Old Kamaka on ebay

1937Scott

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Any input on this uke? I've passed quite a few Kamakas in the last few months, this one seems ok but what do I know?

I kinda like the body style, the wear and tear don't scare me, I've played old Martins that looked much worse and sounded great. I suppose I'm thinking 'Caveat Emptor,' so I'm asking here on UU.

Anyone who can help me out I'd greatly appreciate it.

ebay item # 300710605339

Ends Sunday, May 20, 2012.

Thanks!

Scott
 
Well, I am a vintage uke guy, and I will tell you what I see. First, be careful comparing Martin and Kamaka! The build on these old Kamaka ukuleles is usually quite rough. This one looks quite old to me. I would guess 20's. The bridge and tuners have both been replaced. That is not the original bridge, and this likely had wood peg tuners on it when new.

Those tuners are very modern Shallers, which are HEAVY. Since it has black strings, I wonder if someone took this to Kamaka at some point as those are the tuners, strings, and bridge Kamaka would use now to repair it. Those tuners will create an odd balance for the ukulele as they are just shockingly heavy. The holes would have had to be widened to fit those tuners.

The good news is that if it went to Kamaka, they would have brought it back to being playable. However, I see another thing, there is a lot of cracking in the finish, which the photos hardly show. Usually the result of being exposed to fast temp changes.

They say there is a crack below the bridge but the photos don't show it. Figure around $100 to have any crack in that spot fixed, which is a common spot for Kamaka's to crack. I guess I would encourage you to think about what you want to do with this ukulele. If you want a regular, daily player I would be hesitant since you don't get to play it first and see if you like it. My 20's Kamaka pineapple is a lot of fun, and is in good shape, but the build is VERY rough compared to my other ukuleles of the same era. It is clear to me that Kamaka was cranking these out as quickly as possible.

I personally like my vintage ukuleles as original as possible. I wouldn't like not having the original bridge. It would bother me, but may not bother others. I guess you would kind of want to know that the bridge was put on in the right spot, but from the photos it looks ok......

Hope that helps a bit.
 
Ryan!

Thanks so much! That's exactly why I posted it here, out of my complete ignorance of vintage Ukes. I'll probably pass.

It is pretty frustrating not being able to see, hold, and play stuff before buying. But that's the double-edge sword of the internet....I get to find stuff I would otherwise be ignorant of, but it's usually a time-zone or three away from me.

Scott
 
So glad it was helpful to you Scott! Let me know if I can help another time! Didn't want to rain on your parade if you really wanted this ukulele but wanted you to be aware of the issues I can see. Sounds like that is what you were looking for! Keep looking, you'll find the right one!
 
You are right. I'd like a vintage uke, but I should probably buy one I can hold first. My 'fantasy' vintage is to get my hands on an old Ditson....they have the prettiest shape body to ever grace a Uke. IMO

Gosh, there's one on ebay for ONLY $1,500!


Thanks again, I'm going to reign in the UAS and wait for my WW custom arriving later this year.
 
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