Violin Making / 'The Strad' Library, No. IX.

by Walter H. Mayson

CHAPTER XIV.

THE SCROLL.

On plate 19 you will find the outline of a scroll I use generally. I will employ the original from which this was taken now, and mark on a piece of old sycamore the exact representation of it.

The thickness of the wood must be one and eleven-sixteenths of an inch, ten inches in length—and broad enough to allow the outline to be properly cut for further operation. After I get this cut exactly by a band saw, I place the outline on the wood cut for the scroll, and with a sharp-pointed, hard pencil, prick the holes where the volute has to come on to the sides, both of them. After that, on the face of the wood—that is to say, the front, as though looking at the fingerboard, I mark at four-and-a-quarter inches from end of the head, which is to be the end of peg-box, and three inches from that, the narrow end of said box that is to be cut. Then I take centre of narrow end and mark off seven-sixteenths of an inch—width of said end, five-eighths of an inch for broad end. Then at five and five-eighths of an inch from broad end of peg-box, I take centre of extreme end of wood, here to be one and three-eighths of an inch when ready for the fingerboard afterwards, and I divide it, making a distinctive mark as to breadth and centre. Then, allowing full three-sixteenths of an inch for cheeks of peg-box, I draw two lines, one on either side of centre line, from end of wood to head, so that I just shall catch outer side of each cheek of peg-box that is to be, and which, running on to where crosses the nose of the scroll, gives a width there of bare nine-sixteenths of an inch. Afterwards I mark the three-sixteenths for cheeks of peg-box.

This is all I can mark at present, until I cut with the saw and with the chisels, as shown (figs. 21 and 22), I can now trace lines ready for manipulation of the volutes and the fluting. That of the volutes is my first business. The lines denoting the ascending spirals, and the pencil dots not yet touched, are my guides, and, with small hand saw, [No. 30], I cut very carefully, by a dot at a time just low enough to touch the spiral line at its junction, cutting the bit away sideways, of course, just by the said line, and then a small piece more, until I arrive at the end of where the spiral ceases, at its base; but now that the volute is developing, I am enabled to complete the line, which brings the whole to its actual junction with the mainspring of conception. This, in a very great state of roughness, I show at an angle (fig. 23), and I reverse the sides, cutting the other in the same manner. It is necessary to have the wood firmly cramped to the bench on all occasions.

PLATE XXI.	PLATE XXII.	PLATE XXIII.

I now select gouges [57, 24, 22, 43, 39, 50], and I carefully trim both spirals, gauging the front and rear levels as I proceed by one-eighth of an inch at a time, until I can find no fault, all being square to the eye (for by nothing else can you prove your work here) when I prepare to cut the trench which was only wanted to soften off this essential to beauty.

Here I use all the gouges marked above; and in doing so I have to be most careful not to FORCE any one part; for such is the brittle nature of the wood (sycamore) that the delicate edges, as the slender spiral ascends under your, perhaps, too eager hand, may not be able to bear the strain put upon them, and a breach stares you in the face, past remedy, save by an accomplished master of his art.

The next step is to soften the work done, and to smooth down with rough to fine glass-paper, wetting every part after each course. Then I cut off all the sharp outer edges, from the terminal of the back part of the whole to the top of each volute, this cutting to be a good one-sixteenth of an inch broad, neatly filing and sandpapering the same when done. The outer edge of the peg-box is done in like manner.

Fixing the wood now, face downwards on the bench, I begin the cutting of the fluting at the upper part, using gouges [57, 24, 22], just in the order in which I write them, obviously the terminal part being that which needs most attention and care. Reversing the wood, I cut down by the nose of the head to the broad grooves which soon appear, terminating just over the narrow end of peg-box. All should be done neatly,—in a masterly manner were better—I file and sandpaper over and over again until I get to my mind what now appears in plates 24 and 25, and you will see the neck end is finished, ready for insertion in the mortice, which is done later when the fingerboard is added.

PLATE XXIV.	PLATE XXV.