1930s Gretsch-made Mahogany Soprano Ukulele





I'm pretty sure that this uke was made by Gretsch. It looks a lot like their nicer-quality "Gretsch American" products from the late '20s/early '30s. It has a New Orleans stamp of some sort in the soundhole (it's very faded), but I doubt that it relates to who actually made it. It's solid mahogany throughout and has a rosewood fretboard and bridge. An ebony nut and saddle finish it off and, of course, it's a "Martin Style 0" clone -- albeit with a flatter, simpler build and plainer bracing.

This fella was brought in for repair and that's what it got -- cleats along a longer crack on the top, a fret level/dress, and a good setup. I wasn't going to swap the strings, but noticing how the tension was off on the set that was on it (the G string was crazy-tight), I put a set of new Martin fluorocarbons on it and it seems a lot happier, now. It's playing with hair-above 1/16" action at the 12th fret, feels good, and intonates well. Sonically it's very close to a Favilla/Gretsch tone -- a bit drier and brighter than a Martin -- of the same time.


The body is 6 1/2" on the lower bout and sports a 13 1/2" scale length.


The nut is 1 7/16" in width.










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