About one month ago I purchased a used Kimo tenor uke made by custom builder Hank Johnson. It has a curly koa top with flamed maple back and sides, radius fretboard, side sound port, UPT tuners, all the stuff I love. I did a NUD post on it saying how pleased I was with not only the looks and workmanship but the sound and playability as well.
My admiration for this uke has only grown over time so I decided to commission a super concert. Hank offers a radius which is very rare on this size of uke but important to me. A side sound port comes standard as well as UPT tuners.
I wanted a redwood top but was undecided about the back, either myrtle or walnut. Hank not only has an excellent stash of wood but has access to a lot of really primo stuff. He showed me many pictures of many different sets. It came down to one myrtle and one walnut. Hank said the walnut tap toned better, rang out more with greater sustain and brightness, sold, I love walnut.
We did the same exercise for the top and chose a great sounding and looking piece of sinker redwood. The first picture shows the walnut back, one half with a light application of lacquer to show what the walnut will really look like when finished
My admiration for this uke has only grown over time so I decided to commission a super concert. Hank offers a radius which is very rare on this size of uke but important to me. A side sound port comes standard as well as UPT tuners.
I wanted a redwood top but was undecided about the back, either myrtle or walnut. Hank not only has an excellent stash of wood but has access to a lot of really primo stuff. He showed me many pictures of many different sets. It came down to one myrtle and one walnut. Hank said the walnut tap toned better, rang out more with greater sustain and brightness, sold, I love walnut.
We did the same exercise for the top and chose a great sounding and looking piece of sinker redwood. The first picture shows the walnut back, one half with a light application of lacquer to show what the walnut will really look like when finished
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