I need guitar-fix advice!!!
Thu, 09/01/2011 - 3:51pm
Hey all!
I really wanna get some much-needed fixing-up done to my acoustic guitar, that same old battered one with stickers all over it that has been my only guitar for over ten years... but who does this sort of work nowadays, any recommendations??
Richie on the Lower East Side was the go-to guy for guitar repairs for years, but I think he's no longer around, and ditto for Chris at Mojo... I see Chris in the street sometimes and I know he's still involved in working with instruments but with no store anymore I don't know how to contact him...
I don't really like the guys with the little shop on E 3rd St or E 4th St (it keeps moving around, I forget where it is at the moment), I had a bad experience with a pedal-repair job with them a few years back.
There's Main Drag in W'burg, and there's First Flight on 10th St & 1st Ave here in the village... anybody have any experience with acoustic guitar repairs with either of these places?
I probably need frets replaced/repaired, maybe even a neck re-set/re-adjustment, and if I wanna go whole-hog I'd need the internal body to have all the braces/struts completely re-glued in.
(The thing stays in tune and is still totally playable, but the intonation is way off, like by the time you go 6 frets up the neck it's not in a consistent tuning and it gets worse the farther up you play.)
I leave for a big tour in about a month so I wanna get this done ASAP if I'm gonna do it at all... whaddaya think?????
Jeff
weja5@yahoo.com
Sat, 09/03/2011 - 11:16pm
#2
Thanks Dibs!
I got some good
Thanks Dibs!
I got some good advice from Barry Bliss too.
I did indeed take my guitar to Main Drag -
the guy there fixed my guitar in 30 seconds, with a sort of chisel tool on his work bench, and he didn't even charge me for it - that was great.
Then he told me the other problems with my guitar, like the intonation & neck, are unfixable because of how bad the body is warped. So maybe I'll end up buying another guitar at some point.
In any case, I'd definitely recommend Main Drag to people - I can't believe the guy fixed my guitar, so fast, and for free. Can't beat that.
Sun, 09/04/2011 - 10:46am
#3
Is Ritchie really not around
Is Ritchie really not around anymore?
Tue, 09/06/2011 - 9:12am
#4
Actually I'm not sure who
Actually I'm not sure who told me Richie wasn't around anymore, but it seems NOT to be true, according to Barry Bliss...
Barry says Richie is indeed still around and still working on guitars (at least as of last winter), and Richie is contactable at
212-253-7643
Fri, 09/09/2011 - 11:08am
#5
Hey all-
I sent some emails
Hey all-
I sent some emails around and got this guy as a recommendation:
Rob Radack
Radack Guitars
Brooklyn, NY
646-625-9468
www.radackguitars.com
www.facebook.com/radackguitars
Also, if you visit Massachusetts, this fellow is building amazing instruments as well:
Trevor Healy
www.healyguitars.com
Really cool photos of the first instrument he built in his new shop: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1957701387657.2103828.1396438051
Fri, 09/09/2011 - 11:30am
#6
Amp repair?
Anyone know a good amp repair person? Starting with the closest one to the LES? I prefer to work with independent/ mom and pop's if possible. Thanks.
I would always take my guitars to Main Drag - I don't know who's working there these days, but I've found them to be pretty reliable overall.
I love the guys over at First Flight - I consistently bought strings and parts from them for years - but they did a pretty shoddy repair for me once and I haven't had them work on my guitars since.
If you find someone who does good work, you should get their personal contact info and develop a working relationship with them. I had good work done at main drag. But I also had someone there tell me they had a hard time repairing splits in my guitar because there were two layers of wood in the top - they might have fired him because I never saw him again and the next guy said that was definitely not true. I think different shops have different standards for sure, but ultimately it comes down to the person doing the work being reliable and knowledgeable.
To keep on this topic...
I recently heard of the Roberto Venn school of guitar repair/construction. I met a luthier who builds his own brand of guitars and has four people working for him. He says he only hires people who have either been working for years or gone through that school.
Earlier this year my guitar needed a neck reset. My guitar mentor referred me to a local luthier who went to Roberto Venn. He did an amazing job - the guitar feels at its best and sounds better than when I brought it in.
I don't know if it'd be difficult, but you'd probably find someone good if they went through that school.
Let us know where you go and how it turns out! I'd love to know of someone reliable out in nyc.