Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

For me this is the "time of tears" (!-!) . I'm trying to do a Tru-Oil finish on several concert ukuleles and the results are a litany of sags, sand-throughs and scratches appearing where none were before. I'm sure that things will eventually work out, but at the moment...

Dave Hurd

Geologists have earthy humor...

Doggerel alert (with apologies to any real poet...) :

The good folks of Kena Kena
Have objected to nudie demeanor
Said the guy in a huff
I do well in the buff
It allows me to suntan my weiner

Kim?

from aloha land,

Dave Hurd

Holy Smokes! What have I started?

Kim,

You're right on the numbers. I think I've joined the right group after all...

Probably we'd call the number "Five Foot Two" in the states. I've found the chording for it (Key of A, I think). Perhaps we can have an impromptu singalong at some watering hole in Albany.

David

For the ukulele:

"Three foot eight
Eyes of slate
Makes me want to f.....cate
Has anybody seen my ewe?"

(follow up verses encouraged...)

Alan, I've installed 15-20 of these as home-made versions on my 6- and 8-string tenor ukuleles. See this link for details: http://www.ukuleles.com/BuildingHowTo/ukuleleBD.html Installation of such a device allowed me to make tops that would have corresponded to 4-string tenor stiffness and use them ...

Early next year, Playmakers will make the ukulele one of its focus topics at Albany. In light of that, I've been asked by one individual to bring him a couple of Aloha shirts at reasonable cost. It turns our that our local Sally store (Salvation Army Goodwill Store) has Aloha shirts in good to great...

The construction sequence is clear and uncomplicated - another job well done, Robbie. But if you're as confused as I am about the shapes of the braces and the reasons for their shapes, here's a very nice Oz link to some information which might form the basis for a number of future discussions on the...

Ah, Kim, I suppose that I do maintain a secret envy of the musical chops of those who play effortlessly. And had I not decided to change from luthier hobbiest to wage earner in the instrument business that feeling would have remained unblemished. Having so said, I think my greatest challenges with c...

Hullo John and Hippety Hop, Thanks for the welcomes. Regarding visits, I'll be here for the forseeable future and always have time for the odd beer and a song or two - although many regarded my putting two finger tips in the way of a table saw blade as a blessing in disguise... :roll: My playing has...

After years of heart (and wood-) breaking disappointment in dealing with highly figured koa wood for sides, I finally have a system which works consistently for me. Bob Gleason (Pegasus Guitars and Ukuleles) gave me some very useful leads for this process, some of the elements of which have been men...

Very nice Allen. You've proven the old adage that it's very difficult to make something simple!

How many luthiers does it take to change a light bulb? Only one - but he has to make a jig first...

Hi Sebastiaan, Arnt and Allen, Thanks very much to all for the welcome. I must admit from the beginning that it was Australian luthier Graham Caldersmith who had the most influence on how I think about instrument making. He is a true hero to me with regards to his sharing of knowledge and (to me) is...

Hi Kim, Thanks very much for the compliments on the website. They're very much appreciated! I do hope that we'll get together in Albany. The event really sounds like good fun. No worries about buying wood instead of the book - I'm sure that I'd do the same in your place. That or buy fishing gear! Pe...

Hi Bob,

Thanks for the welcome. I'll try not to be too much of a pest...

Dave

As Hesh1956 notes, the amount of pressure applied depends on the amount of spring compression. If you always want the same amount of pressure applied, I suggest that "classical" go-bars are the way to go. The interesting thing about the "classical" go-bars is several-fold: First, the amount of press...

Aloha, I'm hoping that Hawaii is sufficiently Pacific for me to have a chat with you folks now and then. I've been making ukuleles in all four sizes for the past 16-18 years and have probably made nearly 700 of them at this point. I like sharing information and have a website, http://www.ukuleles.co...