightly shorter scale instrument though, and personal preference comes in here too: I like the darker sound of the wound strings. I did wonder about going to FCGDA - then you have a mandola on the upper 4 courses, and with a capo on 2, an octave mandolin on the lower 4.

You may also need to play around with string tensions until you get the sound you like - but be aware that it is a vintage instrument so use the lightest tension you can get away with and still get a decent sound and playability: One trick here, is to tune all the strings up or down a semitone at a time until it's "just right", and then get on a string tension calculator to see what would give you the same tension and the right tuning at the same time (just be careful not to go up too many semitones!).

I keep meaning to give Newtone strings a try as well - they're supposed to "work" at a lower overall tension than D'Addarios. So much to try... so little time...

John.

[Martin Jonas]

As I've posted before, I use GDAEA on my 43cm scale waldzither -- I used to go for GDAEB, but found the high B too shrill. Also, my waldzither (as I believe are most others too) is very resonant and you get all sorts of sympathetic harmonies and drones from the open strings when playing. For most "common" keys, harmonies from a high open A string are much more pleasant than a B. Also, if you're used to mandolin/OM fingering, it's not very difficult to adapt to GDAEA -- you're not used to a high B course anyway and you still have four courses tuned in fifths just like on OM.

As Mark's scale is 3cm longer than mine, I suspect that while the B may work, it'll sound better tuned down to A. Easy enough to try once you get it.

Martin

[Markkunkel]

Thanks as always, John and Martin. Experimenting is half the fun, and of course I'll remember to do so in a way that respects the integrity of this old (now new-again) instrument.

Mark

[Markkunkel]

Originally Posted by Tavy

I keep meaning to give Newtone strings a try as well - they're supposed to "work" at a lower overall tension than D'Addarios. John.

Hi again, John.... in fact, Tony put Newtones on there. So I shall certainly keep you posted.

I'm eager...then again, the instrument has been awaiting my fumblings for 80 years or so, so why shouldn't I be as patient.

Mark

[Tavy]

Originally Posted by Markkunkel

I'm eager...then again, the instrument has been awaiting my fumblings for 80 years or so, so why shouldn't I be as patient.

LOL, well one would hope you don't have to wait another 80 years

Re tunings: don't forget the sawtooth option: ADADA, or the guitar inspired ADGAD as well.

If only I had time to play more than one of these beasts I'd like one in each tuning please

John.

[Markkunkel]

Well...it's here. It's splendid. It's better than new, I'm thinking:

[Markkunkel]

And some additional pics.

I've posted a sound sample over on the CBOM board and to save bandwidth won't post it here, but you may listen in if you'd like:

http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...433#post650433


GRATEFUL, I am, Tony!

[Tavy]

Mark, those look really stunning!

Beautiful purfling and inlay on that one too, really brought out well by the new finish, many congratulations, I just hope mine turns out half as well!

John.

[Markkunkel]

Good luck with yours, John...you have done so much to promote and educate about these wonderful instruments. I'll look forward to seeing pictures of your "new" one on your site.

Mark

[Markkunkel]

Originally Posted by Martin Jonas

As I've posted before, I use GDAEA on my 43cm scale waldzither -- I used to go for GDAEB, but found the high B too shrill. Also, my waldzither (as I believe are most others too) is very resonant and you get all sorts of sympathetic harmonies and drones from the open strings when playing. For most "common" keys, harmonies from a high open A string are much more pleasant than a B. Also, if you're used to mandolin/OM fingering, it's not very difficult to adapt to GDAEA -- you're not used to a high B course anyway and you still have four courses tuned in fifths just like on OM.

As Mark's scale is 3cm longer than mine, I suspect that while the B may work, it'll sound better tuned down to A. Easy enough to try once you get it.

Martin

Great counsel, Martin! So far I'm having great fun with the GDAEB, the longer scale perhaps contributing to less shrillness in the upper course, but will drop it down to A at some point to get those sympathetic resonances working. As you point out, these instruments are very lively and it would be nice to take advantage of those.

I'd lose the ability to get the mandolin tuning on the upper courses with a fifth-fret capo, but could retune, I guess.

Mark