Learning about a Rare 3K Taropatch treasure

[Sunhunter]

Hi,

We inherited a little ukulele in a dusty case. Knowing nothing about it and dealing with Covid and kids we put it on a shelf for a couple years.

Recently I pulled it out and was surprised to learn that it is a rare 3K Taropatch in excellent condition. One of 93 or 11? Ever made.

I have been doing a lot of search on it and learned a lot, but I am still not confident that I should even clean it or fix it. It's a bit overwhelming to go down the rabbit hole of something so unfamiliar and I have already encountered people trying to take it off my hands for a low ball price who hope I am an idiot.

I Dont play well - I Dont think well enough to do this special instrument justice- and I feel like it should be in a museum. I love music and I appreciate fine well made things, but...

As you can see I could use some guidance and advice on this. I've attached a few pictures - I didn't clean it up at all but I'm certain it is Koa.

Please send me any advice you have to offer.

I had trouble attaching the photos. No matter what I did they wouldn't attach saying “too big” so I had to wing it and took a screen shot of a video. You can tell me how to do this here or maybe Email me for better photos.

Gratefully,

Terry Taylor

 

[ploverwing]

Welcome to UU! That's pretty nifty. I know nothing about ukes, lol, other than basics. Hopefully someone with the know will chime in on this. I'll see if I can find a better venue for your question and maybe crosslink to here, to make sure you get the traffic to help you with your quest.

 

[merlin666]

Those were high end instruments in the day that some of the main Hollywood celebrities were playing. Do you know if it was owned by a famous person? As there may be demand from collectors it would definitely be worthwhile to get a quote for restoration.

 

[Sunhunter]

Welcome to UU! That's pretty nifty. I know nothing about ukes, lol, other than basics. Hopefully someone with the know will chime in on this. I'll see if I can find a better venue for your question and maybe crosslink to here, to make sure you get the traffic to help you with your quest.

Thank you! I appreciate the guidance!

 

[Sunhunter]

Those were high end instruments in the day that some of the main Hollywood celebrities were playing. Do you know if it was owned by a famous person? As there may be demand from collectors it would definitely be worthwhile to get a quote for restoration.

I have not determined the original owner yet but I am working on it. I do know it was give to my husbands grandpa, Norman Sanborn by his mother who got from her sister-( neither played it so it's been basically stored) Ruth Carson. Ruth Carson was the daughter of Charles and Frances ( King) Morrell. That's as far as I got but there's lots of historical societies here in New Hamshire so I plan to keep researching.

I brought it to Peter Stokes who was well known in Boston but now works out of Newburyport Ma. He quoted $300 to completely set up. It has a slight lift at the neck and is missing the back of one tuning peg. That’s about it.

It's quite an adventure!

 

[Sunhunter]

I think you should pay for the set-up and play it in your music room and keep it. You can have other instruments to take out of the house to play. Who cares whether or not you "do it justice"? You will get better at playing it over the years. You could even pay for some lessons to get better. Instead of being afraid of damaging it or what others might say about your playing, you could just do your best to enjoy owning it and playing it.

If you do not need the money, a collector or a museum may or may not treat it the way you hope. I have travelled a lot in Australia, there are museums all over the place. Any musical instruments are locked up in cabinets and rarely played and the volunteers who run the museum get upset if you even look at the instruments. If you want to see the instrument used and enjoyed, keep it and teach your family how to use it an enjoy it by using it an enjoying it. If they are old enough to be trusted, let them hold it and learn about it and how to care for it.

A collector may or may not want to play it, if it part of the collectors retirement fund, it is going to be locked away so it can't lose any financial value by being damaged or worn.

So instead of being so worried about how beautiful and fragile it seems to be, get over that feeling, get it set up and play it in your music space in your house, and share it (carefully) with your family. Learn about it and keep a scrap book with it to store the information you find. Unless you really need the money.

This is just my suggestion. I am no expert and just an ordinary UU member.

Thank you, Bill! I may do just that! Thank you for the encouragement! That was unexpected and truly appreciated! I have been dying to see what it sounds like! I also had not considered what happens to them at a museum. Maybe I will let this be the foundation for some major personal development in music!

 

[SongbirdUSA]

Welcome to the forum!
Very very cool!!

 

[Patrick Madsen]

Thank you, Bill! I may do just that! Thank you for the encouragement! That was unexpected and truly appreciated! I have been dying to see what it sounds like! I also had not considered what happens to them at a museum. Maybe I will let this be the foundation for some major personal development in music!

Welcome Sun; it looks like a high quality uke without a doubt. The binding and detail on the lower end shows a higher end instrument and looks like koa for the body. Are there any names like Martin or Gibson? Whatever; for myself, I would have it reconditioned and keep and learn to play it. Just the family heritage alone is worth three hundred dollars. You'd get a better price if it was returned to playing condition. But, I doubt you'd be willing to pay for another of it's caliber and would lose the mojo instilled with family history.

Is there a case that came with it? If you'd take a photo of the headstock and case along with any identifying marks, that'd help bigtime. Too me it looks like style 3 or even a 5 Martin.

 

[Jan D]

Terry, you don’t need to play well to do the instrument justice. You just need to make it part of your musical life and enjoy the journey it will take you on.

 

[stevejfc]

Welcome Sunhunter!

 

[TBB]

That’s absolutely lovely! According to the Walsh/King Martin ukulele book they stopped making their 3k taropatch in 1930, I wonder if it’s been in your family since it was new. What a wonderful heirloom.

Personally I wouldn’t hesitate to spend considerably more than $300 to get it back into playing condition. And then I’d play it! I bet it sounds terrific, I’d love to hear it.

Oh, and welcome to UU!

 

[Sunhunter]

I think you should pay for the set-up and play it in your music room and keep it. You can have other instruments to take out of the house to play. Who cares whether or not you "do it justice"? You will get better at playing it over the years. You could even pay for some lessons to get better. Instead of being afraid of damaging it or what others might say about your playing, you could just do your best to enjoy owning it and playing it.

If you do not need the money, a collector or a museum may or may not treat it the way you hope. I have travelled a lot in Australia, there are museums all over the place. Any musical instruments are locked up in cabinets and rarely played and the volunteers who run the museum get upset if you even look at the instruments. If you want to see the instrument used and enjoyed, keep it and teach your family how to use it an enjoy it by using it an enjoying it. If they are old enough to be trusted, let them hold it and learn about it and how to care for it.

A collector may or may not want to play it, if it part of the collectors retirement fund, it is going to be locked away so it can't lose any financial value by being damaged or worn.

So instead of being so worried about how beautiful and fragile it seems to be, get over that feeling, get it set up and play it in your music space in your house, and share it (carefully) with your family. Learn about it and keep a scrap book with it to store the information you find. Unless you really need the money.

This is just my suggestion. I am no expert and just an ordinary UU member.

Thank you, Bill! I may do just that! Thank you for the encouragement! That was unexpected and truly appreciated! I have been dying to see what it sounds like! I also had not considered what happens to them at a museum. Maybe I will let this be the foundation for some major personal development in music!

Welcome Sun; it looks like a high quality uke without a doubt. The binding and detail on the lower end shows a higher end instrument and looks like koa for the body. Are there any names like Martin or Gibson? Whatever; for myself, I would have it reconditioned and keep and learn to play it. Just the family heritage alone is worth three hundred dollars. You'd get a better price if it was returned to playing condition. But, I doubt you'd be willing to pay for another of it's caliber and would lose the mojo instilled with family history.

Is there a case that came with it? If you'd take a photo of the headstock and case along with any identifying marks, that'd help bigtime. Too me it looks like style 3 or even a 5 Martin.

 

[Sunhunter]

Thank you, Bill! I may do just that! Thank you for the encouragement! That was unexpected and truly appreciated! I have been dying to see what it sounds like! I also had not considered what happens to them at a museum. Maybe I will let this be the foundation for some major personal development in music!

It has a hard case with purple lining. The Martin name on inside and back of neck. I had a photo-only appraisal done and they confirmed it was a rare 3K Martin from 1924-29 in excellent condition and gave me estimated value of $3500. I love the idea of keeping it but truth-be-told I am very clumsy and older and my fingers have become stiff and crooked from arthritis. I do love the encouragement to keep it. I am going to set it up and try it out. I found someone in Vermont who says he might have the exact missing tuning peg ( back) !! Once I have that and figure out what strings to put on it then we will see! It is an adventure!

 

[Sunhunter]

It has a hard case with purple lining. The Martin name on inside and back of neck. I had a photo-only appraisal done and they confirmed it was a rare 3K Martin from 1924-29 in excellent condition and gave me estimated value of $3500. I love the idea of keeping it but truth-be-told I am very clumsy and older and my fingers have become stiff and crooked from arthritis. I do love the encouragement to keep it. I am going to set it up and try it out. I found someone in Vermont who says he might have the exact missing tuning peg ( back) !! Once I have that and figure out what strings to put on it then we will see! It is an adventure!

That was to Patrick I am a little challenged!

 

[Sunhunter]

Terry, you don’t need to play well to do the instrument justice. You just need to make it part of your musical life and enjoy the journey it will take you on.

Thank you Jan! I am surprised by and appreciate the encouragement!

 

[ploverwing]

Thank you Jan! I am surprised by and appreciate the encouragement!

The crew here on UU are nothing if not encouraging. They are so full of sharing and generosity, with their knowledge, wisdom, enthusiasm, and support, it's a great place to be if you've any interest in ukulele at all. Thanks for including us in this story, it is fascinating, and I'm so looking forward to following with you on this journey.

 

[StumptownUke]

You might also check with Jake Wildwood who is over in Vermont. He has a wealth of knowledge about old instruments and repairs all kinds of Ukes. Many here use his services to fix up their vintage finds.

https://jakewildwood.blogspot.com/?m=1