$20 antique store find

theodolite

New member
Joined
Mar 7, 2012
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I haven't picked up a ukulele in years, but I couldn't help but grab this little guy for the impossible-to-resist price of twenty bucks at an antiques mall in rural Illinois.

scE7q.jpg


CZAwm.jpg


It's in fantastic condition and sounds great (to my ears, anyway). There's not a lot online about the Duke Kahanamoku brand - it seems to be a mid-range Hawaiian brand named for the famous surfer to capitalize on his fame in the 1960s, so I imagine it's from around that time. Does anyone know anything else about this instrument?
 
Welcome to the UU. Enjoy your new uke.
 
Great find! Now that you are hooked, you are probably going to watch that $20 investment grow, and grow!

As far as I know "Duke Kahanamoku" was not a brand, but was a signature model of one of the old US instrument brands (Regal?, Harmony?) I'm sure someone who knows for sure will pitch in soon.
 
That is a great find...they usually go from 60- 100... the more rare one is the pineapple of this model uke..
 
I have a similar uke to yours. Mine is a little different. It says " Hawaiian ukulele " in the same script as yours. It is made of Koa laminate sides and back and I think a solid Koa top. It is the first uke I ever bought or played. I got mine for 40 bucks 4 or 5 years ago . I have Aquila's on it and it sounds great . I have left it out , never humidified it, no case , since I got it and no cracks .
I'm really suprised how much I like the way it sounds , is it because it is Koa ? Its the only Koa uke i've ever played. It didnt sound good untill I adjusted the action at the nut, the intonation was off on the first few frets. The soundboard is a little pushed in ( probably from being underneath something in a closet ) but that lowers the action at the bridge so it works out great.
I added Grover 4w tuners and its the uke I play the most.
 
i have that exact ukulele! except my ukulele is a beltone. same plastic fretboard, same color. made in japan in the 1960's and really has a great tone for being a "cheap" uke in the day.
 
Woohoo! I love it when a good-sounding ukulele finds a welcoming home. At that price, that uke's lucky it didn't end up hanging on a tiki bar's wall. Congrats!
 
Top Bottom