This little 1/2 size db

[Pino Cazzaniga]

Here is a little bass I finish to repair 2 weeks ago.
I have no clue about the "who or when or where" of it.
Did somebody see something similar?
The front is 6 pieces spruce, the back, sides and scroll plain maple.
The linings are beech.
The flat back was carved inside between the bars and outside to make a channel. The purfle is strangely 7 sheets made.
The string length is cm 95,5.
It was originally 3 strings.
Thank you for any idea !

[Calvin Marks]

What a beautiful little instrument! I like the open peg box but I must admit I really don't like the tuners on that instrument. It makes it look very cheap. You may want to consider putting on nicer plate-less gears at a later stage.

[Pino Cazzaniga]

I agree. The same for the tailpiece. I still hope to find a 3 gut strings player, but they are not so many... we'll see

[Matthew Tucker]

a LOVELY little bass. Does it sound nice?

Please can you post some more measurements?

body length
saddle-to-bridge
bridge height
rib depths
bout widths

[Pino Cazzaniga]

Here are some measuraments in cm.

Body length 100
upper width 49,3
middle width 32,5
lower width 64,2
rib height at lower block 16,2
rib height at middle 17,6
rib height at neck 15,5
note the arching of the flat back on the back-ribs joint
upper edge of front to bridge 52,5
saddle to bridge 47,5
Bridge height 15,4 ( clearance of g string mm 4,5 , E string mm 7,5)
Neck, upper edge of front to nut 38,5
Neck height over upper edge of front 2,7

I'm satisfied with the sound, it's warm and ready, but the first string is twangly at the lower register, and the third has a wolfe tone in the high position between bb and b.

[Ken Smith]

Is this a new bass or has it been re-varnished recently?

[Calvin Marks]

Originally Posted by Pino Cazzaniga

I agree. The same for the tailpiece. I still hope to find a 3 gut strings player, but they are not so many... we'll see

I'm a period player myself, so I'd love to have a string bass for the works of Dragonetti and Bottesini but that instrument is far too small for my liking. It seems like it should suit a child or very small person quite nicely!

[Pino Cazzaniga]

Ken,
Thanks for your guess, it matches my feeling... somewhere, sometime, not for the first nor for the last time.
Thanks for the forum too, wide knowledge and friendly atmosphere.

Jake,
I like the sound, it's deep and ready, but I have to work on twangly notes of the g string, lower positions.
It'now strung with Spirocore.
As Al Smith ask in my intro thread I looked at the French? German? DB.
I didn't post there cause I can't say more, other than it look very nice, of course.

Calvin,
Gut strings Bottesini is only for the braves, it deserve bigger (and greater) instruments.
My think was European old folk music, 3 naked gut strings, G d g or A d g tuning.