Excited to find you, need plans

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mb571

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Hi folks,
I am new to the forum and am glad I found you. I have used other forums like this and appreciate the massive amount of info available.

I am looking for some free plans if possible for my first Ukulele build. Not sure what size...either a concert or tenor.
I love woodworking and have built a fiddle from a Stewmac kit and a Telecaster from scratch. My one son now has shown an interest in playing the ukulele. One of the things about these great sites is that it requires a fair amount of time and reading before you can get a project starting. Building the electric guitar was no different.

So I am looking for any tips on where to find plans, and any great detailed build threads.

Thanks, and I look forward to enjoy hanging out here<

Mark
 
Welcome to the forum.

As often happens, I'm not answering your questions but offering some advice. Spend a little time looking at the 2 different building methods, the Spanish heel or the box and neck method. If the latter, at the alternatives for joining the neck to the box. Once you have some understanding of these and have made a decision on which method to use, it will lead you into making your first jig ((a building board (solera) or external mould)).

Don't be fooled into thinking you need lots of other jigs and tools: some may come later but initially they are not necessary.

There's lots of info to find on this site but YouTube is also a great source: search on both ukulele making and classical guitar making as techniques are similar.
 
A very nice start to the gathering info stage it is. Will have to research some of the finer details like body, belly, and back thicknesses.
 
Chuck and dofthesea -Thanks for the mention. Mb571- A quick web search turns up a number of options for free ukulele plans. There are even plans for ukeleles, whatever those are! Or let people here know where you are located, and just maybe there is someone close to you who can share plans with you. -Bob
 
Although appreciated Greenscoe, this response steers me to more reading. With any new hobby, there is a learning curve. I was hoping to jump right in at a recommended plan and build thread. Do you have any links to these to build methods?
 
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The point I was trying to bring to your attention is that there are many different ways of doing almost every step in building a uke depending on your tools, ability, temperament.............etc. However the great divide is between the Spanish heel method (the traditional way to make a classical guitar) and the box and neck method. There are adherents to both methods on this forum. By watching some videos and doing a little reading you will decide which method to try and in the process learn a lot about some of the other things you require for the build.

Here is just one video from YouTube using the box and neck method (with machine cut tapered dovetail joint). This is the method I use but I have to say that the maker does many tasks in a different way to the way I do them (he makes a great looking uke). Its hard to find a complete build in one clip: most operations are shown as separate video clips. For Spanish heel builds, there are probably more guitar making videos than uke making videos.

I am suggesting that you dip into these to get some ideas about building a uke before you start to make one: I dont think the time will be wasted.

Maybe others on the forum could link you to forum posts or videos that would help?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdT6C4sn9pI
 
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dofthesea said:
Rather then trying to find something for free. Your best bet is to either go with the Hana Lima IA Plan or Bob Pegasus plan. Both contribute a lot the the building community and are great guys.
Click to expand...

Hah. Just joined, looking for plans for to use set you gave me. I think I'll check with Hana Lima 'Ia. After building guitars, this is going to be an education!

Pat
 
Timbuck said:
..the first thing you need is a neck co's it's a Spanish heel job and the solara is quite simple to make ....and I do have some basic plans and dimensions.
Click to expand...

Sounds great. I'm all excited. Now I just have to find out what a Spanish heel and solara is??

I do feel like a bit of a uke dummie. I am proud of my woodworking skills though. Here is the build for the guitar I made for my son:
http://www.tdpri.com/threads/tdpri-apprenticeship-1st-build.294452/

Mark
 
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Timbuck said:
Maybe building a uke in the old fashioned way could be a good way for you to start..the first thing you need is a neck co's it's a Spanish heel job and the solara is quite simple to make ..I didn't find it too dificult once I got started. here is the link http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?99316-Island-Uke-New-Project&highlight=1900+style and I do have some basic plans and dimensions.
Click to expand...

Okay I studied this Spanish heel method build thread. Can someone steer me to a box and neck method one?
 
Hi all, I'm a ukulele builder in Oakland California and have made available free tenor and baritone plans on my website http://oaktownstrings.com. These are highly detailed mechanical drawings that I've developed over the past few years. Full scale. PDF format. Would love to hear any feedback on them.

Robert
 
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