Parts of the Bow

The FROG is the “handle” of the BOW and it adjusts the near end of the horsehair to be either tight or loose. The frog is made of high-grade ebony and other decorative materials, including ivory and tortoiseshell for the SLIDE and the EYE. The metal part of the frog may be used to mark different grades of bow, ordinary bows being mounted with nickel silver, better bows with sterling silver, and the finest often being gold-mounted. 

Near the frog is the GRIP, which is made of wire, silk, or "whalebone" wrap and a thumb cushion made of leather or snake skin. The TIP plate of the bow may be made of bone, ivory, or silver.

A bow maker uses between 150 and 200 HAIRS from the tail of a horse for violin bows. Bows for other members of the violin family typically have a wider ribbon of hair. White hair generally produces a smoother sound while black hair (used mainly for double bass bows) is coarser, producing a rougher sound. Lower quality (inexpensive) bows sometimes use nylon or synthetic hair. The hair is held in place with a WEDGE of cork or wood. ROSIN, a hard, sticky substance made from tree sap resin, is regularly applied to the bow hair to increase friction. 

In order to shape the curve of the bow STICK, the maker heats the stick carefully in an alcohol flame, a few inches at a time, bending the heated stick gradually to the right shape. A metal or wooden template is used to get the exact model's curve and shape while heating. The way of making wooden bows has changed little since the 19th century; most modern composite sticks roughly resemble the Tourte.

Stick Materials

Pernambuco: is now a rare species and harder to come by. The Brazilian government has put restrictions on its harvesting, so perhaps there’s hope the source trees will flourish once again. In the meantime, you can find Pernambuco bows ranging anywhere from $70 to tens-of-thousands of dollars. There is a range of Pernambuco wood quality, which accounts for part of the price range. The Pernambuco bows that are in the thousands of dollars are typically older, even running back hundreds of years. If the bow has a documented lineage, that is who owned the bow through the centuries, now you’re looking at high five figures. 

Brazilwood is a composite of tropical wood species, also mostly in Brazil. This wood is typically a bit heavier than Pernambuco, which lessens the “feel” for the violinist. A Pernambuco wood bow is more responsive to the vibrations of the violin, which sends those vibrations back through the bow to the violinist’s hands. It fuses the violinist more deeply with the violin, which is one reason why Pernambuco bows are believed to provide richer sounds and performances. 
For beginning or intermediate students who still have work to do before they can discern and appreciate the difference in tone between a Pernambuco or Brazilwood bow, a Brazilwood bow is an excellent choice. They do produce a lovely sound. Their denser weight is actually an advantage with very young students as it makes the bow more difficult to break.

Fiberglass is a fiber reinforced polymer made of a plastic matrix reinforced by fine fibers of glass. Although strength properties are somewhat lower than carbon fiber and it is less stiff, the material is typically far less brittle, and the raw materials are much less expensive. Still a lot of work can be done with different materials to carry out a perfect but affordable bow.

Carbon Fiber is a very strong and lightweight fiber-reinforced polymer which has carbon fibers. The polymer is most often epoxy, but other polymers such as polyester, vinyl, or nylon are sometimes used. The composite may contain other fibers such as Kevlar, aluminum, or glass fibers as well as carbon fiber. Different combinations of materials may produce different weights and feelings of bows, which may be more or less desirable depending on the player. 

Ebony is any very dense black wood, most commonly yielded by several species in the genus Diospyros; but other heavy, black (or dark-colored) woods from unrelated species may be included as well. Ebony is very high density and will sink in water. Its fine texture, and very smooth finish when polished, have made it very valuable as an ornamental wood. Usually ebony is only used for the frog on the bow, and for other small finishing pieces on the instrument (tuning pegs, chin rest, etc).