Thick strings

mineymole

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I just purchased a new Magic Fluke Flea from Magic Fluke and find that the strings are very thick compared to the strings on an old Kamoa Ukulele I have. They are also less pliable across the fretboard, if that makes sense.

Has anyone noticed this or changed the flea’s strings?
 
I just purchased a new Magic Fluke Flea from Magic Fluke and find that the strings are very thick compared to the strings on an old Kamoa Ukulele I have. They are also less pliable across the fretboard, if that makes sense.

Has anyone noticed this or changed the flea’s strings?
Try some fluorocarbons. Lots of brands but Martin M600 is a good place to start - cheap and available almost anywhere.
 
I'll second that recommendation. All the Magic Fluke instruments come with Aquila nylgut strings and they are thicker than fluorocarbons.
 
A recent post I made here, regarding strings on a Fluke or Flea, might help you:

http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?130480-Wide-Nut-slot&p=2059701#post2059701

Also, I've further detailed my own experiences related to this topic previously here on UU, which are included in the 'Strings' threads, as well as 'The Magic Fluke Company appreciation' thread.

You can get to those threads by clicking on the FAQ link in my signature below. There are many helpful posts from other members there as well.
 
I'll second that recommendation. All the Magic Fluke instruments come with Aquila nylgut strings and they are thicker than fluorocarbons.
I'm not sure that is true about what strings come on the Fluke. From their site, "All Fluke models come standard with D'Addario Nyltech strings." Anyway, the reason I even went there to look is because I bought several sets of La Bella strings, because I got a great deal on them. First of all, I don't like them that well, but the other thing is that they are considerably larger in diameter than the Aquila Nylgut strings.
 
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Well sure enough I swapped out the D’Addario Nyltech strings for a set of Aquila Nylgut strings and the Aquilas are noticeably thinner and more flexible. They are not as loud as the D’addario Strings however.
 
FYI: I have it on good authority that the D'Addario NYLTECH strings are in-fact made using a formula under license from Aquila to D'Addario.

They are more similar to the original 'Nylgut' strings from 5 yrs ago, than the 'New Nylgut', 'SuperNylgut' or LAVA strings.

In my experience, Aquila NYLGUT varieties of strings and the D'Addario NYLTECH strings, all need about 20 hrs of play time before the tone and tension will reach the sweet spot. This means like 1 hr of playtime per day for 2 weeks.

This comes from hands-on testing over 100 different sets of strings in the past 5 yrs. if you put them on and think that 'THIS' is 'the sound' and 'the feel' after 5 mins or even 2 days, I need to inform you that this is a mistaken conclusion and that the strings all settle much further out in time than the first 1-2 days of playing.

Stretching them by hand does NOT fix the tone, and I advise AGAINST doing this.

IMHO, The best way to actively force the string to settle to proper pitch and tension is BY PLAYING, vigorously for at least 10 hours, and retuning as needed during that time.

This is what has worked for me, however YMMV. :)
 
FYI: I have it on good authority that the D'Addario NYLTECH strings are in-fact made using a formula under license from Aquila to D'Addario.

They are more similar to the original 'Nylgut' strings from 5 yrs ago, than the 'New Nylgut', 'SuperNylgut' or LAVA strings.

In my experience, Aquila NYLGUT varieties of strings and the D'Addario NYLTECH strings, all need about 20 hrs of play time before the tone and tension will reach the sweet spot. This means like 1 hr of playtime per day for 2 weeks.

This comes from hands-on testing over 100 different sets of strings in the past 5 yrs. if you put them on and think that 'THIS' is 'the sound' and 'the feel' after 5 mins or even 2 days, I need to inform you that this is a mistaken conclusion and that the strings all settle much further out in time than the first 1-2 days of playing.

Stretching them by hand does NOT fix the tone, and I advise AGAINST doing this.

IMHO, The best way to actively force the string to settle to proper pitch and tension is BY PLAYING, vigorously for at least 10 hours, and retuning as needed during that time.

This is what has worked for me, however YMMV. :)

Thank you. Good to know and I need to practice anyway!
 
I'm not sure that is true about what strings come on the Fluke. From their site, "All Fluke models come standard with D'Addario Nyltech strings." Anyway, the reason I even went there to look is because I bought several sets of La Bella strings, because I got a great deal on them. First of all, I don't like them that well, but the other thing is that they are considerably larger in diameter than the Aquila Nylgut strings.

Good to know! I was going to order some La Bellas. Their polished low G string is really nice, though.
 
I'm not sure that is true about what strings come on the Fluke. From their site, "All Fluke models come standard with D'Addario Nyltech strings." Anyway, the reason I even went there to look is because I bought several sets of La Bella strings, because I got a great deal on them. First of all, I don't like them that well, but the other thing is that they are considerably larger in diameter than the Aquila Nylgut strings.

Thanks. I stand corrected. My Firefly and Flea were floor models bought online. They had 'super nylgut' tags, so it's possible the dealer swapped the strings. (Or mislabeled them ... ?)
 
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