uke builds two, three and four

[colburge]

Hi all

It has been a while between drinks, in fact over a year since I posted my first build. I managed to get into the shed and build these 3, one after the other. I made so many mistakes on each of them, I wouldn't be able to list them all, but came up with fixes. The mistakes will be obvious to you guys, but I don't care as I am still learning. They are all braced differently or are different in some way, but they all sound pretty much the same, which surprised me a bit. My first build made from native olive and spruce is the only one that sounds appreciably better, due to the spruce I think.

Number one is an all Blackwood with ebonised Silkyoak bindings, Qld maple neck and abalone rosette.
Number two is a Tiger Myrtle with Douglas Fir soundboard (I think), maple bindings, abalone purfling and Silkyoak neck.
Number three is Cocobolo with a blackwood soundboard, unknown bindings and rope purfling, Silkyoak neck.

All finished in tru-oil, all Tenors.

Time to move onto some guitars now, I have had Trevor and Gerards' book for over a year now, so time to put them to good use.

Cheers

Col

[56nortondomy]

Very nice Col, looks as if you've used the last year very wisely. Wayne

[GregL]

Hi Col,

They all look good!
What is the fingerboard timber on the all blackwood one?

Thanks,
GregL.

[maurie]

Nice looking little ukes Col,
That tru oil finish is magnificent (pic 2 and 3) You must know something I don't in relation to the application of it.
Cheers Maurice

[colburge]

Hi Col,

They all look good!
What is the fingerboard timber on the all blackwood one?

Thanks,
GregL.

I think it might be Wandoo, I bought it ages ago from TimS, and am not positive.

Nice looking little ukes Col,
That tru oil finish is magnificent (pic 2 and 3) You must know something I don't in relation to the application of it.
Cheers Maurice

I put on lots of coats and rubbed it back in between with a scotchbrite, like other finishes. The last 2 coats were put on very thin, I just put a few drops on the surface and used a brush dipped in a little turps to spread it, didn't seem to leave brush marks.

Cheers Col

[Jeremy D]

Great job, I love the contrast between the three.

[soulman]

Nice one Col. I mean three. Luv the Cocobolo

[johnparchem]

Great looking set of ukuleles. How does the fir top sound compare to the blackwood?

[colburge]

Great looking set of ukuleles. How does the fir top sound compare to the blackwood?

Thanks - I was just playing them this morning and the fir definitely sounds better than the blackwood, it is louder and has more sustain.

Cheers

Col

[charangohabsburg]

Great work Col, these are some beautiful ukes!

Did you do the ebonising of those bindings? If so, which method did you apply?

[colburge]

Great work Col, these are some beautiful ukes!

Did you do the ebonising of those bindings? If so, which method did you apply?

Thanks and I did ebonise them myself using the usual technique of steel wool and vinegar - they only took a few hours to go that colour.

Cheers

Col

[charangohabsburg]

Thanks Col. It's good to know which woods work well with this technique.