Keep it forever?

Rllink

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I was just reading a few of the different threads and got to thinking. I have three ukuleles, and I figure that I'm going to use them up. I don't intend to keep them forever. I don't intend to sell them. Eventually they will get enough mileage on them that they will have to be replaced. I take reasonable care of them, but if something happens to one that I can't play it anymore, I'll get another. Anyone else feel that way?
 
Hmm........now that I have found my ideal sized uke, I don't seem to be tempted into buying any more, so I guess I'll only replace this particular size, should anything happen to them - so.....yes - sort of. :)
 
I take good care of my ukes and treat them gently so I can't even imagine wearing one out to the point of it needing to be replaced. So a modern day uke can't last 30(+) years? In 30 years I'll be pushing 90. By then it would be a double blessing if 1.) I'm still alive and 2.) I'm still wanting and able to play. I currently have 2 ukes and I'm seeking a 3rd. I could see myself riding it out with those 2 or 3. If I had 3 and lost/damaged one for whatever reason I'd probably stick with the remaining 2. If I had 2 and lost one, I would likely replace it.
 
The instruments will wear out with constant use and the wood will age and can go brittle. So you need to replace or restore every 5 - 10 years.
Its a good policy to follow, but there are some pitfalls in following the policy blindly. Models are discontinued, the wood used changes, the features change. Sometimes the "improvements" are not improvements. Also some times you can hit the jackpot and own a uke which suddenly is worth $5000 because of demand and market forces. Then the policy of playing it until it is worn out may not be the best choice. In some cases it may be a good idea to look after a uke which has a signature sound that defines your act because you can't replace it.
As an extreme example: a trade war could start or a wood species could be banned and you can't get the good stuff anymore so you have to make it last.
Even an old Mahalo which was the pick of the bunch and which you spent a month setting up can be hard to replace.
So if you are sure you can get a replacement, by all means just count on getting a replacement, but if you are not sure there is going to be a suitable replacement you may need a different strategy?

I don't even know if I will ever have to replace one. I don't think that I need to schedule it. Two of them are already five years old, and I have no intention of replacing them yet. But that's a lot of thinking Bill. You bring up a lot of points. It sounds like a conversation I had with my friend the other day who is buying up assault rifles before he can't get them anymore. I haven't given it that much thought. My thinking is that they will always make ukuleles, and I'm not particularly enamored with any of the three that I have. They are nice, but they are ukuleles. I suppose that if for some reason I couldn't get another mahogany Mainland concert, I would buy some other mahogany concert. There's a lot of nice mahogany concerts out there. If for some reason mahogany got banned, I would buy something else. Honestly, I don't have some specific ukulele brand, model, finish, tone wood, string type, preference. So I'm sure I could find a replacement if that happens.
 
Not me. I kind of bond to my instruments. For me, I don't play music. I feel it. It is powerful to me. Sometimes I meditate using my uke, for instance today I was in the D minor scale. I also have some that are autographed; one by the folks at MHS. The other by my family members that everyone signed during our last known get together (it was my sister during our family reunion that got me into ukes!). I have my bunch that I do want to keep forever (and oh yes, my first uke is up in display!). Those are not "player ukes", I have several daily ukes for general wear and tear. Those can come and go although I value them and time spent, nothing lasts forever. Each uke is labeled so that anything left over after I pass go to them should they want it or to sell. Oh fly, envious Time, till thou run out thy race.
 
I can't imagine wearing out a uke, unless I were to strum it very heavily for many years, and if that was my style, I'd install a clear pickguard. After going through a few vintage Martin sopranos, I finally found one that I really like, so I expect that's a forever uke. The rest are rightfully nervous, or on the flip side, maybe they're waiting to get the hell out of here! :)
 
Well... I have a 70 year old Martin style 1 that’s still going strong, and my Flea, Fluke, Firefly and Mainland are all considerably more robustly built than it is. So, all in all, I expect my Ukes to outlive me.

I have friends that own spectacular guitars from the late 1800’s, as well as Ukes from the 1920’s and 30’s, all still in daily service. Catastrophic accidents aside, well made instruments don’t necessarily get “used up” in my experience. They just get more mojo!

Scooter
 
always treat yourself to upgrades.. buy when the opportunity is there, not impulse buys... youre going to get some lemons, we all do.. as you get too exited and you dont think properly or just bad luck of the draw.. some are luckier than others.. your ukes should out live you if you care for them well, depending you age LOL :) if you have the means to buy, do so... if not just be happy with what you have and enjoy them...happy strummings.
 
I've never been sentimental about instruments, I've had plenty of great ones over the years and plenty that were quite average. They come & go, it's no big deal for me :D

yeah. this ^

pretty unlikely you'll 'use them up' Roly. like any instrument, they are built to be played.
i have been hammering a 1920s Hollywood uke for the last 5 years that was in dog whacked condition when I acquired it.
still, looks, feels and plays the same now.
 
I doubt you would "use them up," at least not if you take reasonable care of them. There are old, cheap ukes still around after a hundred years. Imagine how long a good, quality ukulele will last. Unfortunately, I tend to buy but not sell, so I've accumulated more than I should have. Deciding what to sell has been almost impossible.
 
I have only one uke. It is just ok about 140 euro laminate one that I spent sometime ordering "nut files or welding torch cleaners rather" and working and now it is so darn playable and nice.

It is though more about playing skills I have got from it than having any attachements to it. I know it is easy replaceable. I will keep it though even when it is not anything special as an instrument. Tap the top carelesly etc. Just a musical tool ;)
 
I doubt that I will ever wear one out. But I do take them out and about a lot. There is always a chance of something happening to one of them. But I think that in my mind I am trying to wear one out, and that is part of the motivation to play for me. I was thinking about it after I posted this thread and read the responses, and then I was down playing my Mainland, and I looked at it thinking, "I've played this a lot." It is no where near worn out, but anyone can see that it has been played a lot and it hasn't lived a sheltered life. Every time I play it, it gets a little more of its own character. It kind of frightens me to think that something would happen to it and I would have to start all over. So I guess that thinking about it, I've taken a little different attitude since I posted this thread.
 
"Hey, that's my uke" - Bruce Lee
:p

That's funny..............I'll fight you for it:cool:


To the question at hand, I own two LfdMs that have my name inside them with a nice personal inscription from the builder Luis. I will make sure those still in great shape to be handed down to future generations. The rest I will attempt to play into sawdust and not worry about them too much, though all are properly cared for
 
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That's funny..............I'll fight you for it:cool:
To the question at hand, I own two LfdMs that have my name inside them with a nice personal inscription from the builder Luis. I will make sure those still in great shape to be handed down to future generations. The rest I will attempt to play into sawdust and not worry about them too much, though all are properly cared for


I totally forgot my name is inside my LFdM . Thank you for the reminder.
I have gone through a batch of ukes in the last two years , the remaining one have special meaning to me.
Either I become friend with the luthiers or the seller is someone I admire or a very dear friend .
I believe I have sold everything that no longer holds special meaning to me . Wait, I have one more to go which is the Kala Baritone.

I had a six strings that I was terrified of wrecking it. It totally took away my desire of playing this instrument. I finally made up my mind it's time to sell it because it is unhealthy to be so afraid of an instrument !

BTW JIM HANKS Bruce Lee used to live upstairs from me. He was very friendly with me although I was just a kid coming home from school. He was already the movie star .
 
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There is one uke in my little uke family that I'm terrified of wrecking or ruining in some way: it is the very humble mahogany laminate Takamine tenor in my avatar. In the late summer of 2013, Andrew bought the last 19 of a limited run and sold them for well below the street price at the time. MGM praised it highly (for the price) and I took the bait, although another tenor was the last thing I needed (famous last words). For whatever reason, I love it. It fits my hand, it sounds nice, and I love it. After a few weeks it occurred to me that I should buy a second one in case anything ever happened to the first one, but by that time they were gone. Lo and behold, last night I found one; it will be here on Tuesday. :)
 
I go through phases, too. For awhile I was looking for THE ONE ... the one I could show off and keep forever and would have the perfect sound and impeccable beauty. And I found it. (Pete Howlett tenor) And I loved it. And I felt the necessity of babying it so much that I was almost afraid to play it. I certainly wouldn't take it to a jam, which is the only place anyone other than my family would see it. So I sold it for something not irreplaceable. Maybe some day I'll get another super-high-end model. But now when I get new ones, they're meant to fill a niche I don't have. For instance, my next acquisition will be a six- or eight-string because I want some Byrds-like jangle.
 
I was just reading a few of the different threads and got to thinking. I have three ukuleles, and I figure that I'm going to use them up. I don't intend to keep them forever. I don't intend to sell them. Eventually they will get enough mileage on them that they will have to be replaced. I take reasonable care of them, but if something happens to one that I can't play it anymore, I'll get another. Anyone else feel that way?

Thanks for the thread, when you first posted I thought this could be interesting and it has been.

I recently sold two Ukes. One had been bought new by me and was a favourite a few years back that I took it everywhere, but for reasons unknown it ended up displaced and gathering dust. I tidied it up and played it again but the majic was gone so I sold it on to free up some space and to give someone else the chance to own it. The other was second hand when I got it and needed minor repairs and improvements which I did, again it was cared for and loved. However it wasn’t used quite enough so reluctantly I sold it to free up space. The interesting thing about that second and ‘second hand’ Uke is that I felt more like it’s custodian than owner, I really hope that its new keeper will enjoy and care for it.

My playing and tastes have changed a lot over the last few years so it makes sense, to me, to be willing to sell or pass on some Ukes that were right for me once but are no longer a best (or nearly that) fit. I also want to limit how many Ukes that I have (to between two and four) so that there is space in my home and life for other valued things too. Now I see that change or turnover possibly happening in the future too, though some other of my possessions have been with me for many decades - I tend to look after my stuff and keep that which does the job very well for me.

In the various items that I own I have noticed one common theme. We are all encouraged to purchase items of a ‘quality’ that is well beyond our current and envisaged needs, ‘all the gear and no idea’ is a phrase that springs to my mind. What’s most important is how you use what you have and selecting your purchases to match your envisaged needs. With that in mind I buy reasonably available Ukes that aren’t too expensive and that could be easily enough replaced, with something similar enough, should one get lost or brocken, etc. Luthier built Ukes aren’t currently in my sights but replacement of something build by any one of them shouldn’t really be an issue. Whilst one Luthiers work might not be that same as any others, and difficult to match, there are still many Ukes out there to be enjoyed.

In brief I buy to match my foreseeable needs, enjoy what I have and care for it as if it was going to be with me for ever. However, I also now expect that there will be some slow change (selling and buying) in what I own because what I own needs to change to match changes in my needs.
 
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I had to buy online as there aren't any shops around here, & It took me about two years to find what I really wanted - but since getting it, I got myself just one more of higher quality, & now, I am no longer looking for anything else - I have found what I was looking for all along - the long neck concert - now I am happy with what I have. :)
 
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