Neck Widths

iDavid

iDavid

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I have a KoAloha concert with a 1 3/8 width nut and a Kanilea Tenor with a 1 ½ width nut.

It seems me that this is backwards. Shouldn’t a shorter scale instrument have the wider neck and a longer scale instrument have the narrower nut?

I am toying with getting a concert with a 1 ½ neck….

Thoughts?
 
I agree that it is totally personal preference, but most higher end and Hawaiian made ukes have a 1.5" nut. Islander ukes are one of the few lower end ukes to use a 1.5" nut. Their theory is, if you learn on an Islander when you move up to a Kanile'a it will be an easy and natural transition.
 
From my research a while back, it seems there isn't much difference in nut width between the different sizes of the same brand, and not a lot of difference between brands either. Having said that, my KoAloha concert has a noticeably narrower width than my Kanilea or Islander.
 
KoAloha concert has a 1 3/8 while the tenor has a 1 1/2 at least that is what they told me. I think I really want a 1 1/2 concert!
 
I find neck width largely irrelevant, unless it's ridiculously narrow. The most important thing for me is depth. My Kanile'a has a neck profile like a lollipop stick and it's incredibly comfortable to play (for me). The only thing lacking for me is a radiused fingerboard.
 
I've never really thought so much about it. However, I started playing more chords up the neck and it can get a bit cramped on a concert.
 
eugene ukulele said:
:stop: 1.5" nut widths should be banned.
Click to expand...

Totally agree, despite my large hands and fingerstyly playing I find 1.5 awkwardly out of proportion when compared to 2 inches on a classical guitar. It really makes fluocarbonstrings feel out of place unless you use the likes of Worth Fats- I think that is why Kanilea will always give you Nylguts...
 
chrimess said:
Totally agree, despite my large hands and fingerstyly playing I find 1.5 awkwardly out of proportion when compared to 2 inches on a classical guitar. It really makes fluocarbonstrings feel out of place unless you use the likes of Worth Fats- I think that is why Kanilea will always give you Nylguts...
Click to expand...

That is a really good point. I have fluorocarbons on my Kanilea at the moment and it does make the neck seem wider.
 
It's all a matter of personal taste. My uke collection runs the gamet from 1 5/16 to 1 1/2.
I have smallish hands and prefer 1 5/16 to 1 3/8. However, I'm okay with my 1 1/2 with 4 strings but with 6 strings it's unconfortable hence selling it. It was a nice Koa with Double Puka but could'nt get used to it.
My current 6 string has a 1 7/16 neck and I love it. My 5 string has a 1 9/16 but seems okay at this point, maybe 1 less string made a difference even with a neck 1/16 wider. I'll try to get used to it................Bo......
 
I like the narrower neck widths of my Martin Tenor and Barry. also the profile is so slim.
 
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