2019 New Build Kowhai Model

Kowhai Model #1

This is the first build of my Kowhai series violin design. Features include reduced upper stings, deeper arching and lower rib height (2 mm variance), Celtic trefoil purfling on the lower back, and Kowhai design around the scroll.

The fingerboard and chin-rest are carved from the same piece of Jarrah, and the tailpiece is Rimu.

THe arching is high, lifting the fingerboard and bridge altitude, but the string action is kept low for ease of playing. The neck is robust, giving a secure anchor for position work. Fitted with Pirasto Tonica strings, the tone is smooth and clear, and even across the entire range.

The following images are a record of its construction.

Craft Process

These two images show the maple back, first with the initial perimeter ledge carved out, and the finished purfling.

This image shows how the finished scroll was a part of something bigger.

And there we have the finished neck and scroll, complete with Kowhai flower and leaves. On the reverse the single leaf stem merges with the ridge of the traditional volute over the pegbox.

Back to the body, the sides were cut, heated and curved, and glued to the blocks in the body mould. The linings were then shaped around the body mould.

The blocks have now been trimmed and back in the mould to have the single-piece linings glued in: