The Student Room Group
Reply 1
A simple duster, resin shouldn't need any cleaning products to remove. You should avoid any house hold products on violins, the only thing you should ever really use is a very lightly damp cloth, and even then wipe it straight off.

You can use white spirit to clean the strings if it has dirt and grime on them, but you have to use a very small amount and avoid touching the fingerboard - slide a duster underneath the strings with white spirit on the top layer. (slacken the strings so you can rub them).

This comes from a grade 8 violinist free of charge. If you need any more help, let me know! :smile:
Reply 2
This may be a bit random but I've recently had a rash on my neck and have been treating it with E45 cream. I think some of it has got onto the chin rest. Can I just clean this off with a damp cloth?
Reply 3
Yes, some people get allergic reactions to the metal there, my teacher for instance. Cleaning it helps, but also just putting a very thin layer of cloth over the metal of the chin rest and tailpiece should stop any irritation.
You can get polish for the wood, and just use a duster to remove the resin.
Reply 5
Only the specialized violin polish though, not any commercial polish. You need to go to a violin shop, and ask there. To be honest, it makes no difference, a duster should be good enough for anyone.
Reply 6
Your chin rest, fingerboard, pegs and tailpiece are all made of ebony. It's absolutely fine to clean them with some kind of solvent, like vodka, white spirit or petrol lighter fluid, and every few months I clean my strings and fingerboard with lighter fluid to get rid of the rosin residue.

As rastaman said, put a duster down to protect the varnish! Just a single drop of solvent on the belly will probably make a permanent, devastating mark.

I don't think there's any need to loosen the strings, though. It destabilises the violin for nothing. It's fine to pull the strings slightly to one side to clean under them.

You can also clean your bow stick with vodka, but it's best just to wait until you have your bow rehaired because they will clean the stick at the same time.

Unfortunately, if there is rosin residue on the varnish, it is always best to leave it to the professionals to clean. My local string shop, Guivier in Central London, will do this readily - they have the correct fluids, which aren't commercially available - and they know which one to use for your type of varnish and how to use it.

The BEST way to keep your violin clean is to keep a duster in your case and to wipe all rosin off the belly, strings, fingerboard and bow stick every time you play. The horrid sticky rosin tide mark on the fingerboard will no longer form, and there won't be one on the belly either. The residue actually EATS AWAY at the varnish as long as it is left on. It'll still need professional cleaning every so often, but not nearly as often.

If you have a rash on your neck, consider a Strad Pad. They're quite expensive for what they are, but they'll save your neck! I nearly had a hole in my neck until I started using one, and now it's just a pink violin lovebite.

That is, if the rash is from abrasion. It could be an allergic reaction to the metal clamps, and a good solution to this is coating them with a little bit of clear nail varnish.

Hope that helps! Free of charge from another keen violinist.
Reply 7
Good advice mate! I didn't mean to completley slacken the strings, just take the fine tuners the entire way out, as that's only about a tone at most. Then the strings are not too stiff to clean all the way around them, whilst the strain is still taken by the strings. Obviously, if the strings were left slack, the whole violin could collapse! :smile:
Reply 8
Thanks for your help! I might take it in to my local music shop for a general clean up provided it's not too expensive!
Use two microfibre dusters, one to remove the resin and one to give it a final rub and polish , mine are 80% polyester 20% polyamide. These are very efficacious and mean that you might need to use some isoproply 70% carefully after testing just once a year!