Is Cordoba finally making a real solid koa ukulele now?

haolejohn

haolejohn

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I was checking a ukulele dealers site and came across a Cordoba listed as koa. I know in the past there has been controversy over this and please don't turn this into a bash cordoba (I am bad about that).

Are they really selling and making a real Hawaiian koa ukulele?
 
My flamethrower is on pilot light setting at the moment.....I would go to their website and get a way to personally contact them. At other times, when the setting has been higher, I have contacted dealers who have advertised Acacia melanoxylon as Acacia koa. The universal response is that they print what the company provides, so asking a seller may or may not get you a factual answer. Those who believed in truth in advertising changed their on line ads immediately after finding out there is no such thing as Portuguese koa.
 
h-john, can you link the site so we know which model and details please.
 
haolejohn said:
I was checking a ukulele dealers site and came across a Cordoba listed as koa. I know in the past there has been controversy over this and please don't turn this into a bash cordoba (I am bad about that).

Are they really selling and making a real Hawaiian koa ukulele?
Click to expand...

Thought they just had solid acacia top and back with laminated sides.

http://www.cordobaguitars.com/p/25tk
 
coolkayaker1 said:
h-john, can you link the site so we know which model and details please.
Click to expand...

I'd rather not. It is a very well respected dealer.
I am just wondering if they are or if it is an overlooked mistake.
But it is listed as a Cordoba solid koa electric package.
 
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Hi, hjohn. Okay, I understand about not putting the link up.

But, since you are asking about a uke, and not at all saying anything about the store, I'll put up a link to my absolute favorite ukulele store: http://www.theukulelesite.com/cordoba-solid-koa-tenor-electric-package.html

On that ad, at least, it does say solid. And on the link given below from Doc it says solid. So, maybe they got the message that they were not listing them precisely (honestly) in the past, and started to make them out of solid wood, completely. Your question is a valid one.

Addendum: I did a tad more research, and in this video (at 3:00 min) this gentleman tells Aldrine that they are all solid wood.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B1rWVW7TIU

So, maybe they are now. What does everyone else think?
 
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coolkayaker1 said:
Hi, hjohn. Okay, I understand about not putting the link up.

But, since you are asking about a uke, and not at all saying anything about the store, I'll put up a link to my absolute favorite ukulele store: http://www.theukulelesite.com/cordoba-solid-koa-tenor-electric-package.html

On that ad, at least, it does say solid. And on the link given below from Doc it says solid. So, maybe they got the message that they were not listing them precisely (honestly) in the past, and started to make them out of solid wood, completely. Your question is a valid one.

Addendum: I did a tad more research, and in this video (at 3:00 min) this gentleman tells Aldrine that they are all solid wood.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B1rWVW7TIU

So, maybe they are now. What does everyone else think?
Click to expand...

This is what I am wondering too. I remember the whole "koa" and acacia debate and the whole solid vs. not soild. But a solid koa tenor for $379? I am wondering if this is another one of those that could be soild acacia or old stock that slipped through. It was the only one listed as solid koa.
 
haolejohn said:
I was checking a ukulele dealers site and came across a Cordoba listed as koa. I know in the past there has been controversy over this and please don't turn this into a bash cordoba (I am bad about that).

Are they really selling and making a real Hawaiian koa ukulele?
Click to expand...

On the www.cordobaguitars site the sk, ck, and tk, ukuleles are listed as solid acacia, top, solid acacia back, acacia sides.
 
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There is another distributor of plucked instruments that plays fast and loose with the language. Examples: maple top --solid maple top--carved solid maple top--
So how is that fast and loose rather than just face the fact that I am ignorant of what they mean by what they say? Because it is easier to blame someone else rather than accept responsibility. Also, there is an omission of the word laminated anywhere on the pages of the different models of mandolins, guitars or ukuleles.
When I bought the top of the line full reflector back, with brass grille on the front and brass J hooks, banjo ukulele, I was quite upset when a magnet stuck to all of the metal parts. After going through my sales rep,the next person upline was the owner of the company. He admitted that nobody proof reads the camera ready copy from the manufacturer. (This company is a direct importer) He agreed that people do not badmouth the manufacturer, but blame the company whose name is on the catalog.
An on-line catalog can be very quickly corrected or clarified, but a printed one is there until the expiration date.

A local music store wasn't even aware that the Makala line in his store was not wood.The person who was talking to me was the sales manager.

There seems to be no common terminology. What you may purchase may not be what the salesperson believes they are selling you.
 
I talked to Cordoba re: nut and saddle = plastic
 
Oh, sorry to confuse. I just had that listed to the specs that cordoba had it listed at when I listed it. I didn't even know they were using acacia or calling it... If I thought it was acacia I would have listed it as acacia but they have called it koa for the last three years and it does look like koa. Acacia from Kala looks like Acacia. Acacia from Pono looks like more of an australian acacia but not koa. These have always been a light brown golden koa look and they called it koa. I have seen a lot of koa and they fooled me for the past few years I suppose if it has always been acacia. The CK is curly koa because thats what the model always was called. I haven't bought this model in almost 6 months and we aren't carrying any of their CK models in 2013. We have a few samples coming from the Pepe models. We'll see how they are. With the CK models we hardly sold them in the last year and they seemed to get worse sounding every time. But their budget laminate stuff has been better than ever. These model were always all solid wood so the laminate thing is not the issue. It's koa vs. acacia. Guess I never got the memo so my apologies for confusing the situation.

Anybody that knows us knows if there is an error on our listings it is not intended to talk fast and loose or whatever MrCow was saying. I can't imagine that being a good thing. We'll find out when they started being called acacia and anyone is always welcome to a refund if they feel misinformed. By the way, laminate wood is wood. It's a cheap wood sandwiched by thin sheets of a bit nicer wood. It's not solid wood but I don't know if you can say it's not wood. Trees were cut down and their parts were used. Let me share some common knowledge though. If you are looking in the under 500 range and it doesn't say solid wood, it's not. We always try to be a straight as can be and when we are wrong we do whatever the customer wants.

Back to the bench for me..dreaming of being in bed...dreaming (anyone want to move to Hawaii and learn how to set up ukes? but fair warning: you will dress frets all day so it would help if you are married to a massage therapist)
 
AndrewKuker said:
Oh, sorry to confuse. I just had that listed to the specs that cordoba had it listed at when I listed it. I didn't even know they were using acacia or calling it... If I thought it was acacia I would have listed it as acacia but they have called it koa for the last three years and it does look like koa. Acacia from Kala looks like Acacia. Acacia from Pono looks like more of an australian acacia but not koa. These have always been a light brown golden koa look and they called it koa. I have seen a lot of koa and they fooled me for the past few years I suppose if it has always been acacia. The CK is curly koa because thats what the model always was called. I haven't bought this model in almost 6 months and we aren't carrying any of their CK models in 2013. We have a few samples coming from the Pepe models. We'll see how they are. With the CK models we hardly sold them in the last year and they seemed to get worse sounding every time. But their budget laminate stuff has been better than ever. These model were always all solid wood so the laminate thing is not the issue. It's koa vs. acacia. Guess I never got the memo so my apologies for confusing the situation.

Anybody that knows us knows if there is an error on our listings it is not intended to talk fast and loose or whatever MrCow was saying. I can't imagine that being a good thing. We'll find out when they started being called acacia and anyone is always welcome to a refund if they feel misinformed. By the way, laminate wood is wood. It's a cheap wood sandwiched by thin sheets of a bit nicer wood. It's not solid wood but I don't know if you can say it's not wood. Trees were cut down and their parts were used. Let me share some common knowledge though. If you are looking in the under 500 range and it doesn't say solid wood, it's not. We always try to be a straight as can be and when we are wrong we do whatever the customer wants.

Back to the bench for me..dreaming of being in bed...dreaming (anyone want to move to Hawaii and learn how to set up ukes? but fair warning: you will dress frets all day so it would help if you are married to a massage therapist)
Click to expand...

You guys rock. I knew you guys were straight. This is why I didn't want to mention where I saw the uke. I also know that I doubt there is a dealer out there that knows more about ukes (including my two favorite dealers) than you guys.
 
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