New little soprano teardrop

Vespa Bob · Nov 13, 2016

My new Favilla style soprano teardrop ukulele (#5) is safely in the hands of my client, who, after previously purchasing one, promptly ordered another as gift for a friend. I'm happy to report that she was delighted with the instrument. I hope to hear the same from her friend!
As usual, to conform with the original Favilla, it is all mahogany with a simple rosette and Gotah friction tuners, strung with Worth clears. Apart from a couple of minor changes, it stays true to the original concept.
I enjoy building these simple, no frills instruments as it allows one to spend more time concentrating on sound structure and a good finish without additional tricky stuff to worry about!

Bob

Maiden Uke · Nov 13, 2016

Beautiful teardrop, Bob. Lovely in it's uniqueness. Nice work!

Rrgramps · Nov 14, 2016

Sweet looking ukulele! What was used for your finish?

sequoia · Nov 14, 2016

Very nice looking teardrop. Love the liquid finish. Another happy customer.

Iulia · Nov 14, 2016

very nice!

Kayak Jim · Nov 14, 2016

Lovely clean lines!

I wish I was your client's friend!

RPA_Ukuleles · Nov 15, 2016

Absolutely perfect Bob. You could make those and nothing else for the rest of your days and it would be a wonderful contribution to ukulele history.

Vespa Bob · Nov 15, 2016

Thank you so much for all your encouraging comments, folks, it tells me that I'm on the right track! I don't know about ukulele history, but I would be content to to spend the rest of my days building these beauties!
The finish comprised of a couple of coats of shellac, followed by CA pore filler, then several, not sure how many, coats of Cardinal nitro cellulose lacquer. Finally hand rubbed with rubbing compound and much elbow grease! Still room for improvement, though.

Bob

Booli · Nov 15, 2016

That looks wonderful Bob!

I love it.

stevejfc · Nov 15, 2016

Very nice Bob. Very nice indeed!

Demick · Nov 17, 2016

Absolutely beautiful Bob! I love the teardrop shape. You should put on a building class. I would surely sign up!

Demick

M3Ukulele · Nov 18, 2016

That is a great looking, simple yet solid looking soprano. Finish is excellent I would love to hear a sound sample. Is it possible to build a tenor in this shape? Has it ever been done? Congratulations. I wish I had the talent to build a ukulele like this!

Vespa Bob · Nov 18, 2016

Demick, thanks for the compliment, however, it is I who should attend a building class!
M3Ukulele, I'm hoping for a sound sample and review from my client as soon as her friend receives her gift. I don't see why this could not be built as a tenor, but I am no expert in such matters. Regarding the shape, I can't take any credit for it, as I copied it from an original Favilla teardrop that I fell in love with some time back. I'm pleased to see that others share my views. No doubt there will be more little teardrops to come!

Bob

Michael N. · Nov 18, 2016

There's no reason why you can't use that shape for a tenor or even a baritone. It is an attractive Uke, no doubt. Not quite the same (very similar though) but I once used a cittern shape for a guitalele. You would need to work out the increase in size, bridge position and neck/body joint including number of frets.

gerardg · Nov 19, 2016

Very cool shape,
and nice finish.
No doubt that sound is "au rendez vous".

Vintageukes · Nov 23, 2016

Bob, nice work my friend. That original teardrop you saw at the Ukejam is on the wall just next to me as I write you. You have done a wonderful job recreating this under recognized body shape. People just don't realize how much air volume is lost bending the sides in. I'd love to see one of yours in person one day.

Here is mine:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=924hBx1u_t4

Rrgramps · Nov 23, 2016

Vespa Bob said:
Thank you so much for all your encouraging comments, folks, it tells me that I'm on the right track!
Bob

Definitely on track, Bob! Lovely looking ukulele, and very beautiful finish.

southcoastukes · Nov 23, 2016

Vintageukes said:
Bob, nice work my friend. That original teardrop you saw at the Ukejam is on the wall just next to me as I write you. You have done a wonderful job recreating this under recognized body shape. People just don't realize how much air volume is lost bending the sides in. I'd love to see one of yours in person one day.

Here is mine:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=924hBx1u_t4

I agree with Vintage - that's a great design concept, Bob, and you've done a wonderful job recreating it.

Vespa Bob said:
I enjoy building these simple, no frills instruments as it allows one to spend more time concentrating on sound structure and a good finish without additional tricky stuff to worry about!
Bob

One thing here is these two "explorations" could be a bit contradictory. To look a bit deeper into the sound aspect, you might take a shot at a pair, one with your current finish protocol, and one without the epoxy and multi-layered topcoat.

Vespa Bob · Nov 23, 2016

Thanks, once again for the encouraging comments, folks, they are much appreciated! Thanks too, Ryan, for including a link to your video with Ukulele Jay. I also hope we can get together with our ukes one day!
Dirk, thanks for your contribution, but I am a little confused by comment regarding the finish on my instruments. Apart from using CA, not epoxy, as the pore filler on this latest instrument, (mostly I use sanding sealer or shellac), I have only used nitro cellulose lacquer as the final finish on every uke I have built. I do try to use as few coats as possible to achieve good protection and gloss. I have found that light weight construction and a thin finish, are the key to a good sound in my very limited experience. I apologize if I have misunderstood your suggestion.

Bob

southcoastukes · Nov 23, 2016

Vespa Bob said:
Dirk, thanks for your contribution, but I am a little confused by comment regarding the finish on my instruments. Apart from using CA, not epoxy, as the pore filler on this latest instrument, (mostly I use sanding sealer or shellac), I have only used nitro cellulose lacquer as the final finish on every uke I have built. I do try to use as few coats as possible to achieve good protection and gloss. I have found that light weight construction and a thin finish, are the key to a good sound in my very limited experience. I apologize if I have misunderstood your suggestion.
Bob

Hello Bob,

Please pardon me for the inexact terminology. I use epoxy sometimes as a sort of generic term. It was actually used by some folks a while back as a pore filler; the CA isn't nearly as heavy or "encasing" unless you really start to pile it on. And in one of your earlier posts I probably got the wrong impression of how much topcoat you're using when you said you'd lost track of the number of coats (though you did say "several", not "dozens").

I was thinking of how a "minimalist" finish would come across versus a heavy one, especially on a little fellow like yours. But it appears your finish isn't so heavy after all. Nice prep work and congratulations again!

New little soprano teardrop

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