Guitar maker's bold new move

9:36am Monday 19th June 2006

A MUSIC lover has struck a chord after ditching his city job to set up as a guitar maker instead.

Jim Fleeting, 29, turned his back on a six-year career in IT to start making and repairing guitars.

Having set up Jim Fleeting Guitars in Ripon, he is now taking orders from across the country.

Mr Fleeting said: "Building guitars is my life and my interest and I thought I could make a living at it.

"I can repair any instrument which has strings on it.

"I thought I could get 50 for repairing a guitar or I could get 1,000 for making them instead.

"It's really strange when I think how things have changed in my life but this is the best bit of it."

Mr Fleeting learned his trade with a spell at the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery, in Arizona.

Then, a chance meeting in Los Angeles with Andrew Bishop, of Carlsbro Amps, saw him head to Ripon to set up business.

Now based at Ripon City Music, he is looking to expand a business which has quickly proved a hit.

Mr Fleeting makes both electric and acoustic guitars and sends out his bulky goods in returnable instrument cases.

He said: "I set up in February and already have had lots of people coming and talking to me.

"In the future, I'm hoping to expand the company on both the repair and building side of things."

A talented musician himself, Mr Fleeting plays many instruments - including guitar, banjo, ukulele and dulcimer.

During his spell in America, he was part of a bluegrass band named The Well Oiled Machine.

He put his tips and advice to good use last weekend at the second Black Sheep Music Festival, in Masham.

Both performers and festivalgoers queued up for his advice and repairs on their instruments.

Plus, he showed how to perform common guitar repairs, such as re-fretting an instrument.

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