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Over the last 5 years I have plunged into the world of violins. One of the biggest surprises to me was that the market for violin bows is much different from the violin market. Like violins there seems to be a market for an every day practice bow and then there is a different market for the personal bow. That is the one that the violinist will use when he wants to play for his pleasure or for others pleasure. The search for this bow is often for the best bow that the violinist can afford. It is more personal and more permanent than the purchase of the violin. A musician will keep a bow through the buying and selling of several violins.

A good bow has 4 characteristics that I can identify. The first is quality construction. The wood of choice is Pernambuco aka Brazilwood. It is noted for its color, its lightness and that it does not warp over time. If the maker of the violin bow makes the effort to use the best wood, the shaft of the bow is almost always six sided.

By lightness of the bow the reference is literally to the weight. Most High Quality bows are in between 56 and 64 grams. This is a weight that good violinists find most comfortable. It is a standard in both modern and antique violin bows.

The other technical aspect is the balance of the bow. Most high quality bows have a silver or whale bone wrap just above the frog on the shaft for balance. It gives the bow a nice look as well.

The history of a bow seems to have a huge impact on reflecting quality and thus shows up in the pricing. Three of the names that are well know in the world of antique violin bows are Tourte, Lupot and W E Hill and Sons. Hill bows illustrate best what makes antique bows valuable. To this day the company is noted for producing the highest quality violin bows. Antique examples of these bows have little marks and symbols on the frog, on the shaft and under the tip that identify which employee made which part that was then assembled into the bow. There is a book that reports the complete history of who was employed by this company and what parts he produced from what year to what year.

Quality bows withstand the test of time. It is a fairly simple instrument that has one fatal flaw. It warps. A bow has camber, the natural bowing that maintains the tension on the horse hair. However, the vast majority of bows will warp laterally over time. By that I mean that when you put the frog to your nose and you look down the bow it will bend to the right or left a little bit or quite dramatically. Any warp of this kind reduces that value of a bow.

So what gives a violin bow value? Like every thing in this world it is the forces of supply and demand. The demand for quality violin bows increases with the constant increase in good violinists. However, most violin bows do not survive the test of time. There is a very limited supply of quality antique violin bows and it will never increase. This is similar to the reality of antique violins. However, supply is much more restricted for antique bows than for antique violins. People who do have a quality antique violin bow are less likely to put it on the market so supply is restricted because of that. The second part of the equation is that fewer antique bows survived. In our collection we had over 60 violins. Almost without exception, each of them was in a case with a bow. We were able to repair 50 of the violins. Only 4 bows were in good enough shape to save. Those that we chose to sell were sold in a heartbeat. I suspect that we could have gotten an even better price than we did so we have a couple of very happy buyers. So if you are looking for a good violin bow, expect to pay a handsome price but it is a lifetime investment.

We inherited 60 violins a few years ago. Most folks only inherit one or two. The violin marketplace is like any market niche. You need to know the technical stuff, the movers in the market and how to get full value for your goods. The folks in the violin market do not give up the inside info easily and there is nothing in the form of a violin market guide except buyer beware and seller beware. So one of my missions is to use the new publishing tools to help folks raise their awareness of the violin market, how it is constructed and how the internet is opening up this market niche. I hope you find these insights helpful and use some of the resources that I offer up.

Cross Bow Versus Traditional Bow - Reasons For The Ongoing Debate

Hunters have the option of using either the traditional bow or the cross bow. But this has resulted in a raging controversy. Users of the traditional bow have been shouting themselves hoarse that hunting cross bow style is definitely more advantageous, and to an unfair degree. And the debate still continues!

Some statistical research was conducted around both styles of hunting, and the results proved to be amazing! According to the research figures--

(a) There was approximately a total of 155,000 hunters (registered ones) present during the bow hunting season.

(b) Hunting cross bow style was indulged in by 70,000 participants.

(c) Vertical bows were used by 55,000 registered hunters.

(d) Some registered hunters (30,000 of them) used the vertical bow, but practised hunting cross bow style too.

(e) Among the Senior Citizen Hunters, while 4,000 took up the cross bow, 1,000 preferred the vertical bow. About a 1,000 hunters used both. These citizens were given free licenses.

What does one understand from the above-mentioned statistics?

Though 55,000 registered users took up the traditional bow or the vertical bow, there were 30,000 participants among them who also went in for using the cross bow as well. This is quite a large number.

Coming to the Senior Citizens, only about 1,000 members preferred to combine the vertical bow and the cross bow. The majority of them went in for hunting cross bow style, leaving aside the traditional bow! So, even hunters advanced in age preferred the cross bow!

Going through all the research studies and the visible statistics, it has become clear that results have gone in favor of cross bow users! It is no wonder that these enthusiasts are feeling elated!

True, hunting cross bow style is more advantageous when compared to hunting with the vertical bow, but the benefit is actually miniscule, or almost negligible.

Again, another survey was conducted in Ohio to test the truth. But this time too, results favored cross bow users! According to the statistics of this survey, while traditional bow users achieved a success rate of 21%, cross bow hunters went slightly higher with 23%. It was once again clear that there was only a marginal difference in the success rates of hunting with the traditional bow and hunting cross bow style.
Ultimately, statistical research over a long period of time has conclusively proved that the harvest does not depend on the traditional bow or hunting cross bow style--it depends on the person wielding the weapon. So the traditionalists have no reason to contine with their narrow-minded views and insist on the banning of cross bows during hunting season.

About the Author

Download Abhishek's FREE 66 Pages Ebook, "How To Play And Enjoy Hunting Video Games" from his website http://www.Hunting-Guru.com/100/index.htm . Only limited Free Copies available.

Did anyone See Obama bow down to the waist at the Saudi Prince?

It was on Youtube. So you can check it out there. Weird. He or Michelle did not bow to the Queen of England or curtsy (which is the culture in Royalty).

Of course Obama did not bow down to the queen.
She is an infidel and a woman - BOTH being 2nd class citizens.
The KING, an Islamic leader, on the other hand, must receive submission and respect.

Think about it.

Bow 58, Merrimack Valley 43
The Falcons (8-9) weathered the storm in the first half as the Pride (7-10) came out hot in front of the home crowd and grabbed leads of 16-9 after the first quarter and 29-25 at the half. After the break, Bow clamped down on defense, was efficient on offense and outscored MV 33-14.

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