Co-owning a uke?

fretie

fretie

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Have you ever done it, co-owned a uke with another uke player?

My uke pal and I are considering buying an 8 string. We both have good go to ukes for the bulk of our ukulele play and practice but we thought it would be fun to have a eight string for a bit of a change up for specific times and certain musical contexts.

Well, truth be known, it was her idea to consider an 8 string uke, either Oscar Schmidt or Ohana, but all the talk about this type of uke eventually got me interested and even excited about the possibilities of having an 8 stringer to play. So, half in jest, I suggested that we should co-own the uke.

It could stay at each of our homes on alternate weeks, LOL! And after all, we live within a block of each other’s home...heck, the uke could even just drop in for an afternoon if it wanted to play...
 
I guess you could say my wife and I sort of co-own a baritone, maybe .... because our daughter left it behind, after we bought her a Martin guitar. She likes her concert and I mostly play a tenor, so it works. Go ahead and try out the 8 string uke share and let us know if you remain friends.
 
I don't know if that is a good idea. Lots of things can happen. What happens when one puts a scratch it? Who changes the strings when it needs it? Who decides when it needs a string change? What if one wants to install a pickup and the other doesn't, or a strap button? I just think that there is a lot more to it than who has custody and when. What happens when one is not taking as good care of it as the other thinks they should. My father-in-law owned a boat along with another fellow for years, and all he did was complain about the other guy leaving it sit outside all summer and the only week out of the whole year that he wanted to use it, the other guy wanted to use it too. They did stay friends though.
 
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When my brother Bob and I were teenagers in the early sixties, we chipped in and bought a 1958 Gibson J50. This worked fine when we lived at home and shared a room, but when we moved out to homes a couple of hours apart, Bob bought me out and he still owns the old Gibson.
In the seventies, I lived in Baltimore, Ontario and my brother David lived in Montreal, a 4 or 5 hour drive away. Dave found a really good deal on a '72 Martin D-18 but he couldn't afford it, so he and I chipped in and bought it. Unfortunately, this meant that we each got to spend 6 months with a really nice Martin and the other six months with a Yamaha FG180. The Yamaha was a good guitar, but a big let down when you've been used to playing the Martin.
When I found my D-21 about 40 years ago, Dave bought my half of the D-18.
We lost Dave to cancer in 2011 and his son inherited the D-18. Three years ago he went on a six month backpacking trip through Europe and Asia and asked me if I'd babysit the D-18 for half a year. Being a good uncle, I said,"Sure." I still have it. When I see Steve at Christmas or Thanksgiving, I ask him if he wants it back, but he always says, "No, you keep it for a while."
 
I take really good care of stuff and get really bummed when somethin’ bad happens to it.

I don’t even like to share my stuff with my wife! :eek:ld:
 
Make a written agreement, and stick to it. Share and share alike. Then if you find you just need to each have one, get another!
 
I'd let her buy one, & you try it out when she has it, then if you like it, get your own - ukes can be rather personal - which strings are you going to put on it, etc. ;)

Nice in theory, but doesn't often work out in practice, beware. :D
 
The good part is that if you have a falling out, you can get 4 strings each!
 
This is great! Totally gives Western ownership culture the finger.

We get so stuck on "ours" and "mine" that sometimes we forget that sharing can be enjoyable too. My buddies and I swap gear all the time. It's silly to go buy something that the next guy has sitting in his drawer, only using it occasionally. We don't necessarily "co-own" the stuff, but we might as well (and it's only ever a 15 minute drive if we REALLY need something back). I could see us splitting the bill on things in the future.

It might be hard to do for a main instrument, but for something a little more "experimental," why not? Give it a whirl!
 
Hippie Guy said:
This is great! Totally gives Western ownership culture the finger.

We get so stuck on "ours" and "mine" that sometimes we forget that sharing can be enjoyable too. My buddies and I swap gear all the time. It's silly to go buy something that the next guy has sitting in his drawer, only using it occasionally. We don't necessarily "co-own" the stuff, but we might as well (and it's only ever a 15 minute drive if we REALLY need something back). I could see us splitting the bill on things in the future.

It might be hard to do for a main instrument, but for something a little more "experimental," why not? Give it a whirl!
Click to expand...

Thanks Brad, that’s exactly the direction our thinking is going...

We are both privileged to have excellent instruments as our main players but, given that the 8 stringer would be only an ‘occasional use’ uke, it makes sense that we really probably wouldn’t both have to onwn one each separately.
 
My son left out my Fluke over Thanksgiving and my wife half asleep bumped into it putting a ding the top. Last person who plays is responsible. I didn't take my Koaloha out the next two days. Perhaps it's karma as my brother put my wife's Martin back in the case and when I went to move that case the guitar fell out and put a scratch in the top (only the finish not the wood)---brother didn't latch the case top---

On the one hand instruments can be a very personal thing----my wife's violin is HER violin....my son's violin is HIS violin....on the other hand if both parties are amenable and you have a written agreement I say go for it......has some fun with an 8 stringer....

My wife says she wants my Koaloha........I think she might have to buy her own tenor.....I don't really mind her buying one heck I'll buy her one if she finds one she likes......but the Koaloha is mine
 
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More and more assets are being rented these days. A possible name for your concept: Uber ukes.
 
I think it's a great idea. I have friends who share a Cajon and they don't even live in the same city. They have to cross a toll bridge to transport it. Sharing is not common in our culture, where we are encouraged to consume consume consume. "Sharing is caring."
 
The sharing idea is fine but you might be surprised how often you want to play the 8 string. I have a Pono 8 string taropatch and a Martin tenor and usually alternate days. I love em both and want to play both regularly.
 
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