- In August 2005, Specimen Guitar Shop opened The Chicago School of Guitar Making. We are the only school in Chicago where you can learn guitar repair and building from a professional luthier. We are also the only school teaching the craft of tube amplifier building. Below are links to pages with information about each of the courses we offer.
- The school is located in our spacious guitar shop and outfitted with individual workbenches custom-made for the students. We have a fully-equipped wood and metal shop, and a wealth of tools and supplies available for student use. All courses are taught by Specimen owner/luthier Ian Schneller who has 20+ years of experience building and repairing stringed instruments and tube amplifiers.
- COURSE CURRICULUM
WEEKLY COURSES- We currently offer four courses covering different aspects of guitar repair: Guitar & Bass Setup and Maintenance, Fret Work, Guitar & Bass Electronics, and Advanced Guitar Repair. These courses are part of our foundation curriculum and are structured to teach students the essentials of guitar repair and design.
- We also offer a Guitar Building Workshop where students learn how to design and build their own guitar or bass entirely from scratch using raw materials. All of our foundation courses provide a good groundwork for anybody interested in taking our guitar building workshop.
- In May 2006, we added a Tube Amp
Building Workshop to our curriculum.
In this course students build their own tube
amplifier based on Fender's revered line of Tweed
Amplifiers.
WEEKEND SEMINARS
We now offer three different weekend seminar versions of our weekly courses. These seminars are ideal for those who have schedule conflicts with our weekly classes or are not in close proximity to the Chicagoland area. Click on the links below for a course description and registration information:Guitar & Bass Setup and Electronics
Fretting Workshop Weekend Seminar
Tube
Amp Building Seminar
- Enrollment
is Now Open!
Below are links to pages where you can find out more about the courses we are currently offering, including details about the topics covered, the schedule, cost, and how to register.
- Payment for the courses can be made through this web site via Paypal or you can complete a registration form and mail it to us along with a personal check. You can also pay in person at our shop where we accept VISA, MC, and American Express, check or cash.
- Enroll in the following courses:
- Guitar & Bass Setup and Maintenance
Guitar and Bass Setup & Electronics Weekend Seminar
Tube Amp Building Weekend Seminar
- To receive prompt notification when any new courses are offered, please sign up for our email newsletter (see below).
- Go here to view the school schedule for a complete listing of the classes we offer including both full and open sessions.
- Please email Specimen Guitar Shop or call 773.489.4830 with any questions you may have about the school.