Feb. 14, 1961 F. PASSA 2,971,422 TAILPIECE RETAINER FOR STRINGED INSTRUMENTS Filed July 22, 1957

INVENTOR Fran/r Pqssa‘

ATTO R N EY United States Patent 0 ' 2,971,422 cc Patented Feb. 14, 1961

2 is cut into the tailpiece 26 from the side of each of the holes 27 so that the strings 16 may be easily inserted through the relatively large holes, tied, and held by the 2,971,422 knots from slipping through the relatively constricted TAILPIECE RETAINER FOR STRINGED slots. A bridge 28 is mounted on the body 11 between INSTRUMENTS the tailpiece 26 and the ?nger-board 17. Frank Passa, 391 Sutter St., San Francisco, Calif. Figure 2 shows the relatively ?at underside of the tail piece 26 with the retainer 24 loosely in place. Tail~ Filed July 22, 1957, Ser. No. 673,355 pieces are usually made of ebony and are routed out in 10 the region of the holes 27 so that there will be space 1 Claim. (Cl. 84-302) for the knotted ends of the strings. In addition, the constricted end is bevelled, as indicated by reference character 29 and a routed out section 30 is provided This invention relates to manually adjustable, ?exible there also. A pair of holes 31 is drilled lengthwise of the tailpiece retainers for stringed instruments such as violins 15 tailpiece from the bevelled section 29 to the routed out and the like. section 30, and the ends of the threaded, nylon retainer The strings of violins, violas, violoncellos and related 24 are inserted therethrough. The routed-out section instruments are held fast at one end by a member lo 30 provides space so that a pair of knurled nuts 32 can cated on the body of the instrument and known as a tail~ be threaded onto the retainer 24 to keep it in place. piece. The tailpiece is removable and is held in place 20 These nuts are so small as not to affect the tone of the by a retainer, which heretofore has taken the form of instrument as larger pieces of metal, for instance wire a length of gut bent into the shape of a U with the ends retainers, are said to do. The knurled nuts 32 may be inserted in openings provided therefor in the end of the easily rotated by hand to adjust the length of the bight tailpiece and secured against slipping out by smaller of retainer 24 as precisely as may be desired. Since even pieces of gut wound around the retainer gut and tied in 25 the threaded ends of the retainer are ?exible, the retainer place. ' may be made as long as desired, so as to ?t instruments It is desirable to locate the tailpiece properly on the of any size. If the threaded ends are too long to nestle instrument and to maintain it in position in spite of easily within the routed out section 30, it is a simple matter to cut o?": the excess length of nylon without dis changes due to age and atmospheric conditions. In 30 order to do so the present invention comprises a novel torting or destroying the threads. Because the end of retainer of nylon or similar plastic material which is as the threaded portion of the nylon retainer 24 retains its soft and ?exible as gut and many times as strong. To shape, it is easy to af?x the knurled nuts 32 without dam achieve the requisite adjustability of the retainer, both aging the internal thread of the nuts, and this in spite of ends are threaded and are held in place, after being in the fact that the internal diameter of the nuts may be serted through openings in the end of the tailpiece, by 35 slightly undersized so as to squeeze the nylon tightly and means of knurled nuts which are easily manipulated by not be shaken or vibrated loose. Thus one size of re hand. The nylon retains its threaded shape so that the tainer may be made to ?t all sizes of instruments. nuts are prevented from slipping 01f, or even loosening, While a preferred embodiment has been described, it will be apparent that modi?cations are possible within the and this characteristic is enhanced by the compressibility 40 of the nylon, which allows slightly undersized nuts to scope of the invention as de?ned in the following claim. be threaded thereon. Furthermore, the nylon, being as What is claimed is: pliable as gut, has none of the ill effects on tone or timbre A retainer for the tailpiece of a stringed instru which musicians attribute to metallic wire retainers and ment, said tailpiece having a pair of longitudinal open ings adjacent one end through which the ends of which cause them to reject any substantial use of metal 45 on the ?ner instruments. said retainer are inserted, said retainer comprising: The invention will be more completely set forth in a length of ?exible, compressible, substantially inex connection with the drawing in which: Figure 1 is a per tensible nylon, both ends of which are threaded; and spective view of a violin including a tailpiece secured by a pair of knurled metallic nuts in threaded engage a retainer embodying the invention; and Figure 2 is an 50 ment with said ends, said nuts having an outer diameter enlarged view of the underside of the tailpiece of Figure larger than said openings to prevent the ends of said 1 and shows more clearly the con?guration of the re retainer from slipping out, the thread diameter of said tainer of the invention. nuts being smaller than that of said ends whereby said In Figure 1 there is shown a violin having body 11, nuts are held ?rmly in place on said nylon. an elongated neck 12 terminating in a scroll 13, the four 55 References Cited in the ?le of this patent tuning pegs 14, the strings 16 and a ?nger-board 17. The body 11 has an upper surface 18, sound holes 19, a‘ UNITED STATES PATENTS lower surface, or back 21, and sides, or ribs, 22.. At the 375,710 Lorenz ______Dec. 27, 1887 end of the body 11 opposite the neck 12 is a pin 23 1,514,590 Parr ______-_ Nov. 4, 1924 around which is looped a plastic retainer 24 such as 60 1,757,170 Callier ______May 6, 1930 nylon, for a tailpiece 26. The nylon retainer is suf 1,791,977 Seckendorf ______Feb. 10, 1931 ?ciently ?exible to bend easily over the end of the body 2,680,987 Straton ______June 15, 1954 11, yet is substantially inextensible. The tailpiece 26 FOREIGN PATENTS has a round upper surface and fans out slightly at one 65 27,340 Great Britain ______1907 end to receive the strings 16 in four holes 27. A slot 130,179 Switzerland ______Feb. 16, 1929