How I Defret a Six String Bass
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 ...
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July 26, 2009
Custom Guitars: Rosettes
I've been thinking about rosettes quite a lot recently. The rosette is the decorative circle around the soundhole. They come in many guises. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Martin Guitar Soundhole Rosette"][/caption] This is a Martin rosette. It's an example of what you may find on many guitars, with a ...
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July 19, 2009
United Breaks Guitars
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 ...
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July 13, 2009
Broken Headstocks, Snapped Guitar Necks and My Solution
A lot of thought goes into the feel of a neck. Its profile, width and depth are always an important consideration when buying a guitar. What is considered less frequently, however, is how the neck was constructed. As a guitar repairman, I glue a lot of headstocks back onto guitar necks. ...
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May 28, 2009
Wenge: the “new Brazilian Rosewood”?
There is an ongoing search for the "new Brazilian" - and there are some great-looking woods out there that have tonal qualities on a par with Brazilian. African Blackwood is probably the most talked about at the moment. It is a dalbergia, and therefore a "true" rosewood. It grows in ...
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May 11, 2009
Custom Guitar: Brazilian Rosewood
I am currently making a 00 acoustic guitar out of Brazilian Rosewood. The wood was cut a long time ago and looks quite dull; but with a finish on, its rich chocolate browns are accentuated. I love the look of this sapwood, as I really like contrasts. Brazilian tends to ...
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April 30, 2009
Building A Custom Guitar: Two Acoustic Guitar Tops
I've got a couple of new acoustic guitars on the go. This is the top. I've just glued the x-brace into it. I carve the braces by hand once they're glued in. I can't shape them first, as I make them tall and thin, coming to an almost-point, so I wouldn't ...
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April 21, 2009
Jim Fleeting Guitars: Bolivian Rosewood OM
It's been a busy few weeks. Here's the latest custom acoustic, fresh from my guitar workshop: Plenty of bear claw in that Sitka spruce top, not to mention lots of mellow bass and clear, ringing trebles. A great piece of wood. The top is Sitka spruce; the back is Bolivian rosewood; the ...
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March 23, 2009
Basschat Yorkshire Bass Bash
The Basschat Yorkshire Bass Bash, which took place in Harrogate at the weekend, saw the area's bassists and basses get together. It was organised via the popular Basschat.co.uk web forum, and I was invited along to give a talk. For a bass nerd like me, it was great to be in ...
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February 16, 2009
Jim Fleeting Guitars in the Guardian
A very nice piece was written about me in Saturday's Guardian. It's a feature about people with "dream jobs". Before I began making custom guitars I used to work in a grey office fixing computers; I had my Eureka! moment halfway up a mountain in the Basque Country. (You can ...
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February 10, 2009
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