New 4/4 full size quality wood / horse hair violin Bow

don't let the low price discourage you; this is a nice bow and plays nicely right out of the box (or tube, actually) but as some have noted, it comes in a cardboard tube with the end pinched in so where others have complained about it, I don't have an issue with how it's packaged so long as it's not damaged and my bow was fine....if the tube is damaged, by all means complain and send it back, but I had no problems. It's not a high end bow by any means, but with a lot of rosin, it does its job. I've played violin off and on since I was in middle school, and I'd go for years without playing and I just needed a new bow to replace my two that frayed. After rosining, it sounds just fine. It's not fancy by design, and not very 'expensive' looking but it's a very good value for the beginner, or for the player who is getting back into it. By default I'm a guitar player but there's still something hauntingly beautiful about playing a violin.....

I do not know how they do it! I only paid a couple of bucks for the bow and I ordered two of them, *yeah what the heck*. Total bill after regular ground shipping came to less that nine dollars for the two bows. Now mind you, you cannot re-hair a bow for less than forty bucks (if yer lucky!), yet these bows have real horse hair and I find them straight and wonderfully crafted. Although the frogs are just made of a wood not being that of ebony and there isn't any pearl, but it does have a rubber and wire finger grip. Very nice.Placed the order and it was determined at that time to arrive July 9th. I placed the order on June 28th. The bows arrived July first! Holy cow!Both bows were carefully packaged in a heavy duty cardboard tube and bubble wrap (as if they were worth 100 dollar bows).I don't know how they do it. But I do know one thing, I have two wonderfully crafted bows that I can wear-out and toss-out since rehairing is usually best on expensive sticks.-Philly Mongrol

I recently saw one of my fellow classmates drop his violin and bow during class. The fingerboard fell off the violin, and his bow got trashed. I thought it might be a good idea to have a cheap, spare bow in my case so that I'd have something to use in an "emergency".Let me make this clear: it's not a 4-star bow... but I give it 4 stars because **for the price**, it's a good-enough bow.a few quick notes:* I showed it to my instructor and her first comment was "I hope you didn't spend a lot on it". I didn't, so YAY! She said that a decent bow should probably cost 1/3 of the cost of the violin, but usually one should spend around $50. So, this isn't a "decent" bow by her standards, but whatever.* The part of the frog where you rest your thumb is kind of sharp. It's uncomfortable. I have an idea to smooth it out a little bit, with a nail file, but since it's so cheap it's not like I'd be ruining the thing.* The wood is ROUND, not octagonal, like my good-quality bow. Just thought I'd mention that.* Once it got rosin and tightened up, it plays OKAY, as in, it's quite passable for a beginner, but I'll be frank, even as a beginner, I prefer the sound & feel of my regular bow.So, like I said, as a backup, as a spare, in an emergency... this is a good bow for the cost. Just like you'd do well to carry an extra set of strings in your bag, you might as well drop $10 or so and put a spare bow in there!

After just a few swipes of rosin this bow sounded identical to my antique Roth Glasser bow with black and white hair--a very common and cheap bow that people find at garage sales, flea markets, etc. which makes for a nice comparison.This bow features a *very* nice rubber pad, silver wire wrap and all white hair. The screw was a little tight when trying to get the bow tensioned, but it works. This bow feels a little more `lively' than my R&G. Possibly this is because it's 2.75" longer (4/4 vs 3/4) and is heavier and there is a bit more space between the hair and the stick when tensioned (the camlin can get very straight if you want).The rear of the frog (which is some sort of brown wood, not plastic or black ebony wood) has sharp corners--but it's the rear part that your fingers don't touch anyway. The rear of the stick, between the pad and the screw is octagonal. That's very nice: some people were complaining that (other) cheap bows are just a round stick all the way to the rear. The silver-ish wire wrap is covered in a clear plastic sleeve that I'm leaving in place.When de-tensioning (unscrewing) the bow the screw actually backed out of the stick and left the bow tensioned. I pushed it inward and it seemed to loosen up. I've had that happen with another (newer) bow, so that may be something that takes a little `wear in' to get right. If you loosen the screw and it comes out but the bow is still tensioned: screw the screw back in a bit, push it inward hard--it will slide in and the bow will instantly de-tension. The next time you use it, it will screw in/out perfectly. My R&G never does this-but it's probably very `worn in' after 40 years.My R&G bow has a plastic slide that says "Roth-Glasser", this bow has a block of pearl looking material! The eyes are also pearl-looking instead of cheap white plastic like so many bows have. There's also a pearl-ish looking eye at the end of the tension screw.I have a blonde Stradivarius copy, but I bought this bow as a gift for someone who has no bow at all. Now I'm thinking I might keep this and give them my R&G bow instead. A `vintage' R&G bow is worth *TWICE* the ultra cheap price they want for this one, LOL!Would I buy it again? Yes, but: I'm a total newbie at violin; your teacher may recommend something more expensive; I actually bought this to give to someone who has *no* bow--but I like it so much I'm keeping it and giving them my lighter and smaller 3/4 Roth Glasser bow instead. Does it work: yes, cycle the screw a few times to free it up and it does what it's supposed to: hold the hair tight. For me the added heft makes it less stressful for my wrist to play than my 'antique' (but also very low-level) R&G bow.It does what a bow is supposed to do. It actually tensions up-and no hairs have fallen out! Can't ask for much more than that at any price really.

It is heavy for violin if you are a fireworks player but works well with viola. If the frog is somewhat not straightly oriented it needs some work at home and can be corrected. It plays well and is good to practice new works, and if you rip off the hairs, get another one instead of paying 65 to 100 bucks to re-hair.