just learned about ukulele "setup"

Been playing the ukulele for almost 2 years now with a kala KA-C and only today have i found out about setup.

I bought the ukulele from L&M and they never mentioned anything about setup and since i rarely go on any ukulele forums until just recently i never knew about it.

I always felt like my string were too high from the frets..

Debating spending money on tools and attempting to do it myself or spend $50 and get a pro to do it.

I don't have plans to buy another ukulele anytime soon.

should i attempt it or just get it done by a shop?

It isn't really hard to do, IF you take your time and are careful. Why not watch a few of the many YouTube videos showing how to adjust height at the nut or saddle and see if it looks like something you'd like to try. Over the years I've acquired all the tools and measurement gadgets I need to work on all my instruments, mostly because I enjoy doing it. I'm sure I haven't saved any money in the long run vs. having a tech do it. But if you aren't comfortable with it, or have a very nice antique of some type, take it to a pro.

One advantage to doing it yourself is that you can do things in steps. So with my first uke I was able to drop the action from 8/64", to 7, to 6, and then 5 in steps to see how I liked it by repeatedly sanding the saddle. Working on the nut is a bit harder, and either requires that you purchase a few $10 special files, or that you remove the nut and sand from the bottom.

Philipraposo1982 said:

I always felt like my string were too high from the frets..

Debating spending money on tools and attempting to do it myself or spend $50 and get a pro to do it.

should i attempt it or just get it done by a shop?

Click to expand...

Go for it yourself ... slowly

Nylon strings are quite "fat" (compared to steel guitar strings), so no need to buy a whole bunch of files you're never going to use.

The grooves in the nut can be deepened with a hacksaw blade used VERY gently, a "junior" blade for the two outer strings, a "regular" blade for the two inner strings. If you use a second "regular" hacksaw blade flat on the fretboard under the strings this'll give a good guide as to how far down you can go ... you ideally want to just kiss the "spacer" with the cutting tool.

In the unhappy event of going too deep, don't panic, just glue a thin strip of plastic food packaging (yoghurt pot etc) in the slot ... if necessary re-file again slightly. My experience suggests that "just too far" is one thickness of yoghurt pot

The slots in the nut need to be wide enough to allow the strings to slide easily without being so wide that they might rattle (and cause buzzing). Also the slots should be slightly deeper on the machine-head side of the nut, again to prevent buzzing.

Virtually any error can be recovered with a drop of superglue and a strip or two of plastic, so don't feel shy about having a go.

My Kala KA-C has been re-worked a couple of times, first to properly accommodate the original strings, then when I fitted a set of low-G Aquila "reds". I can see the traces of the work with a magnifying glass, but only because I know it's there, I doubt anyone else would notice unless they were really looking for it.

The saddle just pushes out to the side, you don't even have to de-tune the strings. Be careful when you sand it that you keep the sanding straight and even. It's worth drawing a pencil line across the saddle so's you can judge if your sanding it square or not. To lower the action at the 12th fret by 1mm you need to remove 2mm from the saddle, so it's not nearly as critical as work at the nut end! Again, in the unlikely event of "over doing it", a strip or two of plastic in the bridge-slot will raise the saddle back up to where you want it!

To quote Pete Seeger ... "Take it easy, but take it!" :music:

Personally, I'd take it to a store, pay the fifty bucks, and take it home well set-up. I'd not use my only ukulele to learn how to do it myself, and after buying tools, replacement saddles/nuts, etc, it may not even come cheaper. I'd prefer just paying a specialist, especially if it's going to be one-time only (or a rare occurrence at least).

Without seeing it, the saddle is probably too high. I doubt that the nut is too high.
All you need to do is loosen the strings , pull the saddle, set the bottom of the saddle on a piece of sand paper on a flat surface and stroke the saddle across the paper with even pressure. After a tiny bit of sanding, replace the saddle and check for height. Rinse, lather, and repeat until you find the height you like. DOn't go too low or you'll get fret buzzing. Easy peazy!!!

I ordered two new set of strings to try. Martin's m600 and d addario ej87c. Also ordered a string height gauge ruler.

Once it comes in I will change the height at the saddle it's about 3mm or so eyeballing it.

Most definitely on the higher side.

I feel confident that I can bring it down a bit and won't cost me much at all.

Thanks everyone.

Most folks here seem to have more than one instrument, being able to do setups is a time and money advantage. The necessary files will cost more or less the cost of a setup. Start with a hardwood nut and saddle to get your feet wet.

This is a helpful site to brouse.

http://frets.com/FretsPages/pagelist.html

Taking it to a luthier not only ensures the action is lowered properly but also intonation and proper fret dressing is also checked and corrected.

Several years ago I adjusted the action at the nut on my first uke (a Kala KA-S) by following this video. And I found the saddle had a shim under it (presumably to allow for a later pick up) which I simply removed.

https://reyalpeleluku.wordpress.com...video-how-i-adjust-the-action-on-a-cheap-uke/

Simplest answer is a question. Do you use your hands to build or create things? Ever build a model, carve anything from wood or apply eye makeup? If so you likely have the dexterity to control a small file. If you have any fear or doubt then have it done. I spent a year playing a used KA GAS the way it came. Recently one night half asleep I quickly lowered my strings at the nut and what a difference. The string slots weren't perfect and two strings clicked while playing. Quick correction with a file and all is great. The GAS now plays so much easier with a tiny adjustment at the nut.

I would stay away from hacksaw blades, welding tip cleaners and any other homemade suggestion and just head over to your local Harbor Freight and buy a set of cheap files. I myself looked at three sets to find the one with a blade file that was slightly rounded on a part of the edge. The beauty of imperfect imported cheap tools.



Look at those stock nut slots on the right compared to a quickie ghetto fix with skilled hands. Sanding a nut from the bottom is simply unacceptable to me due to this fact alone.



The trick is to not only correct the depth but also to angle the string towards the tuning post all while rounding the bottom of the slot to accept the round string. Me... I trust my hands to use these cheap tools on any of my personal ukes for great results. I did start with a smiley uke but had to go much further for results.

Blueprinting Smiley

For a saddle remember to mark the front (or back) before pulling it out. Use a pencil to mark a line you want to sand to and go slow. Kala is either plastic or NylaBone both file and sand rather easily for me. A regular steel ruler can be used to measure action at the 12th fret. 2.5 - 3mm is around 3 - 3.5 32nds.

Let us know what you choose but more importantly how much easier your uke is to play once its done.

~AL~

Oh really?! I will have look at mine tonight and see if there is a shim under there. If so that might be enough to bring down the height to a good spot.

Either way I have a string gauge, strings, weld tip cleaner coming in so I can make some fine tuned adjustments as needed. I been watching lots of videos and reading tons of threads.

I am going to aim for about 0.090" at the 12th fret and about 0.005-0.015" at the first fret. As far as intonation t really isn't bad currently, then again I am using a snark clip on tuner which is far from optimal from what I read.

I took a straight edge and did check the frets and they seem really level minus the last few closest to the sound hole which are lower by a fair bit. but no way i would bring down all the rest to meet that height.

What do you guys think about the 0.090" at the 12th fret? not too low right? i am thinking its probably the mid point as i read 0.070-0.080" being considered more a low action measurement.

Just eyeballing it, the distance at the 12th fret currently is a touch over 3mm. the gap of light at the first fret while pushing down on the string on the third is also high. I do notice sharpish notes at times and difficulty making Bb but i have always made due to strong hands lol.

I also am good with making furniture and using hand tools. Mechanically inclined too as I am a mechanical engineering technologist. So i do feel confident that I can tackle this job on my own. I did call around for pricing from a few good places near by but they are not cheap and want a lot of time. both of which i don't like. $75 cdn or more...

and from what I have read and what common sense tells me is that this is something very personal to each player so they really should do it themselves.

Unfortunately I won't get everything in from amazon till almost mid January so for now I will check for a shim and and continue on practicing as is.

Philipraposo1982 said:

Oh really?! I will have look at mine tonight and see if there is a shim under there. If so that might be enough to bring down the height to a good spot.

Either way I have a string gauge, strings, weld tip cleaner coming in so I can make some fine tuned adjustments as needed. I been watching lots of videos and reading tons of threads.

I am going to aim for about 0.090" at the 12th fret and about 0.005-0.015" at the first fret. As far as intonation t really isn't bad currently, then again I am using a snark clip on tuner which is far from optimal from what I read.

I took a straight edge and did check the frets and they seem really level minus the last few closest to the sound hole which are lower by a fair bit. but no way i would bring down all the rest to meet that height.

What do you guys think about the 0.090" at the 12th fret? not too low right? i am thinking its probably the mid point as i read 0.070-0.080" being considered more a low action measurement.

Just eyeballing it, the distance at the 12th fret currently is a touch over 3mm. the gap of light at the first fret while pushing down on the string on the third is also high. I do notice sharpish notes at times and difficulty making Bb but i have always made due to strong hands lol.

I also am good with making furniture and using hand tools. Mechanically inclined too as I am a mechanical engineering technologist. So i do feel confident that I can tackle this job on my own. I did call around for pricing from a few good places near by but they are not cheap and want a lot of time. both of which i don't like. $75 cdn or more...

and from what I have read and what common sense tells me is that this is something very personal to each player so they really should do it themselves.

Unfortunately I won't get everything in from amazon till almost mid January so for now I will check for a shim and and continue on practicing as is.

Click to expand...

12th fret action of ~6-64 (~ 0.090") is pretty good. That's what my Blackbird Farallon came with from the factory. I have one uke that I've taken all the way down to 0.080" (~5/64th"), what Mya-Moe calles medium low, and that feels really low to me. So I would definitely try the higher action first and see if it works for you before trying anything lower at the saddle. As for the nut, how are you measuring that 0.005"? If you mean between the top of the fret and the bottom of the string, that's way too low. The lowest I would suggest at the nut is 0.015" between the top of the first fret and the bottom of the string.