Pete Beardsley
Well-known member
You may remember Ambient Doughnut's thread about his quiet practice uke about a week ago.
http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?56190-The-quiet-practice-uke
Well I have been working on a similar project which is coming to a close. Made largely from bits and pieces I had hanging around the garage to keep costs minimal.
Main body and neck are leftover pieces of Beech worktop. The back is *cough* MDF *cough* as I had nothing else about. The back is now painted red and you wouldn't know, doesn't look too bad actually. Fretboard and bridge are Indian Rosewood and the headstock was veneered in Walnut. Mortice and tenon neck joint.
I also put in a piezo under saddle pickup so I can amp it up when the mood takes me and make some noise.
It is concert scale length and strung with some Worth browns I had in the office. Loosely based on the Les Paul style, but basically I made it up as I went along.
All built without any specialist tools, just usual woodworking hand tools, plane, chisels, wood rasps, a drill, jigsaw, router and a finish sander.
Just taken it apart again to re-do the finish as it was very ropey. Actually there are a lot of bits that are ropey, but hell, its my first attempt at an instrument and I am not exactly a skilled woodworker either. Soon as it is back together I'll see about getting a sound clip up.
The whole thing has cost (excluding a couple of tools I bought) about £30 including glue, pickup, bridge, tuners and fretwire etc.
http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?56190-The-quiet-practice-uke
Well I have been working on a similar project which is coming to a close. Made largely from bits and pieces I had hanging around the garage to keep costs minimal.
Main body and neck are leftover pieces of Beech worktop. The back is *cough* MDF *cough* as I had nothing else about. The back is now painted red and you wouldn't know, doesn't look too bad actually. Fretboard and bridge are Indian Rosewood and the headstock was veneered in Walnut. Mortice and tenon neck joint.
I also put in a piezo under saddle pickup so I can amp it up when the mood takes me and make some noise.
It is concert scale length and strung with some Worth browns I had in the office. Loosely based on the Les Paul style, but basically I made it up as I went along.
All built without any specialist tools, just usual woodworking hand tools, plane, chisels, wood rasps, a drill, jigsaw, router and a finish sander.
Just taken it apart again to re-do the finish as it was very ropey. Actually there are a lot of bits that are ropey, but hell, its my first attempt at an instrument and I am not exactly a skilled woodworker either. Soon as it is back together I'll see about getting a sound clip up.
The whole thing has cost (excluding a couple of tools I bought) about £30 including glue, pickup, bridge, tuners and fretwire etc.