NUD Kolahoha Opio Acacia Concert Ukelele questions/issues

Vitazora

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After a 2+ week wait, I received my long awaited Koaloha Opio Acacia concert model uke. First of all, the sound is bright and resonant and I couldn't happier with that. The overall look and feel is exactly what I was hoping for.

But there are a couple of finish issues that bother me and I wanted to get some feedback from all of you about whether or not they are enough to warrant a return. I think it must be impossible to make a ukulele without a little flaw here or there, but these are hard not to notice. However, they are cosmetic and have no effect on playability, but I think would have some impact on resale value someday.

Photos posted below and I would love to hear any feedback. Perfection is subjective, right? In the eye of the beholder and all....but the Opio line is not cheap and I expected better QC from the vendor.

Thanks for taking a look.

The first photo shows a flaw where the fretboard meets the body, and is under the finish.

The second photo shows a nick on the lower bout edge.

The third photo shows a slightly rough edge seam where the sides join each other. I have looked closely to see if this is actually a crack, but cannot tell. The edge is noticable though.
 

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does not look like cracks to me....but when you get that close every seam or imperfection in the wood can look like one.....I would send a picture to the dealer as they are the ones with the most knowledge of the instrument......you will get all kinds of advice here....so go direct to the people you bought it from.....I am sure if you don't like the uke they can send you a different one or refund you....

my 2 cents
 
Thank you for your quick responses.
I have only had the uke for less than 24 hours and even though I have contacted the seller and included the photos, I may not get a reply until Monday.

The seller is well respected and known for their quality setup. I have purchased from them before...a Pono Concert which was/is absolutely perfect and a Koalana Soprano laminate which had several flaws and I returned it with no problem. Since this is my second from the Koaloha Opio family, it made me wonder if Koaloha Opios have less stringent factory QC. Or maybe I am just really unlucky with them.
 
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Thank you for your quick responses.
I have only had the uke for less than 24 hours and even though I have contacted the seller and included the photos, I may not get a reply until Monday.

The seller is well respected and known for their quality setup. I have purchased from them before...a Pono Concert which was/is absolutely perfect and a Koalana Soprano laminate which had several flaws and I returned it with no problem. Since this is my second from the Kolahoa Opio family, it made me wonder if Koaloha Opios have less stringent factory QC. Or maybe I am just really unlucky with them.

ask the seller if it is a problem with the Opio builds....you are only going to get guesses from the folks here on the UU.....I would send it back as seems like you looking for reasons to do so....I am sure it is not a problem..hopefully they can send you a "perfect" one back to you
 
ask the seller if it is a problem with the Opio builds....you are only going to get guesses from the folks here on the UU.....I would send it back as seems like you looking for reasons to do so....I am sure it is not a problem..hopefully they can send you a "perfect" one back to you

Not looking for perfection. :) Just wondered where people draw the line with cosmetic flaws in a new Uke.
 
I would definitely return that one, it should have never been shipped. I'm picky but I can over look some minor imperfections. Those, in my opinion, are pretty significant.
 
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It's hard to tell for sure, but it doesn't look to me like this one has the same defects:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MIM-Opio-NE...022686?hash=item2a71bfd0de:g:Bl4AAOSwLnBX7Uj7

I'm not sure what I would do if I were in your situation, (other than contact the store, which you have done, and are waiting for a response), but if the ukulele had the right mojo, I might keep it anyway. If I wasn't already attached to it, I'd see about swapping it for one without the problems. You don't want to be disappointed every time you take it out of its case and look at it.
 
If it was me, I'd probably return it, unless the price had been discounted and the flaws mentioned. The ding would probably be all right with me (it'll probably get dinged anyway if you play it a lot), but the flaw by the fretboard and especially the roughness at the seam wouldn't sit right with me. I feel it's fine for a discounted "B stock" product, but not for a regularly priced model. Contacting the seller with the photos, as you did, is a good idea.

My Opio Concert (the sapele model) that I had did not have any of these issues. The finish looked somewhat boring, with open pores, but there were no dings or other flaws of a similar nature.
 
If it was me, I'd probably return it, unless the price had been discounted and the flaws mentioned. The ding would probably be all right with me (it'll probably get dinged anyway if you play it a lot), but the flaw by the fretboard and especially the roughness at the seam wouldn't sit right with me. I feel it's fine for a discounted "B stock" product, but not for a regularly priced model. Contacting the seller with the photos, as you did, is a good idea.

My Opio Concert (the sapele model) that I had did not have any of these issues. The finish looked somewhat boring, with open pores, but there were no dings or other flaws of a similar nature.

Thank you for the feedback. I agree that a nick is not as big a deal as the other issues. It certainly looks like a "B stock" model to me as well - it sounds so lovely though. I am sure I can return it, but would not want another that looked as bad in it its place. If the seller offered a discount, I would be very tempted to keep it.
 
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Thank you for the feedback. I agree that a nick is not as big a deal as the other issues. It certainly looks like a "B stock" model to me as well - it sounds so lovely though. I am sure I can return it, but would not want another that looked as bad it its place. If the seller offered a discount, I would be very tempted to keep it.

Hm . . . sound is what is most important. I'd be afraid that if I sent it back for another I might get a perfect finish but not have as good a sound. Just something to consider.

In your shoes, I might contact the seller and ask if they would refund a small portion of your money due to the flaws but keep the ukulele if I loved the sound.
 
I would definitely return that one, it should have never been shipped. I'm picky but I can over look some minor imperfections. Those, in my opinion, are pretty significant.

Thanks for the feedback. Very much appreciated.

I am not a perfectionist, and completely understand that there will be flaws in a handmade product.
Except for the Pono Ukulele, all my Ukes arrived with a flaw or two, a bubble in the finish, or some other minor thing. And I kept them, except for the Koalana laminate. It had a small metal shard wedged under one of the frets and one of the tuning buttons' chrome finish was etched or eroded away to reveal the metal underneath and the neck to body joint seam had gouges from sanding.
 
I would send it back for sure. If there is one thing l have learned....if not happy out of the box send it back. I'm sure your vendor will be fine with that. Other suggestion below to ask for discount is a good idea if you love the sound. Looking at the issues, seem like they are more what you would expect from a used instrument which would have been pointed out by the seller up front....IMHO.
 
Thank you for the feedback. I agree that a nick is not as big a deal as the other issues. It certainly looks like a "B stock" model to me as well - it sounds so lovely though. I am sure I can return it, but would not want another that looked as bad in it its place. If the seller offered a discount, I would be very tempted to keep it.

I would just return it..if you get $100.00 off of it the flaws will still be there and if you sell it in the future are you going to give the new buyer the same discount....best to just return it for one that is perfect everyone will be happy, does not make sense to keep something you don't like and the production Opio's all sound about the same...the seller will want to see happy customers too
 
I am not a perfectionist, and completely understand that there will be flaws in a handmade product. Except for the Pono Ukulele, all my Ukes arrived with a flaw or two, a bubble in the finish, or some other minor thing.

One thing to be aware of is that Pono has a perfectly flat finish in both their gloss and satin options, whereas KoAloha Opio uses sort of an open pore finish that will always show some of the holes that are in the wood underneath. The ones in your pictures do look rather big, though, so you might want to return it or try to get a partial refund (not sure if this is customary, though).
 
Those "flaws" look pretty minor to me, the pic's are zoomed in. You must have given it a pretty scrutinizing inspection. I probably wouldn't even have noticed them myself and I'm kind of picky. If you like it, keep it, if it bothers you, send it back.
 
Thanks again everyone for your feedback.
The seller very kindly responded to my questions and confirmed that the butt seam appearance on my ukulele is pretty typical on the Opio line. They also said that Opios were not always free of cosmetic defects. My biggest concern was that the butt seam could indicate a structural problem, and I am relieved to know that is not the case.

They offered to replace or give me a discount. Rather than send it back and wait for a new ukulele that may have other cosmetic flaws, I went with the discount.
The sound of this Acacia model is wonderful and I am comfortable with the way everything worked out.
I am looking forward to many happy hours playing my new uke!
 
Thanks again everyone for your feedback.
The seller very kindly responded to my questions and confirmed that the butt seam appearance on my ukulele is pretty typical on the Opio line. They also said that Opios were not always free of cosmetic defects. My biggest concern was that the butt seam could indicate a structural problem, and I am relieved to know that is not the case.

They offered to replace or give me a discount. Rather than send it back and wait for a new ukulele that may have other cosmetic flaws, I went with the discount.
The sound of this Acacia model is wonderful and I am comfortable with the way everything worked out.
I am looking forward to many happy hours playing my new uke!


Good call on your part. I have a tenor with three "issues" that bothered me, one semi serious. The seller offered to take it back or give me a discount. This uke had great playability and amazing sound so I kept it, always go for the sound. That was 2 years ago and that uke has been play a LOT. I never notice those issues anymore but I love the sound everytime I play it.
 
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