tkthompson
Active member
By way of introduction: my name is Todd, I'm a newbie to this forum, and I'm really impressed by the wealth of info on this board and the generosity of the members. I was hoping some of the vintage baritone owners could clear up some questions I had.
A year ago (before I discovered this site) I picked up one of the "gamblers special" Lanakai baritones. Aside from some fretboard discoloration (wood filler?) and a high nut and action (2mm at nut; 1.5mm at 1st fret, 3mm at 12th), hard to complain. Any suggestions on how to go about lowering the action?
The LU-21B was my gateway drug; a few weeks ago I won an Ebay estate auction for a late-vintage Harmony that had spent the last 50 years in someone's closet. I got lucky: it cleaned up beautifully, has a sweet action, accurate tone, and sounds amazing (esp in lower tunings). And I really love the 19" scale. Any recommendations for strings and tunings on the Harmony? The D'Addario Nyltech's sound great in the linear G (DGBE), A, and Bb tunings. But I was curious if, as a rule it was better to shy away from higher tension strings/tunings with vintage ukes (in which case I'll look to tune down to Bb rather than up).
Also, I tried out the high G Aquila baritone set; the tone was nice but the volume was surprisingly constrained (less than my KPK concert with Worth clears). Any string recommendations for high G and/or high D tunings?
Finally, while I'm smitten with the Harmony, I'm looking to find her a reasonably-priced 19" companion (Favilla, Vega, ??) with a slightly wider nut and string spacing. The Harmony has a 1 1/4" nut and the string spacing is 33.5mm at the 12th fret). I understand the Favilla nut is 1 3/8". Can anyone report on the Favilla string spacing @ the 12th fret and/or bridge? Also, what's a fair price for a Favilla in good shape?
The Vegas also sound interesting but I've read conflicting reports on nut sizing and scale across the various makes/models. Does anyone happen to know what the nut and string spacing is on the model with "Boston 16" blue label and the plain "Arthur Godrey Baritone Ukulele VEGA" headstock (no "Standard" or "De Luxe")?
You can probably see where this is going... I'd welcome any recommendations on vintage makes and models. And if anyone is looking for a caring home for a vintage 19" bari with 1 3/8+" nut, I'm in the market.
A year ago (before I discovered this site) I picked up one of the "gamblers special" Lanakai baritones. Aside from some fretboard discoloration (wood filler?) and a high nut and action (2mm at nut; 1.5mm at 1st fret, 3mm at 12th), hard to complain. Any suggestions on how to go about lowering the action?
The LU-21B was my gateway drug; a few weeks ago I won an Ebay estate auction for a late-vintage Harmony that had spent the last 50 years in someone's closet. I got lucky: it cleaned up beautifully, has a sweet action, accurate tone, and sounds amazing (esp in lower tunings). And I really love the 19" scale. Any recommendations for strings and tunings on the Harmony? The D'Addario Nyltech's sound great in the linear G (DGBE), A, and Bb tunings. But I was curious if, as a rule it was better to shy away from higher tension strings/tunings with vintage ukes (in which case I'll look to tune down to Bb rather than up).
Also, I tried out the high G Aquila baritone set; the tone was nice but the volume was surprisingly constrained (less than my KPK concert with Worth clears). Any string recommendations for high G and/or high D tunings?
Finally, while I'm smitten with the Harmony, I'm looking to find her a reasonably-priced 19" companion (Favilla, Vega, ??) with a slightly wider nut and string spacing. The Harmony has a 1 1/4" nut and the string spacing is 33.5mm at the 12th fret). I understand the Favilla nut is 1 3/8". Can anyone report on the Favilla string spacing @ the 12th fret and/or bridge? Also, what's a fair price for a Favilla in good shape?
The Vegas also sound interesting but I've read conflicting reports on nut sizing and scale across the various makes/models. Does anyone happen to know what the nut and string spacing is on the model with "Boston 16" blue label and the plain "Arthur Godrey Baritone Ukulele VEGA" headstock (no "Standard" or "De Luxe")?
You can probably see where this is going... I'd welcome any recommendations on vintage makes and models. And if anyone is looking for a caring home for a vintage 19" bari with 1 3/8+" nut, I'm in the market.