Hamano H-100 Vintage 1920 Style Soprano Ukulele $127.47 on amazon

I just notice a big price drop on this ukulele on amazon.

Looks like a bargin. 68% off aint bad at all! I wonder if they ship to the UK?

I wonder what is the quality of these ukes? A friend of mine would like to get a uke in this price range. If it really WAS selling at over $300, the this price is amazing.

Anyone have any experience with Hamano ukes?

No personal experience, but all Hamanos I've ever seen for sale are priced near the high end of the Chinese-built range, so I think the price reduction is accurate (Elderly sells these for about $275). This looks like a really good deal on a really good import uke! I've never heard a bad review and have read a couple of good ones!

shrink9 said:

I wonder what is the quality of these ukes? A friend of mine would like to get a uke in this price range. If it really WAS selling at over $300, the this price is amazing.

Anyone have any experience with Hamano ukes?

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I played one in a music store in Denver once. It is a nice Martin-ish soprano. Sophie Madeleine plays a Hamano concert. They're not very exciting looking, but that is less important than sound and playability. The one I played had those in abundance. $127 is a great deal.

I'll throw my 2 cents in...I've played one of these and they sound pretty good and seem well made. Like Chris says, a "Martin-ish" soprano. They're made/imported by Saga.

Saga also makes some high quality/reasonably priced guitars and mandolins. Their Kentucky line of mandolins and the Blueridge line of guitars both range from around $500-$3000.

Kentucky is a very respected brand in the Mandolin community. I own a Carter Stanley Memorial Blueridge guitar which is a replica of his 50's custom D-28. It sounds more like a Martin than many Martins I've played

The price on the Hamano is a steal as these rarely street below $250.

I've never played a Hamano uke, but someone at Elderly recommended them to me once, saying that they were a good deal for the price. I've had it in my amazon cart for at least a year and have never seen it below $249. Amazon's pricing seems a bit erratic, sometimes there are huge price drops that only last a few minutes.

When I saw the price drop yesterday, I ordered one right away. I let you know how it sounds when I get it. It seems like a really good deal on a solid wood ukulele.

I have heard only good things about them. You can hear some sample sounds

http://www.ukeland.com/pages/reviews/comps/

http://www.youtube.com/user/UkeofBedford#p/u/0/jOJ-ESsFqPU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68JYf69oFP0

I received my Hamano uke this weekend. I love this ukulele! The craftsmanship is very nice, close to my Kiwaya. The sound is almost as good as my Kiwaya, but the Kiwaya has better strings on it. I think this is a spectacular instrument for the money. It's too bad that the price has started going back up, it's close to $200 now.

I got me one to and put martin fluorocarbons on it because my aquila sets are low g and I didn't want to put the low g on it (I use that on my dolphin). Right after I bought it the price jumped back up. I am playing it right now.

The price went down to $122 (with 3 units left in stock) before it went up to $190. I thought of getting one but changed my mind since I prefer the concert. It's crazy how Amazon kept playing with the price on this uke.

I bought one at $127 for one of my clients. I like the uke but wouldn't compare it with my Kiwayas.

well for me it was worth 122 delivered. The one I got sounds good, is set up perfectly, actually set up even better with the fluorocarbons I put on it because with the black strings, there was a bit of clearance when you push the second (or third I forget) fret, but with the Martins there is just a tad of clearance. I did notice the finish on the top of mine is not perfect as it looks like strum marks on the top near where you strum. Also a shiny spot on the top near where you put the C string knot below the bridge. (the ukulele is matt finish so any rubbing tends to make it shiny-- so rubbing is a no no). Theres another little shiny spot on it. For 122 though, its a good deal imo. I do like it. I ordered a Silver Creek hard case for it that is supposedly only big enough to fit this style of ukulele with this style tuners and body size etc. (its a small body). Actually the case might end up a little deep for it... hoping it fits good, it didn't arrive yet but that case is under 30 bucks delivered on special as those silver creek/idk the other k name uke that it is designed for are selling for fifty bucks on amazon I guess they can't get the 120 they wanted for that hard case.

Now I am wondering if any one knows any matt finish maintenance tips on how to restore shiny spots (I should lose my perfectionism)... or I will just be happy I got something I thought was worth 122.

Paul Cote said:

well for me it was worth 122 delivered.

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That's a steal, IMO. I was really considering it. I even asked a few Hamano owners about this uke and they all gave it good reviews. Had I not ordered a KPK-T prior to seeing this deal, I probably would have bought one. The Hamano concerts are in back order - if Amazon gives another price deal, I'll pick one up for sure.