Bass uke rib patterns?

danportr

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Hey All,
I'm building a bass ukulele in walnut with a doug fir soundboard, maple neck. I've used the dimensions for the Kala U-base available on their site and drawn it up in detail using Creo elements modeling (willing to share this). The body curves were a serious challenge. I have it in wood in process, neck sanded and sides hot curved. The front and back center glued.
Does anyone know a proper rib pattern for a bass ukulele? Especially under the soundboard. A knock off I saw with a dental mirror had an X pattern near the sound hole. It seems the strings need support bracing for the tension. I used a tenor layout in my plans but expect an improvement is available or in order. I haven't seen another bass ukulele to compare.
Also working on my third tenor uke.
Thanks, Dan
 
I have the same question about bracing...

This is my first build of any kind, so started with a baritone plan from Georgia Luthier supply which does not use an X-bracing pattern; rather, it has a cross brace above and below the sound hole and three braces in a fan pattern for the lower bout.

I chose this plan because it's almost identical in size to the Kala U-Bass and my online research leads me to believe the relatively low tension of the fat U-Bass strings wont be an issue.

If anybody sees anything wrong (or right) with my logic I'd really appreciate your input.

Thanks!
--Matt
 
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