Impressions of Ordering a Custom Ukulele

[hands_on_lanzon]

Happy UPDATE to the UPDATE: Drainage pipe cleared without having to repipe, so rescheduled to leave for Hawaii this Friday!

Woohoo!! Glad it worked out. I hate me some plumbing issues! And I think some plumbers are out to getcha. We had one plumber come and say they needed to dig up our entire yard... used fancy beeping equipment and found a potential block where tree roots might've broken our main line and they could only see what happened if they dig it up.

Next plumber came and cleared the blockage within an hour and had no problems since.

Lesson learned.. read reviews, get recommendations, and second opinions!!

You can always visit my ukulele any time you are in Southern California.

Any chance you and this uke will make it to the LA Ukulele Festival?

 

[DuckyI]

For you Pops aficionados, one thing I've been curious about is the use of pine for the back and sides. I have no doubt about the tonal qualities, as judged by Pop's meticulousness and listening to sound samples. But i wonder about pine being a softer wood than those usually used for backs and sides.

The most common back and side woods are all considered hard woods, I believe. Mahogany, koa, rosewood, sapele, maple, walnut, oak, etc. Unless I'm mistaken, or there is a subspecies difference, pine is much softer. I wonder if there are any concerns about how well they will hold up over time. I doubt they'd crack so much as deform their shape.

I'm sure its not an issue and that Pops likely considered it when he developed these, but I've been curious about it since learning about his preference for that wood.

There are master-built Italian double basses from the 1700s built with spruce tops and pine back and sides that are still being played in symphony orchestras around the world. And the weight of the string tension on the top of a double bass is over 200 pounds, so I suspect a dinky ukulele will age just fine!

 

[ailevin]

Any chance you and this uke will make it to the LA Ukulele Festival?

We have tickets. I haven't thought as far as which uke(s) to bring when, but it is a distinct possibility. This will be my first LA Ukulele Festival, and come to think of it, my first festival. Are there usually UU Forum meet ups?

 

[rainbow21]

I have good intentions to attend, flying down from NorCal. If it actually happens, I would be welcoming of a small informal gathering of UU members.

Not sure how to coordinate it once September arrives. Maybe a separate thread or tag onto Mitch's thread on the event.

 

[ploverwing]

I have good intentions to attend, flying down from NorCal. If it actually happens, I would be welcoming of a small informal gathering of UU members.

Not sure how to coordinate it once September arrives. Maybe a separate thread or tag onto Mitch's thread on the event.

I think a new thread in the Regional Get Togethers forum with a link to Mitch's original post in the thread starter is an excellent plan.

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

I think a new thread in the Regional Get Togethers forum with a link to Mitch's original post in the thread starter is an excellent plan.

Done!

 

[gustophersmob]

There are master-built Italian double basses from the 1700s built with spruce tops and pine back and sides that are still being played in symphony orchestras around the world. And the weight of the string tension on the top of a double bass is over 200 pounds, so I suspect a dinky ukulele will age just fine!

Yes, but the key difference is that those basses have arched tops and backs which are much stronger. Not to say that pine isn't strong enough in a flat top/back ukulele, but I don't think this comparison is enough to really say one way or the other.

 

[efiscella]

Just an FYI: The current Wows do have a slightly arched back

 

[DuckyI]

Yes, but the key difference is that those basses have arched tops and backs which are much stronger. Not to say that pine isn't strong enough in a flat top/back ukulele, but I don't think this comparison is enough to really say one way or the other.

Arched tops yes, backs no. Most of the basses from this era are flatbacks. Of course they are different: the break angle of the strings is much higher, the tailpiece spreads the weight across the whole body, there is a soundpost, etc. But double basses are extremely lightly built, and they carry over 100kg of string tension. Their structural integrity is much, much more precarious than a uke.

 

[gustophersmob]

Arched tops yes, backs no. Most of the basses from this era are flatbacks. Of course they are different: the break angle of the strings is much higher, the tailpiece spreads the weight across the whole body, there is a soundpost, etc. But double basses are extremely lightly built, and they carry over 100kg of string tension. Their structural integrity is much, much more precarious than a uke.

Oh, interesting, I didn’t know they had flat backs. That is impressive then. Pine or not, I’m guessing they had to have some decent back bracing (or very thick wood) to keep it stable.

There’s a lot of complex interaction there and usually on flat top instruments with shallow neck angles like ukuleles and steel string guitars the string tension makes it want to fold in half. The back and sides take a significant portion of that load. On a double bass, even with a flat back, the proportional load may be significantly reduced by the much greater neck angle. It would be interesting to dust off the old statics book and try to figure out the exact forces, but I don’t have a 1700’s double bass.

 

[ailevin]

I have news from Ed and Pops. There were pictures, but I’m not sure how to resize and post from my phone —perhaps Ed can post them.

The rework was a little more extensive than I realized at first. Pops sanded down the back and sides to redo the bottom banding. That meant it had to go back to be resprayed. It has had the first respray but is awaiting the second satin coat.

Pops said that @rainbow21 visited and took pictures of the Concert Wow as “further evidence that his uke is completed except for the last satin coatings.” I think Pops is much more impatient about getting it completed than I am. And I’m out of pocket for the rest of this week anyway.

 

[efiscella]

I have news from Ed and Pops. There were pictures, but I’m not sure how to resize and post from my phone —perhaps Ed can post them.

The rework was a little more extensive than I realized at first. Pops sanded down the back and sides to redo the bottom banding. That meant it had to go back to be resprayed. It has had the first respray but is awaiting the second satin coat.

Pops said that @rainbow21 visited and took pictures of the Concert Wow as “further evidence that his uke is completed except for the last satin coatings.” I think Pops is much more impatient about getting it completed than I am. And I’m out of pocket for the rest of this week anyway.

Here ya go

 

[rainbow21]

Alan, not only did I say that we would buy the ukulele back if you recall, you kept asking me to send an invoice and I did not until you saw pictures and you were happy with its development. You see, your order is the impetus to start the build, but once started, Pops is no longer just making an ukulele for you-- he is making it for himself.

Funny that you should say that... here is a paraphrased conversation around your ukulele.

Pops: Alan is a perfectionist so I am giving attention to every little detail. He has waited a long time for this as a result.

Me: Well, if there is any flaw, I will buy it. I can offer more than Alan will pay right now.

Pops: Well, I can tell this will be a cannon, even before stringing it. He has to wait some more while I finally get someone to do the finishing (insert story of unavailability of his finishers). I hope it will be soon so I can get it to Alan.

Me: It will be worth the wait.

Pops: Wouldn't it be funny if I told him that I like it so much, I will keep this one and am starting on another for him right now?

Pops was laughing heartily as he considered the "humor" here...

BTW, just the headstock is to kill for... much less the binding and the rest of it. My fingerprints will be under the finish.



Interestingly, it will be a "one off" ukulele. The rest of the group that he made this from will not become finished ukuleles.

Also, Pops spent two hours giving a concert and "talk story" time for five of us that were there! That was a "one off" too!

 

[badhabits]

My fingerprints will be under the finish

LOL

 

[ailevin]

Thanks for the report and photo @rainbow21. The concert size looks gigantic compared to my soprano.

Pops: Alan is a perfectionist so I am giving attention to every little detail. He has waited a long time for this as a result.

I’m not sure exactly how I created this impression, but I guess it’s a not the worst impression to leave with a fine craftsman.

The triple banded ebony/koa/ebony has been a challenge since the early prototypes. It is painstaking and time consuming work. Pops wanted the Concert Wow to match the lovely Soprano he already made for me. I don’t think that this banding will be a standard feature.

 

[ailevin]

We are back home and Ed reports that the Concert Wow is nearing completion. It got the second satin finish yesterday. Assuming it all looks good, Pops is going to string it today. I asked him to start with high G set, but I also order a low G set of strings. I am sure I will experiment with both early on.

I am excited to finally get my hands on this uke, but I also know that there can still be bumps in the road. If I remember right, Pops wasn't happy with the bridge placement on my soprano and decided to move it and retouch the finish. However, I don't recall that it was a major delay.

 

[efiscella]

If I remember right, Pops wasn't happy with the bridge placement on my soprano and decided to move it and retouch the finish. However, I don't recall that it was a major delay.

 

[efiscella]

Alan, it was not a major delay but it was the same kind of repair. Pops removed the bridge, sanded the entire face of the soprano Wow, reattached the bridge and then sent to be sprayed. Pops' part of it is one day, same as for the Concert. Where it gets delayed is in the spray room but for the soprano, it was sprayed right away.

 

[ailevin]

Yesterday I got two email messages from Ed and Pops. The first was titled Photos to show Alan, and the second was titled Finished Concert. Let's start with the pictures of the ukulele from the first email:

 

[ailevin]

The second email, Finished Concert, might have been title Concert Finished, But ... . Ed said that the finished instrument looked terrific, and that Pops loved the sound, but he (Pops) was worried about something. To be more precise, Pops was worried about how I would feel about something. There are a couple small pukas or pinhole imperfections in the finish associated with the triple layered banding along the sides of the ukulele.

They sent along this closeup picture:


Apparently it has to do with any slight unevenness of the glue holding the multiple layers together. Pops said the issue is very hard to detect before spraying even if things look perfect. I believe that this same issue caused the previous rework of sanding down the sides and back and the associated the delay getting it resprayed.

Pops said he was happy to sand it down and try respraying again if that was what I wanted. He also offered the ukulele as is at a discount that included a hard cases for both the concert and my soprano. It's clear that Pops was torn because he really doesn't want to disappoint me and he also really doesn't want to further delay getting the ukulele to me. Ed shared the following Q&A with Pops:

"I asked him to switch roles and I asked what he would do if he was paying over $1,000 for a handmade instrument. He said, 'Without question, I would take it because it is acoustically perfect. For me, sound is everything, but I understand that looks are important to people. You can buy a $300 made-in-China ukulele that looks beautiful but it does not sing. For me, it is all about the sound.'"​

​

After thinking about it for a couple hours, my decision was clear, though others might make a different choice. Below is a quote from my response to Ed.

"These pukas seem like this is something he could be chasing after for some time with no guarantees that the next sanding and spraying would do the trick. He has put so much time and effort into this instrument, I hate to see him chasing that, and I'd rather not wait.​

​

Sound and playability are my priorities. If the acoustics and playability (setup, intonation etc.) are up to Pops's high standards, then I can live with the pukas. When he says it is ready acoustically, it is ready. My bond with my soprano, and my admiration for Pops's craftsmanship come from the way the instrument plays--the way it feels in my hands and the wonderful tone I can draw from it.​

​

Including the two hard cases is more than enough compensation for any minor cosmetic flaws, and I appreciate the offer."​

The ukulele is due here Monday June 19.