Adjustable Violin Peg Shaper

[rxh]

This splendid tool has depth and lateral adjusters. It is stamped: W.E. Hill & Sons (a well known London violin dealer). The iron is stamped: L. Bailey's Patent, Aug.6.67, Aug.31.58.EXD. Presumably this is Leonard Bailey the famous plane designer.

 

[JohnPW]

Interesting!

I suspect the iron was an early Stanley block plane iron and adapted for this use.
http://www.davistownmuseum.org/bioBaily.html

Is the body a casting made from brass?

 

[rxh]

Thanks John, I think you may well be correct.
Yes, the body is a brass casting.

 

[NazNomad]

That is a gorgeous tool...

Patent #21,311 - Aug. 31, 1858 - Cammed Levercap
Patent #67,398 - Aug. 06, 1867 - Verticle(sic) Post Cutter Adjustment

http://www.datamp.org/patents/search/di ... erson11766

 

[AndyT]

What a lovely thing - I've never seen one before.
How does it work? Are the two brass studs tapered, so rotating them raises or lowers one side of the blade?

 

[NazNomad]

I'm pretty sure a tuning peg hole is a standard sized taper. The hole in the tool is tapered and I'm guessing the tool is just to resize the pegs, maintaining the taper?

* Not sure if I made that understandable? :-D

 

[bugbear]

I'm pretty sure a tuning peg hole is a standard sized taper. The hole in the tool is tapered and I'm guessing the tool is just to resize the pegs, maintaining the taper?

* Not sure if I made that understandable? :-D

A tuning peg is a standard taper of 1:30. Present tense very much intended. Older pegs varied according to the whim (or tools availability) of the maker.

It looks like the micro lateral adjust on the gorgeous tool we've been shown might be a taper-adjustment.

BugBear

 

[AndyT]

Looking at the pictures again, I can answer my own question. The brass knobs are like a lateral adjuster - which would affect the exact angle of the taper within narrow limits - that's why the iron is cut back, so it can fit between them. All clear in the second picture. I'd been looking at the third.

I must try harder to pay attention in class.
I must try harder to pay attention in class.
I must try harder to pay attention in class...

 

[NazNomad]

Ah, now I see.

I wonder how long they experimented before they decided a 1:30 taper was the one that wouldn't keep falling out?

Also what's not so clear, is how small and delicate that tool is (unless they are 1'' squares on that mat, in which case it's obvious.)

 

[JohnCee]

Looks like a right load of old crap. I'd get shot if I were you. I'll take it off your hands if you twist my arm.

 

[bugbear]

Also what's not so clear, is how small and delicate that tool is (unless they are 1'' squares on that mat, in which case it's obvious.)

It's obviously a block plane blade, so the blade should be around 1 1/2" wide.

BugBear

 

[NazNomad]

Looks like a right load of old rubbish. I'd get shot if I were you. I'll take it off your hands if you twist my arm.

Agreed, it's only worth scrap value for the brass.

I'll offer double the going scrap price for it.

 

[AJB Temple]

If you look at old violins, especially if you compare Italian, French and German you will see all kinds of design differences including the peg tapers/ I have done a couple of violin making courses in Cremona (Italy) and by and large most makers seem to buy pegs in, though I have seen a guy make double bass pegs by hand. Quite a lot of pegs come from India and they are straight turned on a lathe. The violin makers then use a kind of pencil sharpener tool to get the taper to match the holes they have made. This video gives you an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tNHLS51Cao. I have one of these tools.

The peg holes I have experienced being made were all done with fluted tapered reamer tools to enlarge a straight hole. I've never seen a peg plane in use (but I am no expert and have only been to a handful of violin workshops), so this tool is fascinating.

 

[bugbear]

I've never seen a peg plane in use (but I am no expert and have only been to a handful of violin workshops), so this tool is fascinating.

=D>

You win today's "Modest British Understatement" award.

BugBear

 

[NazNomad]

I've never seen a peg plane in use (but I am no expert and have only been to a handful of violin workshops), so this tool is fascinating.

=D>

You win today's "Modest British Understatement" award.

I bet all his straight-A school reports said, ''Must Try Harder''. :-D

 

[AJB Temple]

Now now, chaps ;-) this is Britain after all.

Cremona is an amazing place for woodworkers. There are still a lot (dozens) of artisan workshops (often just a room in a house) making high quality instruments with a considerable amount of skill. You get quite a few Americans there as well, learning the skills and then returning to the US to set up shop. Lots of tools are either made or adapted and you learn a lot about timber selection, carving, planing and so on as most things are too small for power tools. The only drawback is it is pretty hard to get by without speaking Italian. As there are a number of museums (instruments, patterns and tools) and retailers, you can also see lots of examples of work through the last 300 years.

 

[JohnCee]

The violin makers then use a kind of pencil sharpener tool to get the taper to match the holes they have made.

This is just a (very) fancy version of the pencil sharpener tool.
I expect it works fantastically well.

 

[dizjasta]

Some time ago I needed to replace the tuning pegs on a violin and wish the peg tool would have been available.
The replacement pegs were bought via the internet and needed to be resized. This was done using a homemade
pencil sharpener type tool. 4 blades are used to guide and cut the peg. The legs are set using the old peg so a fit is
assured.

 

[rxh]

That's an ingenious design, dizjasta.

Here is another style: