Which K brand offers the most natural, low/no gloss finish?

AmyDee

AmyDee

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I am the proud owner of a Pete Howlett boat paddle uke that has hand rubbed oil finish that I absolutely LOVE. I am looking for a K brand tenor with a similar matte finish. Several of the makers offer satin finishes, and Kanile'a has something they are calling a "new natural satin finish." Does anyone know how these satin finishes compare to an oil rubbed finish?
 
kanilea, has best satin finish. UV SILK or natural version
Koaloha has a non gloss model called the pikake for all sizes.cheaper but same great sound
kamaka, no choices
 
Yes, I'd say Kanilea, too. They used to offer a "satin finish" (SF in the model name) that was basically just oil, and it made for a very woody feel, look, and sound. Their newer "natural finish", from what I understand, is UV cured but differently buffed. Same goes for their "silk", but this latter isn't like an oil finish at all; kinda milky/glassy, and you see every finger print.

The Pikake from KoAloha could be described as open-pore semi-gloss. Definitely not like an oil-rubbed satin finish.

Kamaka has an open pore gloss and now a "semi-gloss". Looks pretty shiny to me and not like what you describe as your preference.

Last but not least, you might want to consider Ko'olau; they make a wonderful satin finish, perfectly flat, but with a very woody look and feel to it. They operate more like a custom shop these days, but coincidentally, there is a used Ko'olau in the marketplace right now for less than the other K brands, and that one has a satin finish:

http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?128350-Koolau-t2-all-koa-Tenor

This is the one I'd get, if I needed another tenor.
 
I have a Kamaka with the semi-gloss finish, and it is definitely not a fully matte finish. It's kind of "glowy" and starts shining up after you play a while. I would agree that KoAloha, Kanilea and Koolau all have options that are more matte.
 
I have a Kanile'a with the newer Kanile'a satin finish, which they call silk—love it! It's UV cured like their gloss finish, so tough as hell, and smooth as glass... but not as shiny. It does have a bit of a milky look at certain angles, and fingerprints do show, tho I would say similar to a high-gloss finish. I think the fingerprints may just be inevitable with a mirror-flat finish (vs. more forgiving finishes, open pores, etc).

It really does feel like silk—less tacky than gloss even, which I think is why Kanile'a is now using it on the necks of glossy ukes, so the hand slides even more easily up and down the neck... it's a treat! :)
 
mmfitzsimons said:
I have a Kanile'a with the newer Kanile'a satin finish, which they call silk—love it! It's UV cured like their gloss finish, so tough as hell, and smooth as glass... but not as shiny. It does have a bit of a milky look at certain angles, and fingerprints do show, tho I would say similar to a high-gloss finish. I think the fingerprints may just be inevitable with a mirror-flat finish (vs. more forgiving finishes, open pores, etc).

It really does feel like silk—less tacky than gloss even, which I think is why Kanile'a is now using it on the necks of glossy ukes, so the hand slides even more easily up and down the neck... it's a treat! :)
Click to expand...

That sounds pretty awesome. What model is your Kanile'a?
 
I have a Kanile'a with a satin finish, not sure the exact name (it was built in 2014), seems like they have 2-3 different names for their satin/matte finish.
K2front.jpg
 
For those that have Kamaka ukes, do the semi gloss necks get sticky with sweaty hands?
 
Many thanks to all that have responded, it's been very helpful. I'm leaning toward a KoAloha Pikaka Tenor, so I'll start looking around to see if any local dealer has one in stock.
 
DanY said:
That sounds pretty awesome. What model is your Kanile'a?
Click to expand...

Hi, Dan. My Kanile'a is called the super tenor long neck, (SE ST 19 SILK S). They use the "silk" finish on other models, too.

And to answer your other question to the group, yes, my Kamaka does get a bit sticky when my hands sweat. I like to think it's just loving me back, doesn't want to let go any more than I do, haha...
 
mmfitzsimons said:
It really does feel like silk—less tacky than gloss even, which I think is why Kanile'a is now using it on the necks of glossy ukes, so the hand slides even more easily up and down the neck... it's a treat! :)
Click to expand...

My 2016 Platinum came with the silk finish on the neck. I absolutely adore this finish on this part of the uke. Your hand slides so smoothly up and down the neck, significantly better than my son's gloss finish K1. When I ordered a custom K3 with a spruce soundboard, this option was the top of my list. As for the rest, I am a gloss finish man. I love the way it makes master grade wood just pop.
 
Definitely Kanile'a. This is my 2016 Kanile'a K-1 Tenor with UV Natural finish:

kanilea_k-1_tdlx_14373-6.jpgkanilea_k-1_tdlx_14373-7.jpgkanilea_k-1_tdlx_14373-5.jpgkanilea_k-1_tdlx_14373-4.jpg

No gloss whatsoever. It has an open woody tone, and the natural finish really shows the colors in the Koa.

Photos are from theukulelesite.com
 
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