Bass Clamping Bow Hook for Music or Instrument Stand by K&M

BOWS ARE FRAGILE.

I hate taking the calls from players (or their parents) whose bow took a dive off the music stand or chair. A bow is as much a musical instrument as your bass is, and they can be very easily damaged from a fall or a rap against a hard object. A cracked tip or broken bow is an avoidable heartache.

But when you're not actually playing arco, you need to keep the bow handy. So what's the safe way to do it?

We have a small, affordable, handy plastic clip that attaches to the lip of a mic stand, and that's one good option, especially if you need something super portable. But if you'd rather hang the bow a bit lower on the music stand, or perhaps on an instrument stand or stool leg instead, here's your option.

This is a really nice, strong hook that attaches to a tubular leg or similar, so it works on a large variety of stands and chairs, with diameters up to 1.18". It's made of steel, and the business end is covered in a non marring rubbery-plastic material; it is about 1/2" in diameter. This is likely too large to go completely into the thumb recess on a french bow frog (it is on our bows), but small enough to hold the bow securely since the hook has a "dip" in it. It is certainly among the most "safe" means of hanging a bow, as it "clamps" to the stand leg quite strongly. It's strong enough to support several pounds, so it's sturdy -- but it weighs well under half a pound, and travels almost flat for easy transport.

This helpful gadget is simple, inexpensive, and a great insurance policy for your valuable bow. Works with French or German styled bows (note that the thumb grip opening on some French bow frogs may not be wide enough to fit fully around the hook, but it still partially straddles it, and the hook still holds the bow quite securely.) It holds your bow about 4.5" out from the stand it's attached to.