NUD: 1920's vintage Martin Style 2 Soprano

I have been buying and collecting Ukuleles since 2011 and in all that time I have never owned a Martin, sticking almost exclusively to Kamaka, KoAloha, Pono, UkeSA, and Kanile'a. Yes, there was an occassional Islander and Lanikai thrown in. However, since last November, I have acquired three vintage Martins. Two Tenors (the 1940's is up for sale only because I don't need two of the same uke), and today, I just received a 1920's Martin Style 2 soprano.

I am not much of a soprano player but I wanted to try, and the only way to try in these parts is to buy. The Martin soprano is in excellent condition for its age. The body top is excellent and the sides are very good. The back has some surface cracks but still in very good condition. the fret board is in great condition as well as the frets, themselves. No flattening.

The strings that were on it is another story. I don't know how the previous owner got a good sound out of the uke with spools of strings over layered on each other. After carefully removing. the strings, I cleaned up the Martin, and luckily had a set of Worth Medium Browns for soprano on hand and I put them on. Even with the midium browns, this soprano is loud and punches the sound out.

I still like Alvin "Pops" Okami's WOW ukulele for pure volume, tone, and brightness, especially with Hawaiian songs, of which I am a fan. This Martin, though, has a deeper tone that works perfectly with older songs and standards. It is a joy to listen to while playing.

Any suggestions out there for the best strings for this vintage classic?

efiscella said:

Any suggestions out there for the best strings for this vintage classic?

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Congratulations!

What is the action like at the 12 th fret? If it’s high, you might try lighter strings.

Actually the action is nice and low and it is very easy to play up and down the fretboard.

Swamp Yankee said:

Congratulations!

What is the action like at the 12 th fret? If it’s high, you might try lighter strings.

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Gorgeous uke! If you like the Worth Browns, I'd stick with them (unless as Yankee says, you have issues with the action at the 12th). I planned to suggest Martin fluorocarbon strings anyway, but they're made of the same material as the Worths.

You could go full Old School and buy Aquila gut strings, but they're pretty pricey and tend not to last as long as today's newer formulations.

Congrats! There is nothing quite like a Martin from this era. There are many great choices for strings. Certainly the Martin strings (both fluorocarbon and the newer premium strings) would work well. I am sure many will have their favorites, but you probably can't go wrong with many of the poplar strings, especially the many flavors of fluorocarbon.

prb035 said:

Congratulations, what a little beauty

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I prefer living water and luthier florocarbons a bit more than m600 from martin. The m605 from martins are really good as well.

Congratulations!
I'd leave the Worth Browns on it, if you like 'em.
I love em on my Cocobolo.

I Like Worth Browns on my Martins. The sound they produce just seem to say Martin.
It gives me an easy reference when comparing the one just out of the rescue room to others.