Do premium ukes get played often?

I have a question for those who own premium ukes, I'd say in the 1,500 to 2,500 dollar range. Do they get played as often as your other ukes? Do you get concerned over potential strum marks or scratches?

I ask this because as I progress in my ability, I have begun to research and to save my pennies, for a custom and/or premium uke. As I see them online they all look gorgeous, so I can't help but wonder if it ever restricts how you handle it. I know they are bought to be played, but I do see many come up for sale and usually the first questions are about the strum marks or scratches, from both the seller and the buyers.

It seems like when you get to a certain level of value it almost becomes more of an investment rather than an instrument that gets played all the time. Not so much that it will appreciate in value, but more that you try to limit the depreciation of it. So while you do get to enjoy it and play it every now and then, it's in the back of your mind the condition it will be in.

What are your thoughts on this?

I play my Moore Bettah everyday. I doubt I would play the Mainland at all but I strung it Low G. I do take really good care of it and try to be careful when it's out. I put it in the case every night after I am done playing. I bought mine to play and I feel like some light strum marks give it character. If it gets too bad in a few years I'll send it back to Chuck to get a makeover....

My thought is that premium ukes hold their value much better than cheap or midrange ukes. A popular K brand, like Koaloha, even with strum marks will sell well.

Example: Koaloha Pineapple Sunday $1350 new. Buy new, play it, enjoy it, strum mark it, and in a year or two, sell it. How much? Likely $1150 or so.

Ohana tenor, $250 new. Buy new, play it, enjoy it, strum mark it, and in a year or two, sell it. How much? Likely $150 or so, if it can be sold at all. Why? Because new is affordable to many, and with so many retailers offering free shipping on new, why would I buy a used one at almost new price and then pay the guy to ship it to me?

Point: cost of overall ownership is, roughly, the same for a premium popular uke (Mya Moe, KoAloha, Kanilea, Kamaka, and such) in a re-sale situation. So, yep, buy better, and play it. Enjoy it.

If you plan to keep it forever, then it doesn't matter, if one can afford it to begin with.

One thing: when you hit the $2500+ range, I don;t know if people play them, but I know they are diffucult to re-sell. There are, simply, few that can afford them. That's all.

I had similar concerns before I ordered a custom, since I do a lot of uke playing away from home. I've always owned higher-end factory ukes, thinking that they were easily replaceable should something happen to one of them. The thing is - even this isn't really true, since (in my opinion, anyway) every factory uke sounds and plays a bit different from any other.

My DaSilva custom came in at the low end of the range you quoted, mainly because it's very plain and unadorned (inlays and other ornamentation are what really drives up the cost of custom ukes; personally I could care less about "bling"). And it's my main player, which means it leaves the house with me any time I head out to anything uke-related. It gets played daily and is always the first uke I reach for.

No strum marks or scratches yet, but it's already got a couple of dings on the corners of the headstock, since I am a bit clumsy thanks to lousy vision and lack of depth perception I don't stress out about this - it was meant to be played, and as far as I'm concerned, every little ding shows that the uke is being used for its intended purpose.

I didn't buy a custom with value or investment in mind; I just couldn't find what I wanted in a uke off the shelf. I'm not concerned with resale value at all, as I don't plan to ever re-sell it. When I ordered the custom, I kept in mind that I wanted this uke to get long-term use, so I carefully considered what my current and future needs are. Should my future needs ever change and I end up ordering a "fancier" custom, I don't plan to sell this one - it will become the travel uke, beach uke, etc., but I don't really foresee that happening.

Hope that helps!

For tenors, I have one in the lower range and I play it as much as my other one just because they have diff't G strings. Even if I had more, I would play the ones that sounds the best in low and reentrant G.

I have 9 ukulele's, most would be purchased new in the $1000+ range. I play all of them and I take really really good care of all of them. Even my Kala travel uke, the lowest purchase price of my ukes, gets the same attention and care. I keep each in a humidified case. When playing, I always put them in a uke stand when I have to put them down. I try like crazy not get strum marks and have been pretty successful so far. I wipe each one after playing. My goal is to have the ukulele look the same as the day I bought it. As a result, my 1979 Kamaka that I purchased in August 1979 looks like the day I bought it, yet it is played often.

My Kawika tenor is my premium uke, and I play it far more than my other ukes.

Short answer is yes, they get played. Coolkayaker is spot on as well.

I may be unusual, I'm not sure, but I allow (encourage even) people to play my high end ukes at kanikapilas. (perhaps this stems from my inability to ever see nice ukes before I moved to the Bay Area) It does drive me a little crazy when people have a strumming technique where their nails scrape the sound board with each strum. I'm learning to be a bit more diligent in watching their technique before handing over my uke. So far, there have been no incidents, but I thought there was going to be one once. I don't use my ukes as investments, but I am careful with them.

Another note on ukes as investments- history teaches us about boom and bust cycles. I truly believe we are at the peak, or near the peak, of the uke boom. I would not buy an "investment" uke, unless you plan to hold it for 80 years until the next boom. There are much better places to put one's money. Oh, I also cannot wait for the bubble to burst. I am going to be a life-long player and I can't wait to pick up nice ukes at rock-bottom prices!

To the OP, I hear ya'. I am one of those guys that for some reason "preserves" my better ukes. Actually not just ukes, but I am mainly an electric bassist and it starts there. I have two Fender Custom Shop basses, both that I purchased around $2,000/$2,500. I take them to a gig every once in a while, if the setting is nice and I am not so worried about crowds or splashing beer and where I'll have plenty of room onstage and won't bump into a bandmate. I really never play these at home. Rather, I play my mid or lower valued instruments which are 100% as good as the better ones when it comes to learning new tunes, practicing or dragging around the house. And let's be honest. Do you think ANYONE is going to notice the difference in tone or quality when I use a $300 ax as compared to a $2,500 ax? I'd say barely no one would notice. And my cheaper instruments do not sound bad, just maybe not "as good".

So now with ukes. I am not a professional here, so really I am just playing at home or out and about with a few friends. It may not be high end to some, but I did purchase a $800 Kamoa tenor and though it is my nicest playing uke, I just don't play it as much as my others (mass produced $200-$300 models). Reason being, at least for me, the extra sustain or fullness or the nicer playability isn't really so necessary for what I am doing right now. I guess I just feel more comfortable grabbing a $250 Mainland, leaning it against my desk, throwing the gigbag in the car, just playing.

I think this is a bad habit. I didn't buy the better ukes (or basses) to sit in their cases. I just have this bad habit of wanting to protect my better instruments, keeping them fresh, in great shape, etc. I think I need to lighten up and just play the better ones more. We only live once.

Some people add a pick guard. Clear pick guards you won't even see. I have debated using one. I think Aldrine has one.

I almost wore a hole in my Boat paddle. then Jerry at boat paddle fixed it. all is good. Why have something that you don't play?

I play my Moore Bettah almost exclusively now. The only exceptions are if I have chemicals on my body...sunscreen or bug spray...or if I will be around the campfire where it is smoky. My other ukes, although really good ukes, just don't feel or sound as good to me anymore. I do take care of it....I treat it with the same level of care as I do my photo gear. I got it to play it, and it makes me happy every time I do.

The only two ukes I have in that price range are my Kanilea and my Pineapple Sunday - the KoAloha and Kamaka tenors cost less than that. I don't play the PS often. but not because it is expensive, I just don't play a lot of high g.

I play the Kanilea every day, the only allowance I make is that I wipe the high gloss finish down with a microfiber cloth when I am done playing it.

I don't hesitate to take it everywhere though, that and my KoAloha tenor are my travel ukes. I figure they are meant to be played, not just displayed. That being said I will probably feel a little sick when it gets its first scratch or ding.

ukeeku said:

I almost wore a hole in my Boat paddle. then Jerry at boat paddle fixed it. all is good. Why have something that you don't play?

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Exactly! Musical instruments are meant to be played - really good musical instruments are inspirational to play so if you have one logically it should be your most-used uke.

Personally, I don't care if an instrument cost $50 or $5000 - if I don't play it I don't need it. If the $50 uke is good enough to make me want to play it it's going to get used. If a $5k uke doesn't get played it's just eye candy and I don't have room in my life for expensive eye candy. (For the record, my most expensive uke is more like $700 - but you can put any upper limit you want - if I am going to be afraid to play it and play it often I don't want it in my house.)

John

OldePhart said:

Exactly! Musical instruments are meant to be played - really good musical instruments are inspirational to play so if you have one logically it should be your most-used uke.

Personally, I don't care if an instrument cost $50 or $5000 - if I don't play it I don't need it. ....

.......- if I am going to be afraid to play it and play it often I don't want it in my house.)

John

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Amen to that!

OldePhart said:

Exactly! Musical instruments are meant to be played - really good musical instruments are inspirational to play so if you have one logically it should be your most-used uke.

Personally, I don't care if an instrument cost $50 or $5000 - if I don't play it I don't need it. If the $50 uke is good enough to make me want to play it it's going to get used. If a $5k uke doesn't get played it's just eye candy and I don't have room in my life for expensive eye candy. (For the record, my most expensive uke is more like $700 - but you can put any upper limit you want - if I am going to be afraid to play it and play it often I don't want it in my house.)

John

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I agree with what you say..
Why buy a musical instrument if you are not going to play it..
i have many high end ukes that i bought to Play not sell..the only reason i would get rid of one is if can not stand the sound of it but.. i would give it many years till then..if you play it you are going to scratch it..
but i hate the latches on the case..Ouch! now the gets me mad.. Lol

I play my Moore Bettah more than any other uke I own.

Once you have played a premium uke it is real hard to go back to non premium ukes. To me it sounds and plays/feels Bettah.

I play a Kala in my classroom and my Kamaka when I am home. I have a Compass Rose on order that will be strung low "g" and the Kamaka will go to reentrant. They will all be played.

I plan on using the CR if I get the nerve and develop the talent to play publicly.

OldePhart said:

Personally, I don't care if an instrument cost $50 or $5000 - if I don't play it I don't need it. If the $50 uke is good enough to make me want to play it it's going to get used. If a $5k uke doesn't get played it's just eye candy and I don't have room in my life for expensive eye candy.

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Absolutely agree! I have one uke right now, it's an expensive one but it would be worthless to me if I treated it like a baby and didn't play the heck out of it. To me, a uke has to be the ultimate package: 1) pretty, 2) good craftsmanship, 3) sounds fantastic. I would never buy a uke just to have 1) and 2). If I can't play it like mad, it's going out the door to someone else.

Tigeralum2001 said:

It does drive me a little crazy when people have a strumming technique where their nails scrape the sound board with each strum.

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While I don't hit the soundboard, I do hit the fretboard on every strum.

Is it even possible not to? I'd love to learn a better way...I hate the nail/finger against fretboard sound.