Official Luthiers Forum!

Last summer I went to the CCMC music camp in the Northern California Sierras. (It's not to far from Cool, CA, home of John How.) I took a ukulele class from James Hill and it was fantastic. If you haven't heard of him you ought to check out some of his videos on YouTube. He's amazing. I had my mom's old soprano uke from the 30's. It sounds good but it's real hard to play even with average-sized hands like mine. So I decide it was time to pull out a set of plans I had gotten a couple of years ago and make my own.

Ahhh...they were soprano plans. So I made them a little bigger and made a concert size ukulele. It was a lot of fun. I have templates for guitar scale lengths so I took the 25.4" one hacked off a few frets to make it 15.2". I had some 4:1 peg tuners that I got from Brian Burns and I put them in so that the strings ramped more in line. The might drive some players crazy but I'm used to them already. I used leftover walnut from rosettes and guitars I had made for the back and sides. For the top I used some Mendocino cypress I got from a woodpile. The neck is Peruvian walnut and the binding is Macassar ebony. I decided to put in some fan braces on the top because I wasn't sure how it would hold up.


I decided to experiment with a new finish. I can't say it's my favorite but it has a lot of promise. I only used it on this ukulele so I don't know much about the acoustic properties and the top wood is not what I usually use. Anyway the finish is medium viscosity CA from the hobby store. I spread it on with a latex glove in sections working new glue into still wet sections. I had an organic vapor mask and googles. They are a must because of the fumes. Between coats I sands some with 320 gold paper. After five coats I sanded with 320 dry and then 400, 600, and 1500 wet. Then I buffed with Menzerna and finished it off with Meguiar's Swirl Remover. It took more effort than usual to level and buff but I like the quality of the finish. It seems quite thin and durable. If you want a flat finish you can omit the buffing and it looks pretty good.

Now I need to learn more about ukulele strings. If anyone knows anything about the best brands I'd appreciate the advice.

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Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com

aquila nyl-gut strings are the best. Your uke looks as amazing as your guitars. I wonder what it sounds like...

aquila nyl-gut strings are the best. Your uke looks as amazing as your guitars. I wonder what it sounds like...

Ken:
Aquila is all I use. Dr Cluck is my supplier from Ebay, same price cheaper shipping.

Bob

Thanks, Oval. It sounds pretty nice, not as loud as some but a sweet sound with some depth and a little sustain. Maybe I can find someone around here to play a sound clip for me.

_________________
Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com