Guitar Repair
Guitar Repair: Martin 000 Eric Clapton
This is a bit of a self-indulgent post, but I was so pleased that I needed to tell someone.
I had taken in a Martin Eric Clapton signature model (picture posed by model, left), and the lacquer was separating all along the back of the neck. Because it was a nitrocellulose lacquer finish, I was able [...]
How I Defret a Six String Bass
by Jim · Leave a Comment
What’s better than a six string bass? That’s right: a six string fretless bass.
The reason why I am a bass player and a luthier goes all the way back to when I was 13. My parents had just got Sky, and I was flicking through to MTV. The channel was showing a European festival, possibly [...]
United Breaks Guitars
by Jim · Leave a Comment
With more than two million views of his YouTube video, it would seem that musician Dave Carroll has finally persuaded United Airlines to listen to his complaint. They have arranged a meeting with him. I guess it’s because he has the sequel to this song in production, and a third in the planning stage.
The serious [...]
Banjo Repair: A Five-String With A Past
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This one is from the 1920s. The frets were a bit of a mess, and there was a great big hole in the skin. It was brought in by a customer whose father played it professionally in a banjo group from 1926 until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939.
I replaced the skin [...]
Broken Headstocks, Snapped Guitar Necks and My Solution
by Jim · Leave a Comment
As a guitar repairman I glue a lot of headstocks back onto guitar necks. Often the guitar has been dropped or has fallen and the headstock has snapped.
Guitar Repair: refurbishing a 1969 Gibson SG
by Jim · 7 Comments
Sometimes it’s hard to believe what is on my desk. Gibson only made SGs with front accessible controls in 1969. It should have a bigsby trem, and a scratchplate.
It should also have a fingerboard. What a mess. This customer bought the guitar as is, as he knew that this could be a very valuable guitar [...]
Guitar Repair: fret job on a 1970s Gibson Heritage
by Jim · Leave a Comment
There is a lot of satisfaction to be gained from an excellent fret job – both for the player, and the luthier. It is always a pleasure to work upon an instrument that is evidently well-played and well-loved. At the Jim Fleeting Guitars workshop, partial and complete refrets are a staple of our day-to-day repair [...]
Hello. My name is Jim Fleeting. At my workshop in Ripon, North Yorkshire, I create custom guitars and basses for customers around the UK and Europe. The Guardian describes me as one of the UK’s leading luthiers, which is nice of them. I built the UK’s first nine string bass and popped up in Guitarist and Guitar & Bass magazine, after winning an award from the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust. I also head Jim Fleeting Guitars’ thriving repair shop.