JL Woodwind Repair

If I could give 10/5 stars I would. John at JL woodwinds is truly an outstanding human being. First, is his customer service skills. He never stopped responding to my messages, always left no stone unturned, and made sure that I was satisfied. Along side that, is his professional attitude for the way he runs his business. He makes sure his product and his work makes his customers happy and it really makes the difference. John helped me pick out a new tenor, and I decided on an Ishimori new vintage tenor. We had a long, extensive conversation about what will be right for me. Typically, jumping into a new saxophone especially one you haven’t played can be a big deal and scary. But John made it a breeze and made all my worries go away. I bought my new horn from him which I absolutely love and it was delivered to me quite literally the next day. It was packed really safely and setup by him to ensure that it was playing perfectly which it was. The fact that he takes time out of his day to and sure his customers are satisfied truly makes for a fantastic experience and sets him aside from any other shop not only in NYC but the whole “saxophone shop” market. Whether you are buying a new horn, or just getting some work done to your current setup; John is the man to see and his shop is the place to be for reliable, high quality saxophone-needs! I can’t recommend enough!

11/10! I bought a vintage tenor from John and it is just unbelievable. He laid out about 15 horns for me to try and let me have a field day going back and forth between them for hours. He knew all the little ins and outs of every instrument, knew which horns would complement my sound, was super patient and helpful. I ended up picking an incredible vintage instrument and he did an expert job at overhauling it. He shipped it extremely carefully packed! by FedEx, and provided extra support over text to get it playing exactly the way I like. He's a repair wizard. The horn is a dream. Can't recommend this shop highly enough!

Can’t say enough about this guy! Been buying and playing saxophones for 40 years. The time and interest John spends with his clients is immeasurable! Service is excellent. Horn truly shipped the next day and best secure wrapping job I ever saw in my years. Bert

I can't say enough good things about John. I have been looking to buy a Mark VI tenor for years, but had a very tight budget for it. After sending John an email explaining what I was looking for he told me he would let me know as soon as something came in that match my criteria. Once the horn came in, John sent me an email about it along with his play test video. John even talked to me for about 30 minutes to make sure all my questions were answered about the horn. Before shipping out the horn John went through it top to bottom to make sure there was nothing wrong with it. I honestly don't know if it's just the horn or if John just did that good of a job setting the horn up, but it's the best tenor I have ever played! Best customer service experience I have ever had, can't wait to do more business with John in the future.

Mr. Leadbetter’s knowledge of and passion for saxophones is truly without rival. Beyond helping me find a new horn, he was willing to offer advice down to the most specific level. His service is the reason for his stellar reviews and recommendations from the best. He is understanding of the musician’s situation and is always glad to help.

John is the best around. He has a vast array of horns in his iconic shop. He is super helpful, and will help you find the perfect horn, while making adjustments along the way to make the horn comfortable for you, personally. He is the best repairman, and works with meticulous detail. Every horn he touches plays beautifully. There is no one like him.

Got John's name as a referral. I had a Selmer MARK VI tenor to sell. We met and I checked out what he told me. I'm haven't been in the loop for several decades. Went back the next week and brought him my horn. It was sold before he could even post it. EVERYTHING HONEST AND EXTREMELY FAST. Took less than a week from giving him my horn to receiving the money. If you have a woodwind to sell and want an honest place to deal with see JL WOODWINDS

Great Experience!!! John is really knowledgeable and enthusiastic about his craft. We came to a good square deal on a great vintage horn. I'm 100% happy with my experience.

John is an incredible technician, player and teacher of the saxophone! I got a custom horn from him and it plays so effortless and sounds so warm. With the un-lacquered finish and subtle dragon etching, It's absolutely gorgeous and everyone comments on how nice it is as soon as they see it. And once they hear it, they're in love. And his lessons are spot on too. He really has a command over the instrument and knows exactly how to impart his knowledge in easy to understand pieces. As a beginner it's important to make sure you're on the right path in terms of learning and John has the patience and experience to make sure you're learning exactly what you need to.

Patient, kind, meticulous, passionate and knowledgeable- Truly the best in the world. Fair billing and he let me watch the whole time, describing exactly what he was doing. He can also play! Flew all the way out just to meet with John. I brought my new SBA. He was quick to find the problems and show me what was causing the leaks. He listened to what I worried about and resolved those issues. I was able to watch him swedge the keys, fit them perfectly, adjust every bumper meticulously to remove lost motion, etc. When he was done, it was the best playing set-up I have ever had. I was also able to try his custom line of horns and discuss those and his necks. John's passion for perfection is shown in his saxophones.