FRETWORKLONDON
About · Fretwork London

A proper luthier's bench — that happens to come to your door.

Fretwork London is one experienced luthier, Otto, doing careful, measured work on every guitar that comes in. From a first acoustic to a vintage Gibson, it's the same pair of hands and a clear quote for the work.

15+ years on the bench500+ London guitarsOne named luthier
01The Bench
Fretwork London
Otto.One luthier. Careful work on every guitar.
Denmark Street · By appointment

Fifteen years, five hundred guitars, one pair of hands.

Fretwork London is one luthier: Otto. Not a workshop of rotating staff, not a courier network — every guitar that comes in is collected, worked on and returned by the same trained hands. That is the whole idea.

Over 15 years and more than 500 London guitars, Otto has set up everything from a teenager's battered first acoustic to vintage Gibsons and Fenders worth more than a car. The care is the same either way: measured, unhurried and explained, so you know exactly what your guitar needed and what was done to it.

The £85 standard six-string setup with agreed strings is a welcoming starting point. Personal collection and return is an optional, separately priced choice. Otto also handles specialist work when an instrument needs more than a setup.

15+
Years on the bench
500+
London guitars set up
1
Pair of hands — always Otto's
02Specialist Work

The work that sits behind every setup.

You never need any of this for a standard setup — but it's the reason your guitar is in safe hands. When an instrument needs more, Otto has the specialist experience most benches simply don't.

Vintage & high-value

Restoring guitars worth keeping for life

Otto specialises in bringing high-value and vintage instruments back to their best — sympathetic, careful work that respects the original guitar rather than modernising it away. The kind of job most technicians would rather not take on.

A traditional finish

Period-correct nitrocellulose finishing

Vintage guitars wear a particular kind of lacquer, and matching it takes patience and a practised hand. Otto applies era-faithful nitrocellulose finishes so a repair or refinish looks like it always belonged there.

A rare craft

Hand-carved archtop building

Archtop guitars are carved, not pressed — a slow, exacting skill that very few luthiers in the country still practise. Otto builds and repairs them by hand, which tells you most of what you need to know about the care your everyday setup gets too.

03Workshop & Mobile

You don't have to choose between a workshop and convenience.

Fretwork London is both — a real bench with a physical home on Denmark Street, and optional personal collection and return for those who prefer it.

A proper workshop bench

There's a real bench behind Fretwork London — at Sixty Sixty Sounds, 28 Denmark Street, on London's iconic guitar row. If you'd rather talk your guitar through face to face before anything happens, you can sit down with Otto there by appointment, free of charge.

That comes to your door

You can hand over your guitar on Denmark Street by appointment or request a separately priced personal collection and return. Share your postcode to check the route and final two-way quote; we'll confirm timing before booking.

06Get In Touch

Ready when you are.

Tell us about your guitar. The standard six-string setup is £85 with agreed standard strings; we'll confirm its scope and your handover before a booking is agreed.

Phone
020 8040 1883
Talk through your guitar and the next step
Enquiry
Send us your questions
Personal advice and repair quotes
Handover
Denmark Street
By appointment; collection quoted separately
Hours
Mon–Sat, 9am–6pm
Collection and consultations by arrangement
Prefer to meet in person?

You can also sit down with Otto for a free consultation, by appointment, at Sixty Sixty Sounds on Denmark Street — London's iconic guitar row.

28 Denmark St, London WC2H 8NJ · by appointment
Ask About a Setup
£85
Standard six-string setup
No booking until you agree
  • ✓Standard six-string setup with agreed standard strings
  • ✓Denmark Street handover by appointment
  • ✓Personal collection and return charged separately
  • ✓Bass £95; locking-tremolo or 12-string £105
Enquire About a Setup→

Questions? Call 020 8040 1883