I'm definitely in the traditional, the-more-wood-the-better ukulele faction. But if I could ever afford to get one of my brothers that ukulele, that might actually start him playing!
Just an update to this two month old thread---Peter told me by phone last week that the steampunk 2 is a concert fretboard ukulele with a soprano body + 10% more body size = what Peter calls a "concert-10", and it is nearing completion in his private workshop, then he will have it painted by an artist before the final lacquering.
So, for anyone interested, I urge you to call Peter. It won't last long (if it lasts long enough for him to even get it on his own website...lol).