SetUp Materials Click on any picture for a larger view, scroll down to view more

The set-up materials that I use on my instruments, (pegs, tailpiece, and chinrest) are all made of boxwood.  This is for two reasons.  The first being the more desirable look of boxwood as opposed to ebony or rosewood but the main reason is for sound.  Boxwood is quite a bit lighter than the other woods mentioned and this helps the sound of an instrument by not providing ballast to the vibrations. The reduction in unnecessary weight contributes substantially to the sound quality and presence and allows me to keep more wood in the corpus of the instrument (which I believe creates the voice of a violin) and still achieve a relatively "light weight" instrument. All photos are taken on my workbench.

Pegs

The pegs that I use are hand turned specifically for me from Turkish boxwood.  The model is that of Hill heart shape.

Hill Style Pegs - Ebony

Hill Style Pegs - Ivory

Borman Chinrests

Many different chinrests are available and prior to the musician taking possession of his/her instrument we can try several styles to find the one that is most comfortable and has the least negative impact on the sound of the instrument. I am currently using titanium hardware on the chinrests because titanium is hypoallergenic.

Guarneri Model

Kaufman Model

Kaufman Low Model

Teka Model

Teka Low Model

This newly designed, specialized chinrest comes as a result of over 25 years of
research and experience building violins and violas for some of the top performers in the world.
Although they appear similar to "standard" chinrests, they are not.
For information on how to order a Borman Chinrest for your instrument, please click here.

Fingerboards

Fingerboards are always ebony and I use the best, finest grained, blackest wood that I can find.

Tailgut

For the tailgut, I offer the "Sacconi" model or one made of a Kevlar composite. I prefer the composite as it is lighter in weight (saves 1.5 grams) and does not stretch as does the Sacconi model. In the photo below the Kevlar type is above and the Sacconi style below.

End Buttons The end buttons are made of boxwood and I have 2 models. I've recently shifted to one of my own design (the smooth one). This design was prompted by complaints from musicians that the button irritated their necks and therefore has a flatter profile.

Tailpieces Tailpieces are available with the nut in either ebony or ivory.  I have been experimenting with a new design  tailpiece and will be offering that soon.  The tailpieces pictured are "french" style to the left and right and "hill" style in the center.

Bridges The bridges that I use are all seasoned for many years prior to their use.  The cut of the bridge has a very strong impact on the final sound of an instrument and using modal analysis I design each bridge acoustically to match its mate.