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Original Post By:
Rob Uker
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Date: 4/9/2015 9:45:40 AM
(Updated: 4/9/2015 1:37:55 PM)
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I'm an awful guitar player but love to make music. The simplicity of the ukulele has given me the opportunity to grow as a musician in ways that I never could have as a guitar player.
I'm also a pretty handy guy but I always felt that building instruments required special skills and complicated tools and that the process of building an instrument was beyond the capabilities of an ordinary tinkerer like myself.
Well , a few years ago I felt brave and made my first attempt at a ukulele and was surprised to discover that with common sense and ordinary tools I was able to build a crude but playable ukulele over a weekend. It also sounded pretty good.
Since then I've built over 30 instruments. The designs got better, I amassed a better tool collection and the end result got better too.
I was wondering If anyone else on the BB has been building or is thinking about taking on the challenge of building there own ukulele. |
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Posted By:
Dave in Petaluma
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Date: 4/15/2015 4:45:46 PM |
I've been rescuing ukuleles for the past dozen years. Not full time, usually during flurries of activity. Only built one from scratch. It looked like a flying saucer with a uke stick fretboard attached. It self destructed on the first flight. That was because I had it double strung, one side of each string going down the hollow neck and seen through the lucite fret board. My plan was to light up each of the strings with an led. After many hours learning to work with plastics. I had it up and playing, but no lights. It self destructed on the first flight. The double string tension cracked the body near the neck joint. Now I just do rescue projects on instruments that I deem worthy of singing again. I have some rescued old growth redwood that when I get it resawed, I'll make a totally redwood (North Coast) ukulele.
Meanwhile I have at least a dozen vintage ukuleles that are waiting to sing.
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Posted By:
Rob Uker
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Date: 4/16/2015 12:37:58 PM |
I'd love to see a picture of some of these, especially the flying saucer.
I tried to build a copy of a Risa tenor and had similar issues with string tension. I should have made a soprano.
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Posted By:
Dave in Petaluma
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Date: 4/20/2015 5:21:55 PM |
All the was left after the crash of the saucer and a move is the neck. I may have some plans somewhere.
Hope someday to resaw boards of dark old growth Redwood. They are 16 X 7/8 X 6 feet. I would prefer to keep the 16 inch width when sawing. So far it looks like I'll have to construct a hand saw to do the deed. AT 72 I may not be up to it.
One always dreams.
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