Dan Gilmore's Electric Violin

[Dan Gilmore]

Hi all, I finished up this project and have presented it to the new owner. It sounds great and she's very happy. I am too. As a guitar builder, the violin was a bit outside my comfort zone.

I had chimed in on an earlier thread and appreciate all the info I've gleaned through the years online. The design does end up being heavier than a regular violin. If I end up making more I have been thinking of ways to pare it down. Using regular tuning pegs obviously, but also in the body construction.

Woods are Black Limba, Maple, Cherry and Ebony. The pickup is a Barbera Twin Hybrid 4, with a 1 meg pot for volume from Stew-Mac, as was the tailpiece, knob, fingerboard and tuners. Finish is acrylic urethane.

Dan

[Jim McConkey]

Love that wood! Is it a solidbody, or did you hollow it? Does the pickup sit under the bridge, or is it mounted to it.?

[Dan Gilmore]

Hi, each of the plates (top and bottom) was made of a lamination of Limba/Maple/Cherry, then routed and carved to make a concave space. I left the outer edge level to mount the dowels. I had meant to post another photo that shows the side view. I didn't want a chamber to worry about feedback, so I decided to make it virtually sideless.

The Barbera pickup elements are built into the bridge itself.

[Steve Senseney]

It looks great!

Really pushing traditional design to a different direction.

[John E Giarrizzo]

Very creative.

I like "different directions"

[Dan Gilmore]

Thank you, I wanted to retain the classic beauty and graceful lines of the violin shape, without being afraid of bucking tradition. The scroll is actually an inverted one, with the hole going all the way through.

[Bob Francis]

What a clever technique. It looks great. . . is it light?

[Dan Gilmore]

Hi Bob, thanks. The Limba is pretty light, which helps, but it is heavier than a regular violin by a fair amount. That's something I'll work on for future builds.