Buying Ukulele in US - risks with transport? -from Germany-

Lilith

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Hi,

I hope it's okay to start this thread! I'm from Bavaria in Germany and I wanted to buy my ukulele in the US, because the ukuleles you can get here in Germany are too cheap (20 $) or too expensive. I fell in love with the Kala KA-S, I think it's a good choice to begin with. In Germany, this ukulele is 79 €, which is 111 $. In the US, the price is 63 $ !

I wouldn't have it delivered by USPS etc.; my mother is flying to the US next week because her partner was living in California until last year. The ukulele could be sent to his familiy's adress and my mother would take it home to Germany in the hand baggage.

Now I've only got one question: are there much risks with this "method"? Could the ukulele be damaged in the hand baggage? I'm sure it could be repaired in Germany, too, but I just wanted to know how likely it is to be damaged. My mother would carry it in a bag.

Also, I don't think the ukulele will have a setup at this price. Can I simply go to a local ukulele dealer (unfortunately, Kala isn't sold in Bavaria) and let it get done? Will this be expensive?

:)

Greetings from Bavaria
P.S.: I'm starting with ukulele because I had to give up playing the guitar a few years ago - my fingers were too short for some chords, it was really annoying. I hope I won't have this problem with a soprano ukulele :D
 
Hello, and welcome to UU!

I bet you will love playing ukulele!

As far as carrying a ukulele on a plane, many of us have done it many times. Do you mean your mother would carry it on the plane, not put it in a checked bag? If she carries it on the plane it should be ok if she is careful. It would be better to put it in a hard case and carry it on. If that is not possible, perhaps a padded gig bag. However, gig bags only really protect from minor bumps. I love the Kala padded gig bag which has backpack straps.

Good luck, let us know what you decide to do! Oh, I would also have your mom pick up a clip on tuner such as Kala's clip on tuner....then you are good to go. Set up should be fair but could likely be improved when it gets home. I would cross the bridge when I come to it though....
 
Herzlich Willkommen!

I am guessing your mother will fly Lufthansa to and from München? You may want to check with the airline to see the policy on carrying on musical instruments. A soprano is small, and if it is in a padded gig bag it will have a very small footprint. My memory of Lufthansa overhead bins is that they are very spacious, so if your mother is careful you will probably be fine.

I second Ryan's suggestion of a clip on tuner. Depending upon availability of the brand of strings you like, you might have her also pick up an extra set.

Mit freundlichen Grüssen,

Thom
 
Thank you for the answers :)

Okay, so I'll buy a gigbag and a tuner, too. Should I order these things from the dealer at Amazon, too, or are they available in every music store? She'll visit Adelanto, CA. Because of strings - I'll look how the prices are in the US and in Germany, I'll see it it's good to buy a second set of strings. :) The Kala KA-S comes with Aquila Nylgut strings, as far as I know - they should be fine, I think. Should I take any tuner or a special one?

@ pdxuke:
Yes, she'll fly from Munich and back to Munich. I guess it will be Lufthansa, yes. Are you from Germany or do you speak german?

Thank you for your nice help :)
 
why dont you spend a few more Euro and get a decent basic Bruko from your homeland. Less hassle for your mother... and you'll have a far better instrument, perhaps?
 
Thank you for the answers :)

Okay, so I'll buy a gigbag and a tuner, too. Should I order these things from the dealer at Amazon, too, or are they available in every music store? She'll visit Adelanto, CA. Because of strings - I'll look how the prices are in the US and in Germany, I'll see it it's good to buy a second set of strings. :) The Kala KA-S comes with Aquila Nylgut strings, as far as I know - they should be fine, I think. Should I take any tuner or a special one?

@ pdxuke:
Yes, she'll fly from Munich and back to Munich. I guess it will be Lufthansa, yes. Are you from Germany or do you speak german?

Thank you for your nice help :)

The gig bag may not be available in every music store. Chromatic tuners are, but the one Ryan is speaking of may not be. You may want to check with the store where your mother would be buying the uke.

I am not a native speaker, I know very little German, despite the fact my great grandfather came to America from Berlin in 1909. My son is a fluent speaker: he majored in German at University of Washington and spent over a year studying at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. He now works for Amazon.com in the German fraud investigation division. I spent eleven days with him when he was studying-- I stayed at the Studentenstadt with him, and we enjoyed the English Gardens and the City together. It is a very happy memory and I'm very much in love with München!
 
I can't afford a Brüko ukulele; they all start at 115 €. The Kala KA-S will cost me 44,56 €. That's a huge difference ;) I'm still pupil (not much longer, because I have my final exams this week) and I don't have much money...

@ pdxuke: my mother won't buy it in a store, I'll order it at Amazon ( http://www.amazon.com/Kala-KA-S-Mahogany-Soprano-Ukulele/dp/B00172UV6S/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top ) at it will be delivered to the adress of her partner's family in Adelanto. ;) So I guess it will be better to order the gigbag and the tuner together with the uke?

I didn't know you can major in German in the US ... good to know, haha, but I guess it's very expensive? Munich is a beautiful city, although it's totally expensive to live there. I understand that you love it :) I live 1-2h away from Munich, at the border to Austria.

P.S.: I hope my english is okay, I'll write my final exam in English, too, haha ... :D
 
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I can't afford a Brüko ukulele; they all start at 115 €. The Kala KA-S will cost me 44,56 €. That's a huge difference ;) I'm still pupil (not much longer, because I have my final exams this week) and I don't have much money...

Good luck with your final exams! The uke will be a nice reward!
 
Thank you :) I wrote the first one today, my hand hurts, haha ...
look at my last post! ;) it's edited
 
Your English is GREAT! Here is a link to a tuner like I am talking about on Amazon. The Kala tuner is exactly the same but a few dollars more.
http://www.amazon.com/Aroma-AT-300U...NNBK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1300478354&sr=8-3

Here is the Kala;
http://www.amazon.com/KALA-Kala-KC0...RBQI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1300478354&sr=8-1

Here is a link to the gig bag I like....with two shoulder straps. They make the same bag without the embroidered Kala on it for a few dollars less too, but I can't find it while I am ducking out from work!
http://www.samash.com/webapp/wcs/st...SK Deluxe Soprano Ukulele Gig Bag-_-KDUBSKXXX
 
Hi Lilith, and welcome to UU.

If you're going to order an ukulele online and have it sent to a US address, you might consider ordering from musicguymic, who has an eBay store (as well as a shop in Oahu), and is a UU member. He sets up all of his ukuleles before shipping them, upgrades the strings to Aquilas, and could probably supply you with a gig bag and clip-on tuner as well. He doesn't have a Kala KA-S ilisted at his eBay store at the moment, but he often doesn't list all the ukuleles he has available and he can sometimes get ukuleles people want but he doesn't have in stock. Unfortunately, he isn't as cheap as amazon.com, but you get the benefit of an ukulele that's lready set up. It might be worth contacting him.
Here's the link to his eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/Musicguymics-Room. Here's his email address: musicguymic@aol.com

You could also email UU member Mim, who also sells ukuleles on eBay, at MimOnTheUke@aol.com. She doesn't have any Kala KA-S ukes in her eBay store, but she is a Kala distributor and maybe she could find one for you.

Both musicguymic and Mim ship to California. Mim offers free shipping on all the ukuleles in her eBay store, musicguymic does on many of the ukuleles in his eBay store.

Good luck with your purchase! I've played the KA-S (although soprano is not my favorite size) and it sounds very nice.

Mark

P.S. Cool avatar.
 
@ RyanMFT:

Thank you for the links :) the first tuner isn't available at the moment, so I'll take the Kala Tuner, I guess. Could I take the following gigbag, too?
http://www.amazon.com/Kala-Soprano-...2DQ6SL0SOX2YW&s=generic&qid=1300477923&sr=1-8
By taking the KA-S, this gigbag and the Kala Tuner, I could order all the items from the same Amazon seller. It will be sent by Amazon.

@ mds725:

I already checked out Musicguymic's ebay site :) I'll ask him if there is a KA-S in his stock recently. The only thing is: will delivery be soon enough? Because it should arrive until the first of April. Two, three days more would be okay, too, but it shouldn't take longer. Same question for Mim, I guess it will take longer if she has to order it first?
How long will the setup from Musicguymic last? (Perhaps a dumb question, but hey, I'm a newbie ;) ).

http://cgi.ebay.com/UKADELICS-KALA-...353?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4cf5def9c9 This one looks pretty cool! Comes with a gigbag, too ... but I can't afford 15$ delivery AND a tuner ): why can't money grow on trees, haha ...
Nice avatar too, it's from a film, isn't it? Can't remember which one ...


Thank you all for your nice help! You really help me a lot :)
 
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I already checked out Musicguymic's ebay site :) I'll ask him if there is a KA-S in his stock recently. The only thing is: will delivery be soon enough? Because it should arrive until the first of April. Two, three days more would be okay, too, but it shouldn't take longer. Same question for Mim, I guess it will take longer if she has to order it first?
How long will the setup from Musicguymic last? (Perhaps a dumb question, but hey, I'm a newbie ;) ).

Both Mike and Mim are a pleasure to work with (I've bought ukuleles from both of them). They can ship quickly. One of my ukuleles from Mike got to California two days after I ordered it. As you pointed out, it's just a matter of finding an ukulele to ship. If you let them know what your time concerns are, I'm sure they'll let you know whether they can help or not.

Another option for you might be to contact a music store in the Los Angeles area (or Huntington Beach) that sells Kala ukuleles. It would probably be cheap and quick to get an ukulele from LA to Adelanto, which I believe is not that far from LA. If you want to find ukulele shops near LA, you can check out this list http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?16519-Ukulele-Stores-USA or you can check out the store locator at Kala's website http://www.kalaukulele.com/Dealers_UnitedStates.aspx. Too bad your mom doesn't want to visit San Francisco. There's a music shop not far from me called Music Works in El Cerrito (across the bay from SF) that almost always has a Kala KA-S in stock.

Still, probably the easiest thing to do would be to get everything from the same amazon seller. I've heard that Kala ukuleles are well made and that they don't need to be adjusted for string height (also known as action) as much as other ukuleles in that price range, so a Kala you buy at amazon.com is likely to be easy to play as one that's been set up.

Mike describes "setup" at his eBay store as leveling and polishing the frets, waxing and oiling the fretboards, and adjusting the saddle and nut (which determines how close to the fretboard the strings are and affects playability). After a lot of playing time, a fretboard will need to be cleaned and the fret wires may eventually wear down, but saddle and nut adjustment should last through several sets of strings. It's also nice that Mike and Mim swap out stock strings for better ones.

I've always liked Jiminy Cricket (from Pinocchio), but I began using him as an avatar at UU when I discovered that the original voice of Jiminy Cricket was supplied by Cliff "Ukulele Ike" Edwards.
 
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Make sure you check what the customs allowance is from the US to Germany. If you don't, you may have to pay 19% VAT.

The idea that every new instrument needs to have a "set-up" is something that has been invented by this forum. It just isn't true. Get it home and see if it needs any adjustment.
 
Both Mike and Mim are a pleasure to work with (I've bought ukuleles from both of them). They can ship quickly. One of my ukuleles from Mike got to California two days after I ordered it. As you pointed out, it's just a matter of finding an ukulele to ship. If you let them know what your time concerns are, I'm sure they'll let you know whether they can help or not.

Still, probably the easiest thing to do would be to get everything from the same amazon seller. I've heard that Kala ukuleles are well made and that they don't need to be adjusted for string height (also known as action) as much as other ukuleles in that price range, so a Kala you buy at amazon.com is likely to be easy to play as one that's been set up.
I think I'll buy the ukulele at Amazon or at Musicguymic's. I recently fell in love with the Kala Red Paisley Soprano Ukulele, haha, is this ukulele as good as the KA-S? But nah, I don't have so much money :(


Mike describes "setup" at his eBay store as leveling and polishing the frets, waxing and oiling the fretboards, and adjusting the saddle and nut (which determines how close to the fretboard the strings are and affects playability). After a lot of playing time, a fretboard will need to be cleaned and the fret wires may eventually wear down, but saddle and nut adjustment should last through several sets of strings. It's also nice that Mike and Mim swap out stock strings for better ones.
Wow, sounds great! Perhaps I'll take the Red Paisley Ukulele ... would be ~ 30 $ more (with shipping & tuner) than the Kala KA-S with a gigbag and a tuner and delivery by Amazon. My mother just thinks that the KA-S will be enough to begin with; but I think that I don't want to spend my money on an ukulele, and then, after a few months, spend even more money on a better one with setup. I don't know what to take, haha ...

I've always liked Jiminy Cricket (from Pinocchio), but I began using him as an avatar at UU when I discovered that the original voice of Jiminy Cricket was supplied by Cliff "Ukulele Ike" Edwards.
Pinocchio! :) Haha nice info! I love animated films ...


@ Ken Middleton: thanks for the info :) yep, I'll look! But I could live with the 19%. I think my mother would pay it, haha ... still cheaper than buying it here in Germany (where Kala ukuleles aren't available in most of the stores).
 
Southern Ukulele Store on Ebay has a great reputation and they do setups. Here's an Ohana in your price range that we will setup if need be. I don't think setup is an idea that is unique to UU. It's an ongoing subject for all fretted instrument players from my experience. It's just one of those things. Sometimes you need it, sometimes not, and it's just a routine thing. Will it be unplayable when you get it? Probably not.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Ohana-SK10S-Sop...ruments_Sting_Instruments&hash=item4aa8fb56c1

Ohana is well thought of. Just ask Ken. :D

Have you tried Thomann?

http://www.thomann.de/de/cat.html?gf=ukulelen&oa=pra

True, the Kala isn't there, but Lanikai has one at about the €49 range.

Also ukebox.fr has lots in that price range! Makala is a brand of Kala, and I had good luck with a Makala concert I got my mother-in-law for Christmas. I'd have taken it if she didn't want it.

http://www.ukebox.fr/36-moins-de-30-euros

I've ordered from these guys, and they're great:

http://www.mercatinodellukulele.it/en/home.html?page=shop.browse&category_id=2
 
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http://www.mercatinodellukulele.it/...ly_admirable.tpl&product_id=435&category_id=2
Haha, this one looks adorable! But can it really sound good this way?

Unfortunately, the ukes available in Europa are too expensive for me. When an ukelele costs 80 € in Europe, it only costs ~ 45 € in the US. That's why I want to order it there. ;) And of course I know Thomann. :) But they, too, are more expensive than the same ukes in the US ...

Can somebody tell me if the Red Paisley uke sounds better than the KA-S?
 
Can somebody tell me if the Red Paisley uke sounds better than the KA-S?

I bought a KA-S for my wife and I think it sounds (and plays) really great for the price. I have tried some of the Kala Ukadelics in the store a few times recently. I actually did not think they sounded as good as the KA-S, which costs less. The Ukadelics are all wood, but they seem to have a different build than the KA-S. I'd assume it is made with a different type of top than the KA-S in order to accept the printed graphic. But, hey...if the red paisley speaks to you, it is probably just a matter of degrees as far as sound quality goes, and I'm sure you would be happy with either.
 
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