Old Kamaka ukulele

[richntacoma]

My impression is that the Gold Label from 50 years ago sells for less than a new Kamaka. Since this is not a mint copy and it needs repair work, it is not worth being concerned about resale value or collectibility. Find a good luthier to do the repair work if you want to play it and own an old Kamaka. Same with the tuners. Change to Gotoh planetary tuners if you want a smooth and easy set that will not "uglify" it the way geared rabbit ear tuners might.

This!!! They are not worth a whole ton, but are amazing to play, change the turners! I had Jake put Gotoh's on my white label, and love it. I think when resellng a uke of this price range this is an upgrade. This is not rare instruments--there are many around, as amazing as they are.

 

[TerryM]

Your 'cheap Japanese' uke might be worth tons out here!

Yeah, I was going to ask who is the maker of the "cheap Japanese" uke? You know, just curious and stuff.

 

[revdocjim]

I heard back from Kamaka and they say a complete rebuild is needed. Here's their response.
___________
Hi Jim,

Thank you for your photos! This ukulele needs full repair (Taking all apart, fixing cracks, re-gluing top/back/fingerboard/bridge, refinishing & installing new strings). It will take 9-10 months(we have lots of repairs) and the estimated cost is $325.00. Shipping cost between here and Japan would be around $200.00 one way.

If you have any plans to visit Hawaii, you can drop it off and save one way shipping fee. Otherwise, you might want to contact our dealer in Japan, Kurosawa Gakki (https://kurosawagakki.com/). I hope they can help your repair.

Aloha,
Masami
__________________________
While $325 doesn't sound too bad for a complete rebuild, obviously I'm not going to spend $400 just on shipping, especially if I have to wait almost a year for them to work on it. I found a luthier not too far from me who works on and also makes high end ukuleles. He also said extensive work was needed, including refinishing and quoted a price a bit higher than Kamaka's $325. (about $375). I've reached out to the Kamaka dealer here in Japan asking for recommendations or ideas about getting it repaired locally and am waiting for a response. They are a big chain instrument store.

The cheap Japanese ukulele several folks asked about is a Zen-On. They tend to sell ukulele kits for folks who want to try their hand at making their own ukulele. The old ones sell online here for less than $50.

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

I found a luthier not too far from me who works on and also makes high end ukuleles.

Does this luthier have a website or Instagram? I'm just starting to learn about some Japanese luthiers and they do some amazing work.

I'm excited to see how your uke turns out!

 

[pondweed]

That all looks very repairable, just a seam that has opened up. Some hide glue and clamping. The top crack at the bottom bout can hopefully be mended in the same procedure.

Yes, just keep it going and playing with bare minimum of disturbance and cost, but using materials which will allow it to be safely ripped apart in years to come. Keep to Worth Lights or Martin 600s to keep the pressure off the bridge. You aren't going to be using it for stage work...

If you find that it moves or deteriorates, then contemplate the full restoration, but it probably will be absolutely fine.

 

[revdocjim]

Does this luthier have a website or Instagram? I'm just starting to learn about some Japanese luthiers and they do some amazing work.

I'm excited to see how your uke turns out!

His website is as follows: https://fsuke.com/

 

[gustophersmob]

As has already been said mentioned, with those seam separations I would not tune it to pitch. You risk further damage, including possibly splitting the wood other than the seam. The best thing to do is leave it with the strings slack until you find someone to repair it.

I would also try to maintain its present humidity without significant change. In other words, even if it is dry, I wouldn't try to humidify it until a luthier has looked it over. If the woods swell or shrink, the separations may not be as easy to line up.

If it was stored with the strings slack when the separation occurred, the seams should hopefully line up easily when it is glued and clamped together. If the strings were under tension, the separations may not line up easily, which is a job best left to a knowledgeable luthier.

Regarding the friction pegs, I personally haven't found them overly hateful once I got use to them, but I am of the opinion that instruments are made to be played, so if better quality geared tuners make it more enjoyable, then I say go for it. I'm sure gotoh UPTs have already been mentioned, but those would be my choice for a geared uke tuner. Just don't do guitar style tuners.; those "ears" sticking out on a soprano is an aesthetic atrocity

 

[revdocjim]

As has already been said mentioned, with those seam separations I would not tune it to pitch. You risk further damage, including possibly splitting the wood other than the seam. The best thing to do is leave it with the strings slack until you find someone to repair it.

I would also try to maintain its present humidity without significant change. In other words, even if it is dry, I wouldn't try to humidify it until a luthier has looked it over. If the woods swell or shrink, the separations may not be as easy to line up.

If it was stored with the strings slack when the separation occurred, the seams should hopefully line up easily when it is glued and clamped together. If the strings were under tension, the separations may not line up easily, which is a job best left to a knowledgeable luthier.

Regarding the friction pegs, I personally haven't found them overly hateful once I got use to them, but I am of the opinion that instruments are made to be played, so if better quality geared tuners make it more enjoyable, then I say go for it. I'm sure gotoh UPTs have already been mentioned, but those would be my choice for a geared uke tuner. Just don't do guitar style tuners.; those "ears" sticking out on a soprano is an aesthetic atrocity

After having it tuned to pitch and playing it for a couple days, I have now loosened the strings until I can get it looked at.
As for humidity, I don't have much control over that in my house. We live high in the mountains where winter isn't over yet and the wood burning stove is still going 24/7 so we do run little humidifiers most of the time.
This ukulele was stored (neglected and forgotten) in my neighbor's attic for several decades in a very cheap looking soft case but the strings were loose so that is the good news. And I imagine even the cheap soft case offered a good deal of protection.
The friction pegs can be somewhat challenging and I may look into the Gotoh tuners... I'll see what the luthier has to say about it.

Thanks for the good advice.

 

[merlin666]

$375 for a close to new Kamaka soprano seems like a bargain to me. All the components are there, they just need to be re-glued and finished. Possibly 1/4 of the new price? Looking at the price of used Kamakas, it also has some room for profit if you have to sell it.

The best part about getting a local luthier to help you is the experience of talking to the luthier, even if its not a long conversation. And visiting the workshop and seeing all the stuff. Also there is no transport delay or cost if you deliver it and pick it up yourself.

Indeed the rebuild price is great bargain, and probably for $100 more or so they will install new Kamaka planetary tuners and you may also want to ask for a hard case. With all that done you will end up with a better and more beautiful instrument than new Kamaka! Maybe you can save on one way of shipping if you know someone who will travel to Oahu in near future and is willing take it and drop it off in person.

 

[ghostrdr]

I would pay $375 for a vintage kamaka ukulele - I say go for it!

 

[hands_on_lanzon]

His website is as follows: https://fsuke.com/

Thanks! He has some gorgeous ukes! I surfed his YouTube videos and this was my favorite...

 

[revdocjim]

Today I visited the luthier who's link I shared above and gave him the old Kamaka. It just so happened that he was working on another almost identical Kamaka white label soprano at the same time so he has everything set up. He said it will be done in 2-3 weeks. He'll be disassembling the whole thing and putting it back together with proper inner supports etc. After tuning it and playing it for 2-3 days the top was visibly warping from the tension on the strings and the crack where the two top pieces are glued together was starting to come apart at the sound hole. Clearly this old uke needs some tlc. It was interesting talking with the luthier because in addition to making his own beautiful instruments, he works on repairing lots of older ones. He said older Hawaiian ukuleles are notorious for their sloppy construction and assembly, and often need extensive work to keep them going. He said that the ukuleles coming out of Hawaii now days are much, much better than the old ones. Nevertheless, the old ones are very popular with users so he gets lots of repair work!

 

[EDW]

That is great to hear. Yes, the older Kamakas are a little more folksy and simple in their build, but they are lovely playing and great sounding instruments.

 

[gustophersmob]

I’ve read Jake Wildwood make similar comments on his blog about old K brand ukes. Folksy build (what may be considered sloppy; I guess it’s like the patina vs rust debate, depends on if you like it) and often asymmetrical. I guess they didn’t use forms back then?

 

[rileyismycopilot]

Super cool you've found a good man to revive your new old uke. Please keep us posted when you get it back.

 

[ploverwing]

Exciting! And really cool that you've had a chance to chat with the luthier, too. I always like speaking with talented craftsmen, learning about their tools and techniques.

 

[Farkvam]

Today I visited the luthier who's link I shared above and gave him the old Kamaka. It just so happened that he was working on another almost identical Kamaka white label soprano at the same time so he has everything set up. He said it will be done in 2-3 weeks. He'll be disassembling the whole thing and putting it back together with proper inner supports etc. After tuning it and playing it for 2-3 days the top was visibly warping from the tension on the strings and the crack where the two top piece are glued together was starting to come apart at the sound hole. Clearly this old uke needs some tlc. It was interesting talking with the luthier because in addition to making his own beautiful instruments, he works on repairing lots of older ones. He said older Hawaiian ukuleles are notorious for their sloppy construction and assembly, and often need extensive work to keep them going. He said that the ukuleles coming out of Hawaii now days are much, much better than the old ones. Nevertheless, the old ones are very popular with users so he gets lots of repair work!

That‘s very interesting feedback. I recently had a chance to play my first vintage ukes including an old Hawaiian koa (perhaps a Kumalae) from the early 20th century and the on-staff luthier at the shop was remarking that older isn‘t always better. Sure enough they were all a bit sloppy in their construction and finishing touches, including a couple vintage Martins as well. I nevertheless really fell in love with those old ukes, they sounded wonderful and had bucketloads of charm.

 

[revdocjim]

That‘s very interesting feedback. I recently had a chance to play my first vintage ukes including an old Hawaiian koa (perhaps a Kumalae) from the early 20th century and the on-staff luthier at the shop was remarking that older isn‘t always better. Sure enough they were all a bit sloppy in their construction and finishing touches, including a couple vintage Martins as well. I nevertheless really fell in love with those old ukes, they sounded wonderful and had bucketloads of charm.

When you consider the fact that lots of the old Hawaiian ukes were made in very simple workshops with a minimum of tools... and when you consider the prices for which those instruments were being sold back then, it isn't surprising that they had a lot of rough edges. Nevertheless, those less than perfect ukes produced wonderful tones and I guess that's why they are still so popular.

 

[Farkvam]

When you consider the fact that lots of the old Hawaiian ukes were made in very simple workshops with a minimum of tools... and when you consider the prices for which those instruments were being sold back then, it isn't surprising that they had a lot of rough edges. Nevertheless, those less than perfect ukes produced wonderful tones and I guess that's why they are still so popular.

Agreed!

 

[baconsalad]

I watched a great PBS doc recently. The Kamaka bros admit that there were times back then when they just shut down the shop if the surf was really good, and their dad would bust them. One of then said the ukes they are making today are better than what he could have made.