This violin came into the shop with damage around the A-peg hole where the pegbox had previously been broken and repaired with CA glue. In addition to the old repair, a small piece of wood was missing from the damaged area. After assessing the break and carefully cleaning the area, I rebuilt the missing section with a wood-like casting material, using cellophane to press it tightly into the void and form it to the surrounding shape. Once the new material had hardened, it was carefully smoothed and blended into the pegbox. Because the A-peg hole had been involved in the original break, I installed a spiral bushing to reinforce the weakened area before refitting the peg. The repair was then finished with careful varnish touch-up to blend the rebuilt section with the surrounding scroll.
- Assess the Damage: Examine the previous repair and carefully clean the damaged area around the A-peg hole.
- Rebuild the Missing Area: Fill the missing section of the pegbox with wood-like casting material.
- Shape the Repair: Use cellophane to press the casting material tightly into the void and form it to the surrounding shape.
- Smooth the Repair: After the material has hardened, carefully smooth and shape the repaired area to blend with the original pegbox.
- Bush the Peg Hole: Because the A-peg hole had been involved in the original break, install a spiral bushing to reinforce the weakened area.
- Trim the Bushing: Carefully trim the spiral bushing material flush with the surrounding pegbox.
- Fit the A Peg: Ream and fit the A peg to the newly reinforced peg hole.
- Touch Up the Varnish: Carefully touch up the repaired area to blend it with the surrounding varnish.
 IMG 20260817 125736 355 | IMG 20260817 160811 816 | IMG 20260818 173647 792 | IMG 20260818 175514 096 | IMG 20260818 181741 228 | IMG 20260818 191224 592 | IMG 20260819 092516 280 | IMG 20260901 100425 654 | IMG 20260901 100438 018 |
IMG 20260905 125440 750 | | |
Note: After considerable experimentation over the years, I developed a wood-like casting material for repairs where fitting a small piece of replacement wood would be difficult or impractical. Once hardened, the material adheres very well and can be cut with a knife or gouge, scraped, sanded, colored, and varnished much like wood. In a repair such as this, it also provides a blank canvas for recreating the appearance of the surrounding wood rather than trying to match the grain and color of a very small replacement piece. |
