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Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

This is where we don't want anything but evidence of your finest wood butchering in all its glorious, and photograph laden glory. Bring your finished products or WIP's, we love them all, so long as there's pictures, and plenty of 'em!

Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model is Finished)

Postby novocaine » 25 Oct 2021, 12:38

they look spot on.

as to string stretching, they all do that :) even Aquilia's stretch like buggery.
put them on, set them tighter than you might a guitar string (1/2" free play rather than the usual 1" before winding on) then wind 2 turns on. now grab the strings and pull them away from the neck a good 1". do it a few times, then tune. they will still stretch like crazy, but you should be able to get them in tune a bit quicker.

if you want to send one up here, I'll happily bash out renditions of over the rainbow and hellijuah. :lol:
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model is Finished)

Postby Stuart » 25 Oct 2021, 13:38

I don’t comment on threads like this because I don’t feel I have anything useful to add but I’ve read it from start to finish and enjoyed the process.

The finished articles look stunning and you should rightfully be proud of them.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model is Finished)

Postby Rezi » 25 Oct 2021, 15:50

They look amazing and I'm in awe at your skill level. I know nothing about ukuleles and maybe the pics are adding an odd perspective but are the strings quite far apart compared to a guitar?
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model is Finished)

Postby Malc2098 » 27 Oct 2021, 15:13

Gents,

Sorry for delay. Been at the M-i-L's funeral and hleping my wife sort her flat and contents prior to selling.

Thank you all for those words. I'm pleased to hear you've enjoyed the WIP. It makes the placing, posing, trying to get lighting right, cropping and writing worth it for the build.

Thanks for the words about skills. I realise I've gone from about zero to now in only a few years, but my skills are nowhere near the level of professional makers of the likes of Pete Howlett. So much so that I've enrolled on one of his makers courses next year.

Andy, you've got it! My study is beginning to look like the wall of a small music shop! :)

The new strings have arrived, so I'll put them on tomorrow, follow all your advice about stretching them and have another go.

I think because of how small the instruments are compared to, say, a guitar, the camera lens does give a strange perspective. I have limited, if any, skills at photography. The strings are exactly 13mm apart at the bridge, or that's where I re-drilled the holes for them. They then taper to the nut where they are just about 9mm apart.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model phot and sound bites!

Postby Malc2098 » 30 Oct 2021, 18:51

It seems modern fluorocarbon strings stretch and stretch and stretch but then reach a point where they don't stretch any more and so when the new strings arrived and put them on and kept stretching them for a couple of days they eventually stabilised.

Here it is with its case, a duster, an electronic tuner, a tuning chart and a Beginner's Book One with one song in it, Bob Marley's 3 Little Birds, all ready for the recipient's birthday party.
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(321.23 KiB)


I have been asked to post a sound bite so here are two, one of it plucked and one of it strummed. Who would have believed I never played a ukulele before yesterday! :lol:

Previously I have received complaints of the recording quality. I have explained that all I have is an iPhone (6) to record this and so this is what you get. If I get any more complaints or observations of the quality, I shall personally come round, rip your arm out of your socket and beat you around the head with the soggy end!





Admin, due to Safari/Flash issues, I have no means of knowing if the videos have posted OK. Please let me know if not. Thanks.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby Andyp » 30 Oct 2021, 18:57

The vids work just fine Malc . Thanks. Seeing them being played also gives me a sense of scale.
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cheers
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby fiveeyes » 31 Oct 2021, 01:04

Well done Malc!!! That will be quite the gift.
I agree about the WIP's..they do take time.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby novocaine » 31 Oct 2021, 08:52

Audio quality is crap. The ukes are good though. :x :P
Feel free to visit. But if you dont mind bringing the ukes with you and holding off on the whole arm thing till after I've tried them, that would be great.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby RogerM » 31 Oct 2021, 11:50

Malc - that is a fabulous result, and a rivetting WIP. Well done indeed! :eusa-clap: I've not really contributed as this is not my area of expertise, but I really appreciate the time and effort you've put into this epic WIP.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby Phil » 01 Nov 2021, 13:05

Nice.









Very nice indeed Malc! :eusa-clap: 8-)
You must be chuffed.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Sapele Model iPhoto and sound bites

Postby Malc2098 » 01 Nov 2021, 17:28

Thank you all, Gents, for your appreciation. I still can't quite believe that, self taught, I have been able to make stuff that sounds musical, and to my eyes, looks like musical furniture!

The recipient was well chuffed. He's a special chap, recruited me way back, became mates and, nothing to do with me I hasten to add, has had some awful challenges that life has thrown at him, yet puts up with them with fortitude. He's helped me build my workshop, so the very least I could do for him was to present him with one of the first instruments to come out of it for his big round + 1 birthday.

The Acacia models is yet to be finished, but I hope to complete that in the next few weeks.

I'm trying to set two goals for 2022 -

No1) invest in desktop CNC routing for consistent shaping of various instrument parts

and

No2) try to make an instrument of solely British (or even just Devon) timbers.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

Postby Malc2098 » 07 Nov 2021, 16:12

The recipient of the Sapele model is my age and never played an instrument in his life.

He's had a couple of lessons already, has joined a local uke group and is learning Bob Marley's Three Little Birds!

I carried on with the Acacia model, filled the string holes, and set the instrument up to locate, mark and drill the outer string holes.
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(309.42 KiB)


Isn't it always the way, it's not until you lay a straight edge or string line on a piece of work that you find out just how skewiff your work has turned out. It's not something I can salvage, the fretboard and neck are firmly glued to the body. I don't think it will effect the tone, sound or volume of the instrument, but to my eye it will always be pi$$ed.

I'd never get a job doing this, so I'll have to keep this one, learn a few chords and duet with my mate.

' cos every little ting gonna be all right....'
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

Postby AJB Temple » 07 Nov 2021, 16:47

Hmm. So the neck is skewed by a couple of degrees.

I've never made a uke, only acoustic and electric guitars. When setting a fixed, glued neck, I would run a line from the centre of the headstock down to the pin, and check my side to side measurements for equality at nut, end of neck and temporary bridge to deal with this as well as correct neck tilt. Because, guess what, we've all done this. :oops: We only do it once. In my case I cut the body off and binned it I was so annoyed with myself.

I very much doubt it will affect either tuning stability, playability or tone as long as the neck joint is strong. I have not followed the thread page by page, so off hand I can't recall how you did the neck to body joints. But if it is a tapered dovetail then next time you could consider using animal or fish glue.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

Postby Malc2098 » 10 Jan 2022, 17:22

I was just about to finish the Acacia model to clear the workshop for the Great CNC Build………..when I dropped it!!

Zyt alors! Quelle catastrophe! I whispered to myself.

After I had just finished rubbing back the body which looked spectacular!
IMG_6411.JPG
(344.06 KiB)


Three dents in the neck just below the heel. I shall try rubbing back and filling with CA glue and over spraying with the airbrush.

So there will be a delay before the start of the CNC Build WIP.
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

Postby Andyp » 10 Jan 2022, 17:45

Oh dear, not nice at all.

Is that a mini thickness sander in the backround? Looks like it's running off a 4” sanding belt.
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cheers
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Re: Concert Ukulele (The Acacia model neck is pi$$ed!)

Postby Malc2098 » 10 Jan 2022, 18:36

Andyp wrote:Oh dear, not nice at all.

Is that a mini thickness sander in the backround? Looks like it's running off a 4” sanding belt.


I might have said a naughty Anglo Saxon word or two! :oops:

It's a Jet 10/20 sander. I think the belts are 75mm.
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