Another Customized Grizzly Uke

Hey all. I just completed (yesterday) another Uke. Again, I don't post in the luthier section of this site because I am not a luthier, and the Grizzly uke isn't an actual build.

I purchased this kit to try a few things out. I regret that I didn't take pictures of the "build."

I wanted to experiment with using a solid spruce top and using blood wood. So, when I got the uke, I immediately pulled the top off and replaced it with sitka spruce. I then made a new fretboard out of blood wood, using MOP dots, plus adding side markers, at the same time using UKE frets, and not the guitar ones the Grizzly uke comes with. I used some of the blood wood for the head overlay, and then again, using blood wood for the bridge. Instead of the plastic nut, I decided to carve a new nut out of ebony. The provided saddle was already ebony, so I used it. I purchased some basic guitar tuning machines and used them instead of the provided friction tuners. And, topped it all off with Aquila strings.

And... here are some pictures of the uke:





Continued...

The uke, I feel, sounds really good. I already assembled one of these a few years ago, and it always sounded muffled to me. When I pried off the top, I found out why... The bridge plate is nothing more than a 3" X 4" piece of plywood, killing vibration from the bridge/saddle. The "new" one sounds soooooo much better. I mean, I don't really know what to compare it to, but it's brighter, resonates a lot more, and just has more of that "open" sound. The stings have had about 24-hours to break in as has the solid spruce top, and already it is an improvement.

This uke's new owner will be my sister, which she will receive it on Sunday.

Well, thanks for letting me show this little guy off. The next one will be similar, but with purple heart for my mom.

Dan

Wow, great ukulele!
I've done 2 Grizzly's but not near as nice as yours. Well done!

love the bloodwood choice.good job

Really nice looking ukulele!

Wow, great job! Gives me something to shoot for when I build my Grizzly kit.

Looks really nice and gave me an idea. Someone should buy three grizzlies and finish them identically but with mahogany, cedar and spruce tops. This should give a great comparison of the three woods, without other factors interfering. I'd do it myself but I am busy with a different project.

Thanks for the compliments all. This was a fun, but slow, project only because I have other instruments that always need my attention. I'll definitely take pictures of the purple heart uke I'll customize.

Dan

Sounds like a build to me. Great job!