Our shop, located on the side of a mountain near Sparta, TN, offers professional quality repair and restoration of fretted instruments such as guitars, banjos, mandolins, etc. Electric guitar repair, setups and electronics are a specialty. We are an authorized warranty repair center for Fender, Takamine and Ovation, and are a dealer for several high quality musical instruments including guitars made by Eastman, Stonebridge/Furch, Huss & Dalton, and J.W. Gallagher & Son.We stock Eastman and Kentucky mandolins, Flinthill, Huss & Dalton, Stelling, and Ome banjos as well as McSpadden lap dulcimers and Dusty Strings hammer dulcimers.
Services
Jim Grainger founded Custom Fretted Instruments & Repair. He built and repaired fretted instruments for over 40 years and acquired a wealth of knowledge in the history and particulars of many different brands of guitars and banjos. He insisted that high quality materials and workmanship go into every instrument that passed through his shop.
We specalize in Hofner and Klira Bass (aka "Beatle Bass") neck angle resets and neck heel repairs. Here are before & after photos of a Hofner bass that was shipped to us with high action due to failure of the stacked heel's glue joint. We repaired the glue joint, reset the neck to the proper angle and touched up the damaged finish.
This is a retopped guitar. If you're looking for a perfect, all original instrument, you need to look elsewhere. If you want a fantastic playing and sounding guitar with all the character of a 50s Gibson for half the price, thi. This Gibson J-50 came into the shop a couple of years ago for some major repair, and we wound up replacing the back.
Custom Fretted Instruments & Repair is approximately 1-1/2 hours driving time from Nashville, Knoxville or Chattanooga. From Nashville or Knoxville, take I-40 to Cookeville. Take the Sparta exit onto Hwy. 111. Follow Hwy. 111 south about 20 miles toward Spencer. At the interchange of Hwy. 70 (to McMinnville) and Hwy. 111 (to Spencer), continue 1 mile south toward Spencer to Firetower Road. This is the 2nd road on the left after the interchange. Firetower Road is on the left and goes straight up the hill.
Reviews (10)
Jim Trease
Mar 22, 2022
Michael G. Damons
Dec 28, 2021
Allen Cook
Nov 29, 2021
Bruce Taylor
Oct 23, 2021
Michael Isun
Jan 13, 2021
Johnny Turrington
May 21, 2019
Rodney Peabody
May 12, 2019
The good people at custom fretted instruments are very knowledgeable, friendly, and honest. I had bought a guitar on line and it had some issues. Steve looked it over right then and there, fixed it and assured me the guitar was fine. Their prices are more than fair, and I would recommend them for all my guitar needs.
Lee Dunn
May 10, 2019
I took my 12 string here to get some work done, and they did a great job, and I was pleased. Then I had another 12 string that the bridge was lifting. They fixed the problem, and it looked, and played like new. I also had a Dobro that was very important to me, and had gotten damaged. When these folks returned it to me, I could not tell where the damage had ever been. Amazing craftsmanship. Great folks, and I would highly recommend.
Geh
Feb 22, 2019
I have always been pleased with their work on my instruments. They are fast, high quality, and reasonably priced. On several instruments of mine and my sons, they have repaired cracks and splits, reglued a lifting bridge, reset necks, replaced nuts and saddles and frets, done setups, a compression refret, fixed intonation problems, and made cosmetic repairs.
All with excellent work by an expert team. I even bought a new guitar from their shop a few years ago. I highly recommend Steve and Joyce, nice folks with lots of knowledge and very customer-focused approach.
All with excellent work by an expert team. I even bought a new guitar from their shop a few years ago. I highly recommend Steve and Joyce, nice folks with lots of knowledge and very customer-focused approach.
Dan Holman
Jun 21, 2018