New Uke Day (NUD) Kanile’a ISL T Sand

[mlolya]

So, in an earlier post I was trying to decide what K Uke I was going to get for my first step into the world of Hawaiian ukuleles.
I hunted around and finally found this:
Kanile’a ISL T Premium

However, unlike most of the instruments in this series the inlay of the Hawaiian Islands on the top is not inlaid in Abalone but in sand, which I discovered is from Kailua Beach near where Kanile’a makes its ukuleles.
I wondered if Kanile’a made a lot of these, so I sent an email to them asking about the sand edition and got the following response:

“Aloha Michael, what an amazing find! The sand models were very rarely produced so you definitely have a beautiful and unique instrument.”

I have some very nice ukuleles, but this is my first Hawaiian and I was absolutely shocked at how beautiful and finely made this instrument is.
And it sounds luxurious!

It was purchased from Gryphon Strings in Palo Alto CA and they were a pleasure to deal with. Packing and shipping were superb.

All in all this was a great experience!

 

[rhiggie]

Most unusual and great contrast with that killer Koa! Congrats!

 

[Kenn2018]

The inlaid Islands look great. A nice touch to an already excellent tenor.

 

[badhabits]

Nice, congrats!
But sand from the islands?!

 

[mlolya]

Nice, congrats!
But sand the the islands?!

Yeah, weird right? Even the fret markers are sand, the side dots too! Apparently the idea was that you could carry a little piece of Hawaii around with you. I understand that the sand is from Kailua Beach. It’s really nicely done completely smooth and covered by the finish.
Kanile’a offers a sand inlay of the headstock logo as a custom option on their higher level instruments. Funny though, this one’s logo looks like spalted maple.
I guess they didn’t make many with the sand inlay. I’ve only seen one other, a concert, on the internet.
It goes nicely with the Koa and gives the instrument a kind of unique quality.

 

[badhabits]

I guess it ain't lava rock or black sand...

 

[frets alot]

Beautiful, congratulations!

 

[DownUpDave]

That really is a gorgeous ukulele with some premium koa. I love how the front and back are from the same block of koa. I have seen many other all koa ukes where the front and back are quite different and it bugs me. Enjoy it and glad to hear you love the sound as well