Three Ukes in Two Days

Well, here's the latest batch! I completed them over the past couple days along with some repair & resto to a couple mandolins as well. From left to right: Supertone "drowsy waters" canoe-decal uke made of birch, Royal Hawaiian (by Kumalae) koa soprano uke, and an Oscar Schmidt koa uke. The first two are probably late 1920s or early 1930s while the OS is probably c.1925 or so as it originally had wood pegs. More detailed and better pictures will come for each of these over the next few days.

You can see the two filled with-grain cracks on this uke. It's been through a lot but after repair it's a very good player: nice and loud with good playability and a thin but very wide neck. And the koa is lovely.

Here's the OS. It's very similar to this slightly fancier uke but sounds and plays just about the same. Nice wider, thicker neck with rosewood fretboard, too, and nice tight-grain koa all over. Very light, too.

This Supertone uke was probably made by Harmony and sports all-birch construction with a very cool canoe-with-lovers scene decal under the bridge. This uke needed a neck set and new 12th fret among other things. Its back had been previously reglued poorly (strong, but ugly), and really should be taken off and reglued nicely, but having been so beaten up and played-in I figured it really didn't matter all that much.

Here they are when they first came in.

How do you like them apples on the Royal Hawaiian? Best part is that there were long cracks on the back, too...

Detail of the OS -- a brace is loose and this crack extends to the lower bout. There are also several cracks on the back.

Missing 12th on the Supertone. Also, the neck's loose.

Decal. That bridge needed to come up and since this pic I've reglued it.

Here's the loose heel.

And one of the cracks on the back of the OS.