We consider ourselves first and foremost a repair shop. It is not a sideline activity for our business, but rather the core of our existence. Our extensive experience repairing stringed and fretted instruments carries over into the sale of instruments by allowing us to objectively evaluate, from the inside out, any instrument we sell, both new and used. You won't find us using flowery language to describe instruments here. We tend to talk about the structural integrity of the instruments we sell, how they're built, what's required to maintain them. Wil Bremer, the primary repair person here, has made instrument repair his profession for over 35 years. Wil oversees the rest of the repair staff here.

We have a strong affinity for older instruments, and fixing them can involve a fair amount of problem-solving. The primary considerations are playability and sound. In addition, we have several guiding principles when evaluating and repairing an instrument. First, the more original you can keep an instrument, the better. Second, the less you have to do to make it that way, the better it is.

Instruments We Repair We repair most stringed and fretted instruments. This includes both acoustic and electric guitars, violins, mandolins, banjos, harps, ukuleles.... We specialize in repairs involving structural and playability issues, which means everything from set-ups to neck resets. We install a lot of pickups for acoustic instruments. And if you call to discuss having your instrument entirely refinished, we're pretty likely to talk you out of it. Repairing instruments keeps life interesting here. We never know what exactly is going to come through the door, and each case is a little different. Here's a recent project we did for the University of Wisconsin Russian Folk Music Ensemble. Their contrabass balalaika was becoming very difficult to play. (They're not all that easy to play on a good day....) Repairing this instrument involved planing and refretting the fingerboard.

Once we see your instrument we will be able to explain in detail what your instrument needs, and then give you an estimate of repair cost and timeline. We're frequently in the middle of multiple repairs. This means that instruments will need to left here waiting their turn for repair. That being said, smaller jobs are snuck in between the more major repairs. Many repair jobs involve multiple steps that can't be done all at once (such as gluing, or touching up a finish). We do try to give you a good idea of how quickly we can do your instrument, and we try to accomodate your needs to have your instrument repaired on a timeline.

Links to Related Topics Guitar Set-up Here's a run-down of steps we take in setting up a guitar. In this case it's a new guitar. It comes as a surprise to some that even new instruments, even well-made instruments coming straight from the factory, will need adjustments. Guitars are essentially wooden boxes under tension. It'll take some time for new instruments to settle in, and combined with changes in temperature, humidity and handling in shipping, it's not surprising to need to make some adjustments. Over time, older instruments will also occasionally need many of the same adjustments.

Violin Set-up Violins periodically need to have some of their fittings (bridge, soundpost, pegs, etc.) adjusted or replaced in order to perform optimally. Here's a more detailed run-down of what's involved in the process of violin set-up. Yes, we do a lot of set-up work on violins here, along with more extensive repair work. Instrument Care For information on how to take care of your guitar or violin, visit our Frequently Asked Questions page. Shipping Your Instrument to Us? If you're thinking of shipping an instrument to us for repair (or to sell through our shop), important shipping information is also on our FAQ page. WSJ Feature Story Here's a bit more on about instrument repairs in our shop from a Wisconsin State Journal story featuring Wil Bremer on instrument repair.