The white part of my violin bow came off ! -the tip plate-

Question:

Teacher!

The white part of the tip of my bow came out!

What should I do!?

My student asked me during her online lesson showing me her bow.

The white part at the head of the bow is called a tip plate.

First, you do not need to get too exited. I understand unexpected accidents happen. You are not the only one who encounters this problem.

It is a good opportunity to talk about the tip plate in brief.

Material of the tip plate

Many of the tip plates are made with cattle bones. Factory made, rather inexpensive bows use synthetic material. Sometimes, as you can see on my bow, they are made with metal. For example, my bow has a sliver one.

Function of the tip plate

The function of the tip plate are:

1. to protect the head of the bow
2. to strenghthen the wedge hall, which the bow hair is inserted into
3. to prevent the distortion of the wedge hall
4. adding a slight weight to the tip
5. aesthetic purpose

Without the tip plate, your bow head will be damaged easily, and lower the bow quality. Thus, it is better to fix the broken tip plate as soon as you have a chance. Until then, you have to use your bow very very carefully.

What to do when the tip plate is damaged

Do you have the missing part? If you do, the bow maker at the shop you purchased the bow may be able to glue it back.

If you lost the part, the first thing you do is talk to the shop and find out the cost to fix/replace it. Since your bow is a factory made, the tip plate is synthetic material. It could be a piece of plastic. Fixing it may cost as much as, or more than buying a new bow. You can think which is better for you.

More article: Protect the violin from dryness

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