eor
Well-known member
Hey folks
This is a review of my Covered Bridge Tenor ukulele (#23 built June 2012) by brothers Perry Bullinger and Terry Bullinger of Covered Bridge Ukuleles, Oregon U.S.A.
Tenor scale
18 frets , 14 to body
1.5 inches at the nut
Mahogany neck/ Spanish heel
Solid Redwood top
Solid book match Myrtle back / sides / head plate
Blood wood binding
Ebony fret board / heel cap
Rose wood bridge
Rubbed oil finish
Bone nut / saddle
MOP fret markers
abalone rosette
Peghed tuners
Worth clear strings/reentrant tuning
I played a bit of accoustic guitar back in the day but have played very little in the past ten or twelve years due to strength /pain/dexterity issues in my arms and neck and hands that make playing/holding a guitar difficult.
I have played the uke since 2009 and would consider my self an intermediate player .
I researched a lot and even mailed a bunch of other Covered Bridge owners for their two cents before choosing a CB uke. I was surprised how many CB uke owners compared their CB ukes tone, and playability to ukes costing much much more.
The Bullingers were very easy to deal with, honest, prompt in answering emails, and the whole process went on schedule and smooth as silk.
It was pretty straight forward.
I wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel or design a one of a kind wonder uke.
I was looking for a versatile “players ukulele”. I liked the idea of north American sustainable tone woods.
Cedar is a favourite top wood of mine in ukuleles and in this case I picked redwood as it is said to often have some of the best combined characteristics of cedar and spruce, which I hoped would suite the eclectic mix of musical tastes/genres that would be indulged on it.
I also find redwood beautiful . Myrtle and redwood is a common CB ukes tonewood combo.
The uke was packed very well and arrived in perfect condition.
My first impression was how much nicer it was than in the face book pics. The wood is much nicer in person. The uke felt light without feeling fragile and smelled faintly like vegetable oil and had a pleasant spicey- woody smell which I assume is the myrtle.
The overall workmanship is top notch.
The interior of the uke is extremely neat and clean with no visible glue. The braces and other components inside look delicate, neat, well fitted and well made .
The neck is beautifully hand carved of ¼ saw mahogany and both it and the headstock are finished smooth as silk. The heel is delicate looking and its joint with the body is flaw less. The fret work is very well done, the neck plays smooth and fast and the myrtle over lay on the headstock and the Peghed tuners add a classic and classy vibe. The whole neck assembly ( as well as the whole uke in general) is perfectly balanced physically and visually and aurally.
I really want to make it clear how very, very nice the neck , fret work, headstock and tuners all are
The word balance comes up a lot with this uke.
The myrtle wood has a great deal of beautiful but subtle curl in it which is very hard to photograph. I had to take Terry’s word for it but he was right. The curl is beautiful and has a chattoyance effect that changes the curl as you change your perspective and is magnified by the ukes rounded back.
The myrtle is striking in person and has darkened a fair bit , much like pine often does with a bit of time and light exposure
The back is book matched and has a straight tight perfect middle seam.
The redwood top has tight straight grain and is perfectly 1/4 sawn with a ton of silking. I mean a ton. All over. Again some thing that doesn’t show so well in pics.
The Bullingers said it would have a ton of silking and it did. Terrys exact words “a ton” J.
The Bullingers said in an email conversation ( after I had decided to go with it) that the redwood could easily be considered master grade plus. They are right… it sounds fantastic and looks amazing. There wasn’t any upcharge for “master grade plus” wood.
What ever the case, every kind of wood in this uke gives the impression of quality.
The top is two piece but I cant be sure where the joint is among all that straight tight grain.
The blood wood binding really works well tying the redwood and myrtle together and besides protecting the uke has a nice grain and color all its own.
The Peghed tuners look great and work flawlessly. I have seen some uke pics where the pegheds seem long and out of proportion to the headstock to my eye , but these are short and perfectly matched in proportion to this uke. They look like ebony friction tuners unless you really scrutinize them.
The blue/green abalone rosette is very well fitted and brings out the beauty of the wood.
I chose an oil finish that suits the ukulele well. The uke is nicely finished.
As I write this I have about 420 hrs of play on this ukulele, which is around 3 hrs a day for 5 months.
At first try the ukulele lived up to expectations right away.
It sounded very good, good sustain and tone, well intonated ect. What you would expect. I knew it was a dandy right out of the box. at the time I wrote…
“…….sounds great with plenty of volume.
It has a very full voice with alot of note separation.
Its tone is on the warm side but again the word "full" comes to mind.
As does the term balance.
It has alot of sustain but maintains that ukyness if that makes sense.
Super action, great set up and intonation ect
Feel and playability........ A1.………”
And it all still applies.
This ukulele has changed over time and I don’t know if it is opening up, or the strings are just settling or if I am just getting used to it or what but the sound has matured, the uke is more responsive to attack and playing style. It has better sound during slow quiet passages and a bit more headroom when you are “bringing it home“. it has a bit fuller/deeper tone than it did at first. It is also warmer. Some how it seems more “relaxed”.
I wasn’t sure if I would like the 1 ½ inch wide nut. But now realize how much I like this width and suspect it is one of the reasons this uke is such a smooth player
It is so hard to define tone and a ukes sound . My initial impressions above say it pretty well but its more than that.
I pondered a long while before writing this review because I didn’t think I could convey this ukes voice or sound or what ever.
The easiest way to get it across would be to say the uke sounds and plays kick *ss.
Sorry but that’s it. Its kick *ss
Play a 20’s tune, sounds great, play Pink Floyd, sounds great, play loud, sounds great, play softly, sounds great, strum, sounds great. Finger pick, sounds………. See what I mean… kick *ss.
Seriously it get s back to balance. It is a smooth playing uke . great tone , long sustain without muddyness, intonation where it is supposed to be, warm yet crisp. fantastic action and set up that is perfect for my playing style. Low but high enough that you can “dig in “ when you need to.
When you first get a new uke, especially a custom, you have to let your expectations and reality reach some kind of agreement..
I don’t know what I expected. I knew I would be doing a review so I was paying attention.
So I put off the review and just played her. And realized what quality the uke has that I like the best is that its such a ball to play. There is some thing about this uke that just is a hoot to play I know that isnt scientific but its like a well made tool that when you use it you say wow this was made to do this. Play a couple of tunes and you want to play a couple more. that’s as good a recommendation as any thing.
Would I buy it again/ recommend it…. Yes highly, it’s a uke that sounds great and plays like a jazz guitar J
Superb value and a real players uke and that sounds cliché but thats how it is.
this is not an "economy ukulele" nor is it a particularly inexpensive ukulele. It is however a fantastic value for the dollar if sound and playability are important.
Any negatives?????…not really
…..The oil finish on the redwood ( not the myrtle so much which seems to remain flawless) likes to show finger prints but that’s no biggie. Fixed fast with a drop of lemon oil on a rag once in a while.
…….Redwood is very soft and this isn’t protected much with an oil finish.
……..Like many other small builders ukuleles, if you went over this one with a fine tooth comb you might find, depending on the lighting and if you have your glasses on, a small tool mark or sanding mark or whatever here and there.
This isn’t some thing you would notice if you were not looking and not noticeable in regular play but if you are uptight about that sort of stuff it might be important.
Play this uke a bit and you will not care about a tool mark or two. Actually I have already put more little dings and such on the uke than it came with.
I am very happy with it. It has exceeded my expectations.
Ill add a few sound samples I recorded a while back..
Each genre has two or three clips.
“I am not sponsored by Covered Bridge, it just plays that way“.
Feel free to put that on a bumper sticker.
Good job Terry and Perry
eor
This is a review of my Covered Bridge Tenor ukulele (#23 built June 2012) by brothers Perry Bullinger and Terry Bullinger of Covered Bridge Ukuleles, Oregon U.S.A.
Tenor scale
18 frets , 14 to body
1.5 inches at the nut
Mahogany neck/ Spanish heel
Solid Redwood top
Solid book match Myrtle back / sides / head plate
Blood wood binding
Ebony fret board / heel cap
Rose wood bridge
Rubbed oil finish
Bone nut / saddle
MOP fret markers
abalone rosette
Peghed tuners
Worth clear strings/reentrant tuning
I played a bit of accoustic guitar back in the day but have played very little in the past ten or twelve years due to strength /pain/dexterity issues in my arms and neck and hands that make playing/holding a guitar difficult.
I have played the uke since 2009 and would consider my self an intermediate player .
I researched a lot and even mailed a bunch of other Covered Bridge owners for their two cents before choosing a CB uke. I was surprised how many CB uke owners compared their CB ukes tone, and playability to ukes costing much much more.
The Bullingers were very easy to deal with, honest, prompt in answering emails, and the whole process went on schedule and smooth as silk.
It was pretty straight forward.
I wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel or design a one of a kind wonder uke.
I was looking for a versatile “players ukulele”. I liked the idea of north American sustainable tone woods.
Cedar is a favourite top wood of mine in ukuleles and in this case I picked redwood as it is said to often have some of the best combined characteristics of cedar and spruce, which I hoped would suite the eclectic mix of musical tastes/genres that would be indulged on it.
I also find redwood beautiful . Myrtle and redwood is a common CB ukes tonewood combo.
The uke was packed very well and arrived in perfect condition.
My first impression was how much nicer it was than in the face book pics. The wood is much nicer in person. The uke felt light without feeling fragile and smelled faintly like vegetable oil and had a pleasant spicey- woody smell which I assume is the myrtle.
The overall workmanship is top notch.
The interior of the uke is extremely neat and clean with no visible glue. The braces and other components inside look delicate, neat, well fitted and well made .
The neck is beautifully hand carved of ¼ saw mahogany and both it and the headstock are finished smooth as silk. The heel is delicate looking and its joint with the body is flaw less. The fret work is very well done, the neck plays smooth and fast and the myrtle over lay on the headstock and the Peghed tuners add a classic and classy vibe. The whole neck assembly ( as well as the whole uke in general) is perfectly balanced physically and visually and aurally.
I really want to make it clear how very, very nice the neck , fret work, headstock and tuners all are
The word balance comes up a lot with this uke.
The myrtle wood has a great deal of beautiful but subtle curl in it which is very hard to photograph. I had to take Terry’s word for it but he was right. The curl is beautiful and has a chattoyance effect that changes the curl as you change your perspective and is magnified by the ukes rounded back.
The myrtle is striking in person and has darkened a fair bit , much like pine often does with a bit of time and light exposure
The back is book matched and has a straight tight perfect middle seam.
The redwood top has tight straight grain and is perfectly 1/4 sawn with a ton of silking. I mean a ton. All over. Again some thing that doesn’t show so well in pics.
The Bullingers said it would have a ton of silking and it did. Terrys exact words “a ton” J.
The Bullingers said in an email conversation ( after I had decided to go with it) that the redwood could easily be considered master grade plus. They are right… it sounds fantastic and looks amazing. There wasn’t any upcharge for “master grade plus” wood.
What ever the case, every kind of wood in this uke gives the impression of quality.
The top is two piece but I cant be sure where the joint is among all that straight tight grain.
The blood wood binding really works well tying the redwood and myrtle together and besides protecting the uke has a nice grain and color all its own.
The Peghed tuners look great and work flawlessly. I have seen some uke pics where the pegheds seem long and out of proportion to the headstock to my eye , but these are short and perfectly matched in proportion to this uke. They look like ebony friction tuners unless you really scrutinize them.
The blue/green abalone rosette is very well fitted and brings out the beauty of the wood.
I chose an oil finish that suits the ukulele well. The uke is nicely finished.
As I write this I have about 420 hrs of play on this ukulele, which is around 3 hrs a day for 5 months.
At first try the ukulele lived up to expectations right away.
It sounded very good, good sustain and tone, well intonated ect. What you would expect. I knew it was a dandy right out of the box. at the time I wrote…
“…….sounds great with plenty of volume.
It has a very full voice with alot of note separation.
Its tone is on the warm side but again the word "full" comes to mind.
As does the term balance.
It has alot of sustain but maintains that ukyness if that makes sense.
Super action, great set up and intonation ect
Feel and playability........ A1.………”
And it all still applies.
This ukulele has changed over time and I don’t know if it is opening up, or the strings are just settling or if I am just getting used to it or what but the sound has matured, the uke is more responsive to attack and playing style. It has better sound during slow quiet passages and a bit more headroom when you are “bringing it home“. it has a bit fuller/deeper tone than it did at first. It is also warmer. Some how it seems more “relaxed”.
I wasn’t sure if I would like the 1 ½ inch wide nut. But now realize how much I like this width and suspect it is one of the reasons this uke is such a smooth player
It is so hard to define tone and a ukes sound . My initial impressions above say it pretty well but its more than that.
I pondered a long while before writing this review because I didn’t think I could convey this ukes voice or sound or what ever.
The easiest way to get it across would be to say the uke sounds and plays kick *ss.
Sorry but that’s it. Its kick *ss
Play a 20’s tune, sounds great, play Pink Floyd, sounds great, play loud, sounds great, play softly, sounds great, strum, sounds great. Finger pick, sounds………. See what I mean… kick *ss.
Seriously it get s back to balance. It is a smooth playing uke . great tone , long sustain without muddyness, intonation where it is supposed to be, warm yet crisp. fantastic action and set up that is perfect for my playing style. Low but high enough that you can “dig in “ when you need to.
When you first get a new uke, especially a custom, you have to let your expectations and reality reach some kind of agreement..
I don’t know what I expected. I knew I would be doing a review so I was paying attention.
So I put off the review and just played her. And realized what quality the uke has that I like the best is that its such a ball to play. There is some thing about this uke that just is a hoot to play I know that isnt scientific but its like a well made tool that when you use it you say wow this was made to do this. Play a couple of tunes and you want to play a couple more. that’s as good a recommendation as any thing.
Would I buy it again/ recommend it…. Yes highly, it’s a uke that sounds great and plays like a jazz guitar J
Superb value and a real players uke and that sounds cliché but thats how it is.
this is not an "economy ukulele" nor is it a particularly inexpensive ukulele. It is however a fantastic value for the dollar if sound and playability are important.
Any negatives?????…not really
…..The oil finish on the redwood ( not the myrtle so much which seems to remain flawless) likes to show finger prints but that’s no biggie. Fixed fast with a drop of lemon oil on a rag once in a while.
…….Redwood is very soft and this isn’t protected much with an oil finish.
……..Like many other small builders ukuleles, if you went over this one with a fine tooth comb you might find, depending on the lighting and if you have your glasses on, a small tool mark or sanding mark or whatever here and there.
This isn’t some thing you would notice if you were not looking and not noticeable in regular play but if you are uptight about that sort of stuff it might be important.
Play this uke a bit and you will not care about a tool mark or two. Actually I have already put more little dings and such on the uke than it came with.
I am very happy with it. It has exceeded my expectations.
Ill add a few sound samples I recorded a while back..
Each genre has two or three clips.
“I am not sponsored by Covered Bridge, it just plays that way“.
Feel free to put that on a bumper sticker.
Good job Terry and Perry
eor
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