ok so my new uke just arrive n there's a lil problem

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Ok, so my new uke just arrive n i have a problem,in the soundhole it strongly smells like glue and the fret board looks like crap, its brownish white n the frets that are suppose to be gold lookin is kinda like whitish but other than that the uke sounds good though, tuners were fine, everything is fine except the smell in the soundboard, the fretboard n frets.

i'm still thinking if i should return it or not, do u guys think its still playable like this, see look at it compare to my old school lanikai lu-21
 

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Is that a picture of it down there???? i dno if it is. The ukulele is definitely playable, unless the stench is unbearable, or you can't stand playing a not-so-good-lookin-uke. I can certainly tell that the color of the fretboard is sorta....gross....If the fretboard and smell are really bothering you, you might want to return it. You should actually go to a music store, and try out an ukulele you actually like. You can also see and smell it before you pay for it.....
Just remember that buying a new uke should be a personal thing.:D
 
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If I remember right, you were gonna get a Kamoa Pineapple from the UU store. If you're not satisfied with its appearance, I would suggest getting hold of Admin. I'm sure something can be worked out.
 
MisoHappy said:
Is that a picture of it down there???? i dno if it is. The ukulele is definitely playable, unless the stench is unbearable, or you can't stand playing a not-so-good-lookin-uke. I can certainly tell that the color of the fretboard is sorta....gross....If the fretboard and smell are really bothering you, you might want to return it. You should actually go to a music store, and try out an ukulele you actually like. You can also see and smell it before you pay for it.....
Just remember that buying a new uke should be a personal thing.:D
Click to expand...

yepz thats it, well ok i just probably over reacted since its gonna be christmas n i was expecting a new uke without blemish but i guess that will never happen since this is just an entry uke n its cheap, so i just get what i paid for.

But i live in ky though so the only place that i can rely to buy ukes is from the internet. I guess i'll just keep it then. Besides i don't want to wait another week to return it. I should've got a better uke tsk.
 
Kanaka916 said:
If I remember right, you were gonna get a Kamoa Pineapple from the UU store. If you're not satisfied with its appearance, I would suggest getting hold of Admin. I'm sure something can be worked out.
Click to expand...

its ok bro, i'll just keep it there's nothing wrong with the sound anyways just the frets and the fretboard.
 
I'm sure the smell will go away time don't worry to much about that and as for how it looks it will probably grow on you and become your best friend. I know my uke when I got it looked weird and had blemishes but that is now what I like best about it. Besides my uke came with a month to return it so give it a chance and then return it within a month if you have that option.
 
Give it some time and some bling.

I just picked up a Fluke Flea and was a bit disappointed with it but I replaced the crappy black pegs with some translucent orange ones and replaced the strings with some nice Aqilla ones and it made all the difference in the world. I really like the bling the pegs gave the uke and the sound quality is now great. So, my advice is to find some cool pegs and get some decent strings and you'll be amazed at the difference it can make to an inexpensive uke.
 
If you want to dress up the FB a bit just get some 0000 steel wool and run it over the frets. Should clean up nicely. Chances are you may want to change the strings anyway. I'm not sure what strings come on thoses Kamoa ukes. If you decide to change the strings the steel wool should do wonders. Good luck.
 
Dominator said:
If you want to dress up the FB a bit just get some 0000 steel wool and run it over the frets. Should clean up nicely. Chances are you may want to change the strings anyway. I'm not sure what strings come on thoses Kamoa ukes. If you decide to change the strings the steel wool should do wonders. Good luck.
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Mine had aquilas on it, those look like aquilas as well.
 
The glue smell will go away. When I received my Kala from MGM, if reeked of glue for a few weeks, but after a brief spell sitting in a pile of my dirty laundry, it smeels just like me! When I bought a new guitar a few years back, it smelled of glue for months. Its a good thing.

White stuff on the fretboard? Is that something that can be wiped off with a clean cloth? Or is it in the wood itself? I bought a factory reject Lanikai that has what I can only describe as "whitish scuff-marks" down the left side of the fretboard. Those marks along with the gluespots under the bridge got me more than two-hundred dollars off a solid mahogany concert uke. So I'd definately look into those fretboard issues. Those Kamoas have a rosewood fretboard, right? If so, there's NO white on rosewood. If I was you, and I'm not, but if I was, I'd take some clear pictures of the fretboard and send them to the UU folks. I think they have an email address on the store's page. Let them know what it looks like and then prepare a "product review" video. Seeing as its Christmas time, give them a few days to respond and if they don't answer back, launch the product review video.

Those ukes are expensive enough for the buyer to expect quality materials. They aren't being sold as factory rejects like my LSM-C. Quick note about the factory rejects, for the price, THEY ARE AWESOME!:D!
 
HoldinCoffee said:
The glue smell will go away. When I received my Kala from MGM, if reeked of glue for a few weeks, but after a brief spell sitting in a pile of my dirty laundry, it smeels just like me! When I bought a new guitar a few years back, it smelled of glue for months. Its a good thing.

White stuff on the fretboard? Is that something that can be wiped off with a clean cloth? Or is it in the wood itself? I bought a factory reject Lanikai that has what I can only describe as "whitish scuff-marks" down the left side of the fretboard. Those marks along with the gluespots under the bridge got me more than two-hundred dollars off a solid mahogany concert uke. So I'd definately look into those fretboard issues. Those Kamoas have a rosewood fretboard, right? If so, there's NO white on rosewood. If I was you, and I'm not, but if I was, I'd take some clear pictures of the fretboard and send them to the UU folks. I think they have an email address on the store's page. Let them know what it looks like and then prepare a "product review" video. Seeing as its Christmas time, give them a few days to respond and if they don't answer back, launch the product review video.

Those ukes are expensive enough for the buyer to expect quality materials. They aren't being sold as factory rejects like my LSM-C. Quick note about the factory rejects, for the price, THEY ARE AWESOME!:D!
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the white thing is in the wood itself, it cannot be wiped off nor it can clean or anything n the frets are kinda like silver u know how when u buy a new uke the frets is supposed to be gold well this one is kinda silverish like those old old ukulele.

the lanikai that i got used n i paid for 30 bucks is more well built, here's a video comparison since the pic that i took is pretty blurry against my lanikai lu-21 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuO1NOAJFr8
 
I'm not sure about that white stuff. The frets though, on high quality instruments are silver. Brass is used on cheap ones giving it a "gold" look.
 
i have the kamoa pineapple uke and its playable and pretty awesome....i pm'd you my likes and dislikes right? anyways the blemishes you can get past just say it was handmade...hahah how is the action on yours??? just wondering if it was just mine that had a high action...
 
ukeninam said:
i have the kamoa pineapple uke and its playable and pretty awesome....i pm'd you my likes and dislikes right? anyways the blemishes you can get past just say it was handmade...hahah how is the action on yours??? just wondering if it was just mine that had a high action...
Click to expand...

my action is pretty high too, i have no problem with it though since i use to play the guitar :D, how bout urs? does it have blemished like mine http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuO1NOAJFr8 in this vid, i mean i'll keep the instrument but if you ask me its expensive for 100 bucks.
 
Smell-wise, laminate ukuleles especially tend to smell like glue for a while. Just thinking about it makes me nautious. lol
Fretboard-wise, the wood may have been coloured like that from the beginning. It does look a little funky, but it's up to you if you want to exchange it for one with a flatter colour. The reason why the Lankai has flatter colour might be because they used a wood-stain before putting it together. Don't quote me on that, but it's entirely possible.
Fret-wise, fret colours differ from uke to uke. It should be fine if it's consistently the same colour up and down the board.
 
Looking at the video I can see what you are talking about. Probably not much you can do about the discoloration of the FB but as I said before, I think if you use 0000 steel wool on the frets it should clean and polish them up no problem.
 
Like Dominator suggested, steel wool should make the frets nice.

But the fretboard on your uke looks pretty dry to me. I suggest rubbing some pure lemon oil into it, or even better, Fret Doctor. It'll shine it up, improve the texture, and probably help with the color.

The glue smell is normal. Let it air out (humidified, of course), and it should pass.
 
dominator n haole, i love u guys :D, i did what you said about cleaning/polishing the frets n applying lemon oil in the fretboard n now it looks more better now woohoo, u guys just saved my christmas, i love my kamoa now :D
 
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