1 mins
In a new light
A lamp for luthiers to tan violins and cure varnish
With a wavelength of 365nm, S chilbach’s new UV LED light can tan instruments fully in seven days. Until now, the tanning process involved either exposing the white instrument to the sun, which could take several months, or using fluorescent tubes, which can take up to two months for similar results.
The light was developed in collaboration with luthier Maarten De Keukeleire, who made the product’s developer Benjamin Schilbach aware of its demand. ‘At first I didn’t know this was an issue, but when we put up the pre-order prices, everything was snapped up immediately!’ says Schilbach. ‘It is good for makers who are in countries with little sun or a lot of rain. And if you use fluorescent tubes, they break easily, the power decreases quickly and they use a lot of electricity.’ By comparison, the new LED light has up to 500,000 working hours and higher power at 300 watts. It also includes a dimmer, which allows luthiers to adjust the lamp’s power to their needs.
The product includes 120 LED lights, which are placed within a black anodised aluminium box, with an integrated air-cooling system. According to Schilbach, the product will soon come within a package comprising a tanning cabinet to protect the user from the UV light and optimise the tanning process, a humidifier, a separate automated cooling system and a rotating motor on which to place the instrument. ‘Luthiers will be able to buy what they need from this system depending on what they already have,’ says Schilbach.
The light can also be used for curing varnish. In his tests, De Keukeleire was able to dry his own cooked varnishes within six hours. No siccative was added to the recipes. The lamp can be used for violins, violas and cellos.
Schilbach UV tanning lamp €1,668.43
email shop@schilbach.net
web www.shop-schilbach.net
FEATURED PRODUCT