Carbon Fiber Bows

[Jeff Tranauskas]

I currently own a Carbow "Gary Karr" model German bow and I am extremely pleased with it! I recently had a pernambucco bow break in shipping so I called up Robertson and had them send me several bows in the 700-1200 dollar range. I honestly can't remember what the other ones were, but I did not expect the carbon fiber bow to beat out similarly priced pernambucco bows. I was blown away. The bow balances extremely well and is heavy enough to use the weight of the bow, but not so heavy as to hinder my playing.
Basically, try out lots of bows, compare various models of carbon fiber to higher end pernambucco bows. I have had no experience with low end carbon fiber bows, I have heard varied reviews on different makes.
I know that CF is not the bow material of choice for everybody, but if ya haven't tried it then you'll never know!

Ryan,
Thank you for the input! And thank you to all others who responded to my question.
Is your Gary Karr model the one with the snakewood frog?
How much was it? Just round numbers I don't need the exact amount.

[Ken Smith]

Once while at a dress rehearsal I switched Bows with a sub in the orchestra so he could try out out as I was selling it. He had a CF Bow and I had one of my Eibert Bows. I played about 5 minutes on his Bow and gave it back to him and asked him how he could play on that. He replied that is was much better than what he had before.

At a Violin I tried two other CF Bows by known companies and to me, they were not as good as a medium Grade wood Bow by any stretch.

This has been my personal experience so far with CF Bows. Not for me and from what I have seen, leave the CF in the golf Clubs and Fishing rods. The Bow needs some wood to match with the tone of the Bass and the Music.

[Flint Buchanan]

I'm currently using the Glasser carbon fibre bow, and while it was an improvement over the cheap brazilwood bow that came with my bass, I can't say that I'm totally happy with it.

The only real comparisons I can make are to my teachers 3k pernambuco bow-which I can say practically plays itself. I don't know the maker, other than it's Italian and she picked it up while travelilng in Italy. The other comparison I can make is to the URB bob bow that my section mate plays as a back-up. The Glasser is better balanced than the URB bow, and is longer as well.

That being said, I am looking for a replacement bow. If I can afford it, I am going to go for a natural bow this time.

[JoeyNaeger]

Not all carbon fiber bows are made equally. I've played on some that were less than spectacular, but they were also priced accordingly. I have a french carbow as my main bow now and it has done everything I needed it to. Of course, I'd love to upgrade at some point, but I think it is an excellent value bow for those looking for something inbetween a high end pernambuco bow and some cheaper student bows.

[stan haskins]

I've got a Gage Metropolitan German bow at home on trial right now. I love how this bow feels and responds - it's well-balanced and easy to control. The tone is very even, too - but it seems to be lacking something in terms of volume and punch. Overall, it would be a big upgrade from the cheap brazilwood I've been playing for the last couple of years. I don't know how it competes with other wood bows in its own price range, though . . .

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by stan haskins

I've got a Gage Metropolitan German bow at home on trial right now. I love how this bow feels and responds - it's well-balanced and easy to control. The tone is very even, too - but it seems to be lacking something in terms of volume and punch. Overall, it would be a big upgrade from the cheap brazilwood I've been playing for the last couple of years. I don't know how it competes with other wood bows in its own price range, though . . .

You are in NY so you could easily go see Arnold and Jeff and try some of my KSB Bows. If they weren't good, they wouldn't bother selling them. They have been compared at times with other Bows up to 10x their price. I would much rather feel warm wood than cold plastic in my hands.

If I couldn't do it better, I wouldn't bother. I have enough to do as it is so if I take something else on, there is usually a good reason for it.