About Me

Bob Sorace is a lifelong musician, craftsman, and certified guitar repair technician with over four decades of experience playing guitar and more than 25 years dedicated to building, repairing, and restoring instruments. A graduate of the Southeast Guitar Repair Academy, Bob holds a Guitar Repair Technician Certification and is currently working toward his Master’s Guitar Repair Luthier Certification, continuing to refine his expertise and dedication to the craft he’s loved since childhood.

Bob’s passion for guitars began back in 1984, when a twelve-year-old kid, inspired by the electrifying energy of Motley Crue and guitar legend Eddie Van Halen, picked up his very first instrument—a Mako Traditional TB-1. True to his curious and hands-on nature, he immediately began taking the guitar apart, learning how it worked, and modifying it to his liking. Though that original guitar has changed over the years (only the neck remains from the original build), it still holds a special place in his heart as a reminder of where it all began.

After chasing his rockstar dreams, Bob’s journey took an unexpected but rewarding turn when he landed a job at Flagstaff Music Center in Flagstaff, Arizona. There, he discovered his true calling in guitar tech work—learning the fundamentals of setups, fretwork, and even stringed orchestral instruments like violins and cellos. Though life eventually led him back to the Phoenix area and a so-called “real job,” the spark for building and repairing instruments never went out.

In the mid-1990s, Bob dove headfirst into the world of lutherie, teaching himself how to build guitars from scratch. Armed with Melvin Hiscock’s iconic book Make Your Own Electric Guitar (borrowed from his local library—remember those?), he constructed six guitars, selling three of them. While family life and costs temporarily slowed his building ventures, his creative spirit found a new outlet in recording and performing. Over the years, Bob played guitar on several indie albums, released his own music, and even lent his vocals to a track featured in the delightfully campy B-horror film Hubcap.

Now, with decades of experience under his belt and a renewed focus on his passion, Bob has come full circle. As the owner and craftsman behind San Tan Valley Guitar Repair, he’s dedicated to providing high-quality guitar setup, repair, and custom work to musicians across the Southeast Valley. Whether it’s breathing new life into a vintage instrument or fine-tuning a modern shred machine, Bob brings meticulous craftsmanship, deep technical knowledge, and a lifelong love of guitars to every job.

He’s not just fixing instruments—he’s preserving the stories, sounds, and soul that live within them.