Bought one of these...

[32-20-Blues]

...for very little money (25 bucks) in a local antique/junk shop.

http://www.thinkmusic.co.uk/product.asp?P_ID=8009

I know, I know, cheap violins are terrible, but with that in mind...

For just messing around on, did I make a big mistake?

 

[danw]

For 25 bucks, I don't see it being a big mistake. I've spent more money on worse things. I bought a little violin like that a few years ago and have mostly succeeded in making awful sounds come out of it at ridiculous volumes. It's pretty good for freaking out my cats. But it adds a little something to my sound arsenal, which is all I was looking for.