Twisted vioin bow

Q: Hi, saw the bit on straightening a bow. But I have a bow with a twist as well as a slight bend to one side. That is, if you look down it, frog down, the far end is out of alignment a little...if you tension it, the twist becomes 20-30 deg. Can this be fixed by heating and twisting the other way?
Steve Knutson

A: The first thing to check is the frog. An eye slot cut too wide can let the frog flop side to side. Tension the bow and sight down it. Now try to move the frog left or right. If this action puts the stick perfectly in line, the solution is shimming the slot.

If the frog will not move you will have to bend. For a twist you will need to heat the whole area to be straightened. The back window of your car on a how summer day works great. If you can't wait, move it back and forth over the largest burner on your stove, then tweak it into line.

Steve Mason