blorb
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I have an unhealthy fascination with tiny ukuleles, so I check amazon and ebay from time to time to see if there are any cheap ones. A few years ago I found a "Tom" ukulele that is 17 inches and actually sounds decent despite only costing about $32. It's my most used Ukulele since I can take it anywhere.
So last month I was looking and found a toy Ukulele listed at ~13 inches long on amazon (I think they are also on ebay under a different company name).
The ukulele is listed at $5.99 with free shipping to the United States (not sure about anywhere else), so I had to have one. You can find it on Amazon by searching "Grocery House Ukulele" and it comes in different colors.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0718T5BFK/ref=sxts_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1516680598&sr=2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65
Now, the ukulele is described as a toy that is NOT playable as a real ukulele. That's because it only has 2 strings (each string goes from one tuning peg, down around the bridge and back up to the next peg to look as though it has 4 strings). As is, you cannot tune it.
Knowing this, I bought aquila "iUke" strings to see if I could get it to play. They cost twice as much as the ukulele even before counting shipping.
It was not easy to string up because you have to make a really thick knot to hold the string at the bridge since the slots are fairly wide.
As far as tuning goes, I tuned it to the standard GCEA. It is not easy to tune, but I don't know if that's a fault with the ukulele or if that's how friction tuners are, since all of my ukuleles have geared tuners. The slightest turn of the peg causes it to go up or down a full note.
It doesn't sound great obviously, but at $5.99 it is a miracle that you can get it to make any sound at all. The first fret is about half the size of the next fret for some reason, but it is playable if you have skinny fingers. If not, I guess you could tune the strings a note lower and put a capo on the first fret?
With all that said, it is worth the price just for how funny it looks, and if you buy it as a joke or to have something tiny enough to take anywhere, you won't be disappointed. It is a cheap piece of crap that is so cute it is hard not to love.
If you have a bit of cash to spare and the patience to re-string it, it is worth a buy as a conversation piece alone!
So last month I was looking and found a toy Ukulele listed at ~13 inches long on amazon (I think they are also on ebay under a different company name).
The ukulele is listed at $5.99 with free shipping to the United States (not sure about anywhere else), so I had to have one. You can find it on Amazon by searching "Grocery House Ukulele" and it comes in different colors.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0718T5BFK/ref=sxts_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1516680598&sr=2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65
Now, the ukulele is described as a toy that is NOT playable as a real ukulele. That's because it only has 2 strings (each string goes from one tuning peg, down around the bridge and back up to the next peg to look as though it has 4 strings). As is, you cannot tune it.
Knowing this, I bought aquila "iUke" strings to see if I could get it to play. They cost twice as much as the ukulele even before counting shipping.
It was not easy to string up because you have to make a really thick knot to hold the string at the bridge since the slots are fairly wide.
As far as tuning goes, I tuned it to the standard GCEA. It is not easy to tune, but I don't know if that's a fault with the ukulele or if that's how friction tuners are, since all of my ukuleles have geared tuners. The slightest turn of the peg causes it to go up or down a full note.
It doesn't sound great obviously, but at $5.99 it is a miracle that you can get it to make any sound at all. The first fret is about half the size of the next fret for some reason, but it is playable if you have skinny fingers. If not, I guess you could tune the strings a note lower and put a capo on the first fret?
With all that said, it is worth the price just for how funny it looks, and if you buy it as a joke or to have something tiny enough to take anywhere, you won't be disappointed. It is a cheap piece of crap that is so cute it is hard not to love.
If you have a bit of cash to spare and the patience to re-string it, it is worth a buy as a conversation piece alone!
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