So I just chipped off a piece of my Kanile'a's headstock...

ItsAMeCasey

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Every morning I have coffee and play ukulele with my grandma. She lives right next door so I just bring over my Kanile'a and we just casually strum some songs. Today as I was leaving and saying goodbye, I was careless and accidentally hit the door with the headstock of my Kanilea. I died a little inside when I saw that a piece of the wood of the headstock chipped off.. It's not a HUGE piece, but it's definitely noticeable. Maybe i'm subconsciously being less careful about my instrument because I'm going to Waikiki today and possibly buying a new Kamaka HF-3, but I'm still pretty sad about the damage. Any of you guys have similar stories that could possibly make me feel better? lol
 
Years ago, picked up my Rickenbacker 4001 in it's case off the couch in a greenroom just before a gig and didn't notice the latches weren't latched all the way until I felt my Ric tumbling down my theigh and bouncing off the floor. At that time, I heard some woman screaming, then realized that wasn't some woman, it was me.. lol... Feel better now?
 
My old Martin has plenty of scratches and dents, but I see them as a sign of love. Would much prefer to have a beat up and well played instrument than an unused instrument in perfect nick.
 
Lol, thanks guys. Yeah, I'm trying to think about it as a sign that the instrument is well-played lol. Still, seeing that gash on the headstock just makes me cringe..
 
About a week after I got my Moore Bettah, I was being careless when taking it out of the case and the lid fell down. Put a pinpoint ding in it. It's barely noticeable (no one from work noticed it until I pointed it out) but I still know it's there. I felt like crying when it happened.
 
If it were just a dent, 'steaming' the dent with a microwaved wetted cloth might bring out a dent.

(CAUTION: you can mess up the finish or burn yourself)

NO HEAT GUNS OR SOLDERING IRONS.
 
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Ouch!!!! Since you are going to Waikiki...bring it with you and go to Kaniel'a and see what they can do! Just a thought!
 
About a week after I got my Moore Bettah, I was being careless when taking it out of the case and the lid fell down. Put a pinpoint ding in it. It's barely noticeable (no one from work noticed it until I pointed it out) but I still know it's there. I felt like crying when it happened.

For that kind of money... Cry me a River! :)
 
If its a dent, you can also steam it like mentioned above, but use a soldering iron. Take a wet terry cloth towel, put it over the dent, rub a hot soldering iron over the cloth, over the dent. The steam from it, will steam, and iron out the dent. It works on minor to moderate dents. Of course the larger the damage, the less it will work, but you get the picture.
 
Aloha Casey,
Sorry about to hear of the dent brah....You must be all sick...Check out Dan's guitars on bertania and McCully street...good selection and Easy town side..
You know when you get a new car and you get your first dent..it's the same feeling..It's not perfect anymore...after a few years...and a couple of scratches(hope not)
I'll feel more comfortable with mine....
 
PLEASE, please, do not use any kind of heat treatment (like a soldering iron) in an attempt to remove a dent. While this method is sometimes effective on raw, unfinished wood, it doesn't nothing on a finished instrument other than to ruin the finish and make a mess of things.
 
I can live with it. Again, it is so, so tiny and can only be seen in certain angles. But I know it's there.
 
All three of my high end ukes have some damage to them.

My Kanile'a K2 tenor has a couple of tiny chips in it from when my moron spouse knocked it onto the floor. My KoAloha Pineapple Sunday has a gouge in it from a string winder -- I now hand wind those tuners when I change strings! And my Kamaka HF3 tenor has a few scratches on the back of it from playing it while wearing button down shirts -- I now only wear non button shirts when wearing it. It also has a seam separation on the top that is slowly but surely disappearing through my forced humidification efforts.

Suffice to say each one of them, when the injuries in question were suffered, made me feel like a dagger to the heart. I felt like crying over the Kamaka in particular. Now, they are just scars -- no different than scars I have myself. They show the instruments are loved, cared and played, albeit by a rather clumsy owner. :)
 
Ouch!!!! Since you are going to Waikiki...bring it with you and go to Kaniel'a and see what they can do! Just a thought!

I second the motion! orrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr......you can always sell it to me really, really cheap!
 
Thanks for the kind words everyone. Nuprin I'm sorry to hear that your Moore Bettah was slightly damaged. It's such a beautiful instrument I can only dream of one day having one :p

Unfortunately a piece of wood literally got chipped off the right end of the headstock, so I think it's pretty non-repairable. It's okay though, I'm kind of adjusted already.

And WickedWahine, I think I saw the thread of when your Kamaka was having a problem. I'm glad to hear that it's slowly going back to normal :)
 
I have a very dear friend with a bunch of scuffs and nicks on her Moore Bettah. I think it made me die more inside than her. To her it just shows that she plays it a lot...
 
Nothing wrong with a battle scar. It's inevitable, and it'll probably be the first of many! That's why I try to buy used ukes whenever possible; it's less devastating when stuff gets dinged or scratched or cracked. If I can scrape the funds together for a custom Moore Bettah I'd be happy if it was already played first, because nothing stays pristine in my house for very long. :B
 
I've dinged most of my instruments.

The worst is probably my Kamaka Tenor...I bought it used with some cosmetic damage. And man, that is a battle scar. I do not have a pic of it though. Suffice to say, its like 50 dings stringed together.

I was sad when I first dinged my Kanilea Tenor too. But now, I can't even remember where the ding is off the top of my head. LOL. I bet I have multiple dings on it by now.
 
Nothing discourages me more than to see one of my ukes that's a couple of years old yet it still looks like new. It's a normal reaction to freak when your new baby gets it's first scratch but normal wear and tear only means it has character and lots of stories to tell. And after all, playing the ukulele is just telling your story.
 
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