Have you ever returned a new ukulele?

I ordered an 8-string taropatch from a small luthier that I saw on his FB page. When it arrived I was a little disappointed in some sloppy details. The finish had streaks, there was finish splotches on the fretboard, and it was overall sloppy. I decided to tune it up, sleep on it and make a decision in the morning. When I took it out of its case the next morning the soundboard was visibly bowed below the bridge. I thought it was going to pull the bridge off. I sent him an email with pictures. He felt he could fix it with better bracing if I wanted to keep it. If it didn't have he finish flaws I would have had him fix it and return it, but I lost confidence and didn't want finish flaws on a brand new instrument, so I sent it back and got a refund.

I too, have returned instruments that were not right, and quite sadly this has been from some highly regarded luthiers. We should always expect a quality product.

I once bought an expensive baritone that was listed at significantly less than half price on Amazon, safe in the knowledge that returning it would be easy. The saying "if something's too good to be true it usually is" really applied here. Razor sharp fret edges visibly sticking out, incredibly thickly applied finish with pooling at various points, tonally dead - this was quite obviously a factory reject that Amazon had snapped up to sell cheap. Part of me didn't want to send it back in case they shipped it to someone else who would be put off playing the uke by it but I couldn't keep it. I've not tried that particular experiment again, I've stuck to trusted retailers!

I purchased 3 Martin ukuleles in a short time. One OXK first, then a C1K and finally a S1. I loved the S1 so much that I returned the OXK to GuitarGuitar uk. They were fine with it and sent a courier next day. The C1K was a bit plane Jane imo so it went back to SUS who were very helpful. Also sent a courier next day to pick it up. My S1 came from Red Cow Music. It's staying. Other than that I've kept what I have bought till the eBay listing.

A number, all sopranos, most notably a Hamano because it was filthy, I mean actually scrape-down dirty.

Yes, I have...for flaws and just because I didn't like them. If a place doesn't have a good return policy I won't buy from them.

I'm surprised at the zero votes for buyer's remorse, but then again, it probably overlaps a bit with not liking the new uke.

I wish I'd have had the guts to return a uke. Got a brand that everyone raves about from an online retailer that everyone raves about. It was a solid wood tenor and the tone was thin and dead compared to my concert flea. I talked to the retailer and was given the option to return, but also some discussion of getting acclimatized and how solid wood can open up. I had also hear how strings make a difference. I tried several different strings and discovered it went from awful to mediocre if you put on high tension strings - which I didn't much like the feel of. A year or so later I sold it for less than half what I had in it.

My takeaway is that if you should return a uke if it doesn't work for you and you can. I didn't do it in part because I didn't want to bother the retailer. I'm certain that if I had returned it, I would have bought more ukuleles from them. As it is, I haven't bought from that retailer again - and am unlikely to do so in the future.