New ukulele shopping on Oahu (long)

My wife and I are on holiday in Hawaii on the lovely island of Oahu and I came with a plan to obtain a KoAloha longneck pineapple. Since we're staying in Honolulu I decided that rather than rent a car I would start my search here. I checked out The Uke Box first because that was where I purchased my Mainland uke last year and I really liked their friendly service. They didn't have one in stock but they phoned the KoAloha factory for me while I waited. One in stock there but they couldn't pick it up for a couple of days and they wanted a firm commitment before they did that. I can't blame them. I said I'd get back to them if I wanted it and moved on. Tried Bob's Ukulele, they were closed. They didn't seem overly helpful last year so no problem, I'll keep looking. Next stop was Ukulele PuaPua. Nothing in stock but one of the salesmen said they should have one in the next day or two. Seemed strange as a lady behind the counter was telling him that they weren't getting any in in the next little while. Maybe just trying to get me to come back and switch me to something else? Don't know. I then went back to the hotel and checked Hawaii Music Supply's website. Hmm, says they have one in stock. Sent a quick email to HMS and got a prompt reply from Andrew that the pineapple in the video on their website was still there. Hello rental car.

My wife and I rented a car and drove up to Haleiwa on a Monday afternoon. Walked into Hawaii Music Supply and were met by Music Guy Mike who showed us the longneck pineapple of my dreams and quickly wrote it up for me. He also sold me a Kala mahogany concert that we're giving to our son in law for Christmas. Excellent service, selection and prices and well worth the drive. The other nice thing about buying in Hawaii is that the hotel couch has nice material to use as a backdrop for ukulele pictures.

Hello Bob This is Ukuloonie from Calgary,
That one sure is a beauty and one of the Ukes that I would love to own.
Congrats and I hope that you have a great holiday.

That is a beautiful uke Bob. Congrats bigtime; you bought from the right place. Andrew and Mike are two of the nicest guys I've never met in person. Everytime I talk with them over the phone it's like speaking with an old friend.

I have a brother who lived and died in Lethbridge. Never been to a place with such extreme weather. Congrats again!

Great story and congratulations!

Nice new Uke!

I'll be there tomorrow afternoon. Heading up to HMS on Sunday, Andrew has a nice uke tucked away for me!

Congrats! Luv me some pineapple uke about now too! Soo many ukes to get! lol

Got to luv the guys at HMS. They really go out of their way to please their customers and it doesn't matter if it's $7 set of strings or a $9000 custom uke!

Shopping at HMS is like going to an outdoor festival concert and body surfing over the crowd: you just know they're not going to let you fall.

Congratulations on the new ukulele! MGM no e ka oi! I walked into HMS mostly to see the new North Shore location and walked out with a Kamaka 8-string baritone (thanks, Mike, for having the foresight to know that someone was going to come into HMS looking for the rare 8-string baritone!) and a Koalana concert.

Aloha Bob,
Congrats on your new pineapple Koaloha ukulele and hope you are having fun in paradise.. seems this is not your first trip here as you kow your way around....yes Mike and HMS is a
wonderful experience ....amazing store and man...lots of uke for you to go crazy with and 3 hours can go by real quick when you are having fun...hope you drove around the north shore
as it is big wave season now...have fun and enjoy...Happy Strummings and Trails

Hmmmmm What hotel is that ? indeed it is a great material
for a ukelele backdrop!!! Glad you were able to find the Uke
of your dreams. Have a great time playing the new one.

Aston at the Waikiki Banyan
It is nothing overly special but it is clean, has a full kitchen, and is a short walk to the beach. They also have a extended stay option which makes it even more cost effective.

Wow..
ukulele Pua Pua nice place to look and try production ukes(but it is one of the only places you can see/play a Devine if one is there)..Bob's ok if the sales guy will talk to( i went in once and he did not even say hello) lol
if kanilea factory has new ukes in stock you can buy from them..

but the ONLY place to play and buy a Uke in Hawaii is The Ukulele Site(aka as HMS) best service..best inventory and nicest people with real knowledge..and the best prices..

happy you got what you were looking for..and you had a nice drive out to the Country..

HMS is clearly the place to go on Oahu for broad selection and service. I drop by about every other time I get to Oahu from Kauai since I usually have business in Mililani. Great service from Andrew and MGM. A well run and high quality operation.

However, I would urge buyers considering Koaloha or Pono to go to the factories to look at the seconds. You'll save enough money to make that rental car free and allow you to get out of Waikiki to see the North Shore or the Pali or Manoa Valley or Waimea Bay. Plus you get a great ukulele and get to meet the people who make them. Oahu is a beautiful island that is far more than just the world's most famous beach.

Where's the Pono factory on Oahu please?

coolkayaker1 said:

Where's the Pono factory on Oahu please?

Click to expand...

In Wahiawa..where i grew up..don't know if they have tours..but just ask Andrew at the ukulelesite(aka HMS) his dad is Pono and i think Andrew works out of the same building on certain days..

Go to the Koolau website. There's a map and tour/information page. I should have made clear that's it's the Koolau factory and the Pono seconds are up the stairs all the way to the third floor. Ask for John, Andrew's father. Wahiawa is definitely not Waikiki. Turn right when you see the sign for the hospital and the left turn is a couple of streets past the hospital. Go all the way into the warehouse site at the end of the road. About halfway down on the left row you'll see the Koolau sign.