Review added to thread below for PukanaLa Fiberglass Hardshell Case - Any Good? Ok, twist my arm and force me to buy one;)

[SkeeterAB]

I have been looking for a good fiberglass hardshell case that is less expensive than a Crossrock. I found some

PukanaLa Model White Concert Ukulele Fiberglass Hardshell Cases​

online that are a little over half the cost of an equivalent Crossrock. It seems too good to be true. Does anyone have one and what do you think of it?

PukanaLa Model FG-C-WH White Concert Ukulele Fiberglass Hardshell Case | Reverb

This Pukanala model FG-C-WH White Fiberglass Cordoba Ukulele Case is perfect for standard-sized concert ukuleles up to 25 inches long . Super high quality fiberglass exterior that is almost indestructible. Unparalleled design with 3 latches including ...

reverb.com

Thank you for any and all information in advance

 

[SkeeterAB]

Hmm, since I didn’t get any replies I guess so will just have to buy one. I will just tell my hubby that I had to buy it so I could report back for the good of the forum.

 

[about2]

Please do . . . I just did a brief review of Crossrock's new fiberglass case for baritones. It's quite nice, but pricey. Hopefully the one you found is a good alternative. Good luck with the hubby.

 

[SkeeterAB]

Review of PukanaLa Fiberglass Case Hard Cases

I bought the case from Butler Music in the fall, but just got around to reviewing it now.

I bought the PukanaLa Model FG-C-SL Silver Concert Ukulele Fiberglass Hardshell Case for $96 with free shipping because it was half the price of a Crossrock fiberglass case.

When it arrived it looked good. I don’t have a Crossrock case to compare, but the quality initially looked good. It had a nice shiny silver exterior, and 3 latches (two on the opening side and one on the hinge side) with one of the latches lockable with a key. The handle is firmly attached, sturdy and easy to grip. It has three feet on the base side and four feet on the bottom side for when standing vertically.

Inside it has a nice crushed velvet lining over a supportive feeling foam. It comes with a decent shoulder strap inside a nice crushed velvet bag. The crushed velvet bag has a shape that makes it look like you could store it in the lower bout if you were not worried about scratching the ukulele.

The strap can be attached to triangle rings near the latches. The strap can be used as a shoulder strap, but the attachment points would make it hard to use like a one strap backpack.

Overall it looked nice. My ukuleles fit well and seemed secure. I had my 60 lb son sit on the case and bounce up and down on it and the case did not deflect. Overall it seemed like a good case (*see note below).

It clearly lacks some of the Crossrock features that I can see in the Crossrock fiberglass case pictures like the nicer backpack straps and the attachment points suited to carrying as a backpack, the nicer handle, and pads to help fit, but it is only have the cost. I would have recommended the case without reservations, except that the first case came to me with damage to the shell around one of the feet. Butler was great about sending me a new one, but it made me concerned about quality control and how tough the case is. The replacement case was in perfect condition.

I included pictures below with a standard Ohana concert uke in the case and a KoAloha Opio concert uke in the case for reference. It was a bit roomy for the Ohana concert, but it fit the KoAloha Opio concert well.

View attachment 169264

 

[TerryM]

Great find, and thanks for the review. I'd be really surprised if those are not made by the same factory as the Crossrock cases. Other than the hardware, they look identical to Crossrock's older version - shape, sizes, etc. They now have a different locking latch and the velvet stuff is shorter and finer napped, but the shell is the same.

 

[man0a]

PukanaLa didn't make their own cases. They are a ukulele manufacturer (I believe based in Taiwan) that contracted with various case manufactures to make cases that PukanaLa could ship with their ukuleles. Bruce Shimabukuro (brother of Jake) was trying to promote them in the USA for a while, but that apparently didn't work out and I don't see them at US retailers any more. Butler apparently bought up a lot of their remaining USA stock and is selling it on EBay and other places at a discount. If these cases look like name brand cases, they may actually have been made by that company, but perhaps with different specs and with the PukanaLa logo printed on top. Since these cases are several years old, they may have picked up various dings along the way and the specs may not be the same as the most recent models.

 

[Keith5523]

I recently bought a Crossrock from Butler Music, thru Reverb, as well. Month or so ago bought an Ohana Baritone from them as well, also advertised on Reverb. I'm not really a case user and questioned myself why I was buying a hard case that takes up a lot of room, versus a nice gig bag. However, since I've now got a couple of baritones, I figured it would be smart to have a decent case. But it got here a day before we went to see a few of the grandkids about 2.5 hours away so I got some use out it. Here is the one I purchased. I purchased it simply because I liked how it looked lol. https://reverb.com/item/42243614-cr...se-with-backpack-straps-aluminum-valance-blue

 

[SkeeterAB]

I recently bought a Crossrock from Butler Music, thru Reverb, as well. Month or so ago bought an Ohana Baritone from them as well, also advertised on Reverb. I'm not really a case user and questioned myself why I was buying a hard case that takes up a lot of room, versus a nice gig bag. However, since I've now got a couple of baritones, I figured it would be smart to have a decent case. But it got here a day before we went to see a few of the grandkids about 2.5 hours away so I got some use out it. Here is the one I purchased. I purchased it simply because I liked how it looked lol. https://reverb.com/item/42243614-cr...se-with-backpack-straps-aluminum-valance-blue

Love the color. That is one good looking case!

 

[Keith5523]

Love the color. That is one good looking case!

Thank you! It's funny because I wasn't sure what to expect when it got here, whether it would be a cloth tweed or a molded plastic lol. I considered myself lucky when it got here and was a molded plastic since it would take more of a beating. Either way, it was a keeper.

 

[badhabits]

I guess the big question on that pukanala is, can the logo be easily picked off or removed?

 

[BigJackBrass]

I guess the big question on that pukanala is, can the logo be easily picked off or removed?

Slap a few stickers over it

 

[SkeeterAB]

I guess the big question on that pukanala is, can the logo be easily picked off or removed?

I tried, no dice

 

[SkeeterAB]

Slap a few stickers over it

Just measured it. You would need 4.5 inches x 4.5 inches of stickers

 

[Archeonn]

Is the logo a screen print on top of the gloss, or under the gloss? Or is it a vinyl? You might be able to get the logo off chemically with acetone or Deet (the bug spray), or polished off with something like mag polish. Don't know if it would damage the gloss or if it work depending on what material the logo is made with. Of course a sticker would be easier...

 

[ploverwing]

I appreciate how well the case fits your cat. S/he looks very smug in there.

 

[SkeeterAB]

Is the logo a screen print on top of the gloss, or under the gloss? Or is it a vinyl? You might be able to get the logo off chemically with acetone or Deet (the bug spray), or polished off with something like mag polish. Don't know if it would damage the gloss or if it work depending on what material the logo is made with. Of course a sticker would be easier...

It is over the gloss. Looks to be more of a screen print. I would rather not damage the finish trying to get it off. I bought some (non-permanent) adhesive backed vinyl in fun holographic colors. Now I just need to figure out what design I want and cut it out of the vinyl

 

[SkeeterAB]

I appreciate how well the case fits your cat. S/he looks very smug in there.

I was wondering if anyone would notice her

I leave a case open and in the two seconds it takes to grab my phone to get a picture of the case, inevitably one of my two cats has already hopped in. They don’t understand why I keep storing ukuleles in what are clearly meant to be their new padded beds. Of course they would never deign to sleep in the nice cushioned cat beds I bought for them

 

[TerryM]

You could always buy them their own instrument case/cat bed, but something tells me they'd still prefer whichever one you just took a uke out of.

 

[SkeeterAB]

Just measured it. You would need 4.5 inches x 4.5 inches of stickers

I made some art deco style vinyl stickers to cover the logo on my concert and soprano PukanaLa carbon fiber cases by cutting shapes by hand out of glittery blue vinyl, drawing on the pattern using a stencil, and painting in the pattern with a silver acrylic paint marker. (The glittery blue vinyl was what I had in the house.) Not bad for a first effort, but definitely better when viewed from a distance