Please get in contact to arrange an appointment at my Sheffield workshop in Nether Edge.
Whenever I assess an instrument, I’ll check that there aren’t any other underlying issues that could prevent you from getting the best out of it.
If you need your instrument or bow back by a specific date then please make this clear when arranging a drop-off. I value efficiency where possible but I will not compromise the quality of a job for the sake of rushing.
Although I can give you a cost estimate prior to meeting, I cannot give a final quote for a repair until I have examined the instrument fully.
See my General Payment Policy for more information about this topic.
What follows is a rough guide for prices of individual jobs, however be aware that it may often be a lot more economical to get several jobs done at the same time.
Initial Consultation
Generally free for 20 – 30 minutes. Otherwise £30 for 45 minutes, £40 per-hour after that.
Bowed Instruments
| Violin/Viola | Cello | Double Bass | |
| String Change & Basic Checkup Strings not included. I carry some strings in stock but please check beforehand if you wish me to supply strings. I will fit new strings on the instrument and perform and easy minor adjustments e.g. straightening the bridge, lubricating the nut slots etc. Does not include any tonal adjustment. (All further levels of checkup include an optional string change.) | £25 | £30 | £35 |
| Standard Checkup The Basic Checkup plus tonal adjustment, e.g. soundpost tweaking session. All carried out within 1 hour. It is highly recommended the customer stays in order to discuss the instrument face-to-face and give input on any tonal tweaks, however in cases where this is not possible a full written report of any issues discovered / rectified will be emailed afterward. If the soundpost fit appears suspect then a Full Checkup may be required – if so I will get in touch with you to discuss how you would like to proceed. | £45 | £50 | £55 |
| Full Checkup Taking all the strings off and performing a proper inspection of the soundpost fit. Can also include adjustment of nut slot depth, adjustment of tailpiece afterlength, peg fit adjustment, fingerboard clean plus gluing up a small amount ofopen seams or a loose fingerboard (NOT crack repairs or re-gluing fingerboards which have fallen off). | £80 | £90 | £100 |
| The following services all effectively include the Full Checkup. Once the strings are off then other jobs become a lot more straightforward. In the process of putting the strings back on and reinstating the bridge I always take care to make sure everything is properly aligned and positioned. Please note that the total prices listed here are for the whole job including parts which are identical between jobs, but for one job only. So e.g. a New Soundpost AND Bridge Adjustment would probably work out circa £125 rather than £180. | |||
| Bridge Adjustment Adjusting the curvature of the bridge and relative string heights to improve string heights and optimise the feel of string crossing. This is done to a standard template, but custom profiles can be applied. Fitting of a parchment E/A string patch included – no more need for string tubes! Often a more economical alternative to fitting a whole new bridge, however in cases where the bridge is warped, too thin, badly fitting, of inferior wood or otherwise subpar I would not advise spending too much on improving it vs getting a new bridge. | circa £90 | circa £130 | circa £150 |
| New Soundpost Sometimes a soundpost is badly fitted and an adjustment of the existing post isn’t possible so a new one must be fitted before sound alterations can take place. In general I will not “stand up” a soundpost – if it’s fallen over then there’s usually a reason involving incorrect fit/tension. | £95 | £130 | £140 |
| New Bridge Bridge options can be discussed e.g. curvature, desired string height etc. For larger instruments I may advise (and include in the price) a followup session to finalise things once the bridge has settled. | £195 | £310 | £420 |
| New Bridge & Soundpost Making sure that the bridge and soundpost are working together effectively is at the heart of a good setup. Getting them done at the same time generally saves some time (and money.) | £250 | £390 | £500 |
| Full Fingerboard Reshoot A fingerboard reshoot can be done to remove any grooves created by the strings as well as lumps and bumps which can cause buzzing and intonation issues. In some cases, the fingerboard may be too concave, leading to excessively high string action in 3rd and 4th position, regardless of how it is set at the bridge. In cases with severely worn fingerboards there may not be sufficient material left to create a perfect profile, and in this case a new fingerboard is really the best option. Price may be less if only a minor reshoot is required. (And in some cases a full reshoot may not be possible due to the amount of wood left on the fingerboard) | £130 | £180 | £220 |
| New Pegs | £140 | £170 | enquire |
| Bow Rehair (for bass, black hair rehairs are an option for players wishing for a bit more grip) See also Postal Rehairs | £85 | £90 | £100 / £85 |
| Crack Repair Structural issues such as cracks are worth repairing as soon as possible in order to avoid them spreading (or getting filled with dirt which makes a clean “as new” repair a lot more time consuming. It is difficult to price up crack repair without seeing the instrument but for major cracks in the top or back plate, assuming a MINIMUM starting price of £300 (for violin). | variable | variable | variable |
Fretted Instruments
| Guitar | Banjo | Mandolin | |
| Standard Checkup Includes minor truss rod adjustments, nut lubrication, optional string change. | £45 | £30 | £40 |
| Standard Service Includes the standard checkup PLUS minor action height adjustment (depending on instrument) and, for banjos, head and tailpiece tension. Major action height adjustments are price separately as they may include new parts. | £80 | £70 | £80 |
| Fret Level, Crown & Polish A fret level may be necessary when some frets are higher than others causing certain notes to buzz. The process is followed by re-establishing the top profile of the frets and polishing them. If there is visible fret-wear then this can be more of an issue, as the frets must be lowered until the marks disappear, and in some cases it may actually make more sense to replace worn frets entirely, but either way, at least a partial leveling is then required to blend them in. Price may vary if frets are severely worn. | £130 | £110 | £125 |
| New Nut I usually make the new nut from scratch to make sure it fits your instrument perfectly. The standard material is bone, but ebony can also work well on some instruments and may be preferred if you are opposed to animal products. | £80 | £70 | £80 |
| New Saddle (guitar only) Includes intonation adjustment. | £70 | ||
| Banjo Specific | |||
| New Skin Plastic heads or natural vellum may be preferred; plastic requires less maintenance and is generally quicker to install however some players prefer a natural skin and some banjos may require it if they have non-standard dimensions. A new skin, especially a natural one, will really stretch over the first few weeks, so I would recommend you book a return visit so I can check the tension. | N/A | £160+ | N/A |
| Railroad Spike Fitting (5th string “capo”) | N/A | £10 | N/A |
Other Services
This list only scratches the surface (no pun intended) of the possible repairs and services I perform. See my Blog for a (somewhat up-to-date) list of things I’ve done recently.