MagicFluke Flea vs other polycarbonates

[rumdood]

I was playing around outside with the kids the other day and one of them asked to see my ukulele (my sub-$100 Donner laminate) and they promptly dropped it. No substantial damage - just some scuffing on the headstock - but it really made me start thinking about something a bit more "fooling around with the kids outside" safe.

So many people seem to really love the Flea - and the one time I got to play one I found it immensely comfortable. But I'm wondering about whether it's 2x-3x better than an Enya Nova or Flight UTS since the price is definitely much steeper. I have yet to run into a Nova or UTS "in the wild" to even try out. I have tried out the Flight TUS and wasn't very taken with it - thought it sounded a bit thin and cheap.

Anyone here have any strong feelings on whether the Flea quality is worth the extra spend - especially considering how much more you get with the aforementioned alternatives?

 

[badhabits]

Polycarbonate/ABS/plastic uke can still get scuffed and gashed if dropped on rough concrete. Novas sound good, and Flight TUS/TUSL/TUCs have a strong following and sound akin to Fleas (the UTS seems to be rare in the US). Those 2 still have wood tops and the Fleas/Flukes still have wooden necks and headstocks so they are not immune from damage. But you've already got a scuffed Donner; why not just use that an your "fooling around with the kids outside" uke?

 

[Plonky-tonk]

Buy a couple $35 Kala Waterman ukes for the kids, and play your Donner with them?

 

[EDW]

I do think the Flea is worth the cost. They are very good instruments in all respects. Years back I did have a Flight travel uke. I think the Flea is a MUCH better instrument.

 

[kkimura]

Those Enya Carbon (really polycarbonate) ukes are a good value.

 

[jimavery]

I'm very impressed with my Ortega "Keiki" soprano, which has an ABS body and wood (laminate I guess) soundboard. Action and intonation are both great at the price. I've never heard a Flea or Fluke live so wouldn't know how it compares.

 

[badhabits]

I'm very impressed with my Ortega "Keiki" soprano, which has an ABS body and wood (laminate I guess) soundboard. Action and intonation are both great at the price. I've never heard a Flea or Fluke live so wouldn't know how it compares.

I thought those were ok, nice to have metal frets...baz hated it IIRC.

 

[rumdood]

Polycarbonate/ABS/plastic uke can still get scuffed and gashed if dropped on rough concrete. Novas sound good, and Flight TUS/TUSL/TUCs have a strong following and sound akin to Fleas (the UTS seems to be rare in the US). Those 2 still have wood tops and the Fleas/Flukes still have wooden necks and headstocks so they are not immune from damage. But you've already got a scuffed Donner; why not just use that an your "fooling around with the kids outside" uke?

This is, of course, true and the most rational option that I am sure my wife will counter me with when I bring up the idea of getting a travel uke and try to cover up UAS as "Well, it's so the kids won't ruin a wooden one."

 

[man0a]

I've never tried a MagicFluke. The company seems to have a good reputation for quality and customer service. When those instruments first came out, they were probably worth the price. Now days, the plastic Enyas and Flights are really good for the price ($40 to $60). MagicFluke (also Outdoor Ukulele) are probably better, but not 5 times better. My only real complaint about Enya and Flight is that the plastic frets don't feel as accurate to me as metal frets and they do wear out with regular play.

Alex @ SUS made this video about the Enya and Flight plastic ukuleles:

 

[rumdood]

I've never tried a MagicFluke. The company seems to have a good reputation for quality and customer service. When those instruments first came out, they were probably worth the price. Now days, the plastic Enyas and Flights are really good for the price ($40 to $60). MagicFluke (also Outdoor Ukulele) are probably better, but not 5 times better. My only real complaint about Enya and Flight is that the plastic frets don't feel as accurate to me as metal frets and they do wear out with regular play.

Alex @ SUS made this video about the Enya and Flight plastic ukuleles:

These are some of my concerns about the Enya and Flight pollies. But that's also why I'm leaning towards the Nova U Pro tenor, which comes with metal, semi-hemi frets.

Obviously I just need to find a way to get my hands on a Nova U Pro and try it out to compare to the Flea I've tried. I LOVE the neck on the Flea. I'm a little trepidatious on the tuners - but that's inexperience more than anything else.

 

[jimavery]

I thought those were ok, nice to have metal frets...baz hated it IIRC.

I didn't read it... https://www.gotaukulele.com/2022/01/keiki-k2-soprano-ukulele-review.html ... I have now though. I suppose it's mostly fair but really the tone is fine given that it's only £60, and I don't have any sharp frets (I happily play barre chords up and down the fretboard for hours on end). I own two supposedly "better" ukes but choose to play the Keiki most of the time both at home and at lessons and jams.

I also own a Keiki sopranino which I also unlike Baz think is great for the price, especially if you tune it to suit the scale length to ADF#B or even better CFAD. It's all laminate though, so probably off-topic for this thread.

 

[badhabits]

here's another :

Ortega Keiki K2-MAH soprano review

I happened upon this one recently while looking for a Flight/Flea/Outdoor alternative. Apparently, these have been around since 2020, and the range has expanded since. They seem to be kinda rare in the US, MSRP as best I can tell is $69.99 for the K2s. My observations/comments below, including...

forum.ukuleleunderground.com

 

[bilbo56]

These are some of my concerns about the Enya and Flight pollies. But that's also why I'm leaning towards the Nova U Pro tenor, which comes with metal, semi-hemi frets.

Obviously I just need to find a way to get my hands on a Nova U Pro and try it out to compare to the Flea I've tried. I LOVE the neck on the Flea. I'm a little trepidatious on the tuners - but that's inexperience more than anything else.

Check out Baz's review of the Nova U Pro tenor, if you haven't. I really like mine, but never played a Flea or Fluke.

 

[Just a fan]

RE: Magic Fluke... There's something to be said about supporting a small, US company. Just saying...

 

[Bill Sheehan]

RE: Magic Fluke... There's something to be said about supporting a small, US company. Just saying...

If I may bounce an additional thought off of yours, Justafan, I've had a few Flight TUS-35's (still have my orange one, as everyone should have an orange uke!), and I've also had several Fleas, both soprano and concert scale. The Flights are very decent. But a standard-issue soprano Flea is just really hard to beat, both in build quality and in sound quality. Definitely worth the higher cost, in my view.

 

[EDW]

RE: Magic Fluke... There's something to be said about supporting a small, US company. Just saying...

Yes, they are nice folks as well. As a bit of background-the fluke/flea instruments entered the scene as the uke popularity started booming. There were not many ukes out there that were worth playing. Many were plainly junk and sold by retailers almost as an afterthought. Many were poorly made, perhaps overbuilt, with lousy action and terrible sound and intonation.

The folks at Magic Fluke carved out a great niche, providing an instrument that was really well made, easy to play and with great action and intonation. While they don't sound quite like a solid wood instrument, they sound really good and have great projection. They are very consistent and you can count on every one being good. They are also incredibly durable and hold up really well to any abuse and are great travel instruments.

They are a joy to play and after all, isn't the uke supposed to be fun?

 

[UkingViking]

I have an "all the frills" Koa Tenor Fluke, and what is either a rebranding or a knockoff of an Enya Nova Concert. It looks the same, but was called something else at Thomann.

The Nova sounds surprisingly good for a plastic uke. And the small size is great for travel.

The Fluke has a unique sound with a huge sustain, making me sometimes pick it over more expensive ukes. It sounds good, and not just for a uke with some plastic parts. The rounded back and the almost square neck profile takes some getting used to though.

I would not let careless children play with my Fluke. It doesnt seem that indestructable.
For a total beater I would go for the Nova, or just that laminate uke you have which has already taken some damage.

 

[EDW]

I would not let careless children play with my Fluke. It doesnt seem that indestructable.
For a total beater I would go for the Nova, or just that laminate uke you have which has already taken some damage.

I would not expect the koa or spruce solid tops to be as durable as the standard laminate hoop pine top. I think the laminate version may not have the "sparkle" of the koa tops. It is a trade off, depending on your needs

 

[CPG]

I would not let careless children play with my Fluke. It doesnt seem that indestructable.
For a total beater I would go for the Nova, or just that laminate uke you have which has already taken some damage.

I leave my laminate top, wood fretboard w/ pegheds flea out in my living room. The kids play with it, it gets knocked over, and one time my two-year-old stood on it with his full weight (though I did take him off very quickly). You are correct that I wouldn’t treat it as a total beater, but my very high energy 2.5 and 6 year olds haven’t done any damage to it. I guess the fact that it’s not a total beater is what I like about it. I can leave it out and not worry about it or worry about the kids messing with it, but when I pick it up and play it, it feels and sounds like a nice instrument. To each their own of course and I totally get why some folks wouldn’t want to spend that on what they will use as a beater. Just commenting because, again I like that it fills of niche of being somewhat able to treat it like a beater while not feeling or sounding like a beater.

 

[Mercury59]

I do think the Flea is worth the cost. They are very good instruments in all respects. Years back I did have a Flight travel uke. I think the Flea is a MUCH better instrument.

Agreed, I have a Flight Travel long-neck soprano, and it's nowhere in the same league as my Flea.