Teton Guitars Ukuleles?

Sorry guys, i know a lot of forum users don't take kindly to new users posting right away or whatever but i have a question. Does anybody know anything about Teton Guitars ukuleles? specifically the 22z (zebrawood) or just zebrawood ukes in general? theres a guy at my local music store who seems to think they are the best thing next to kamaka, but he comes off salesman-y and im not so sure. Any help on this would be appreciated because i need a new uke (my last one broke) so i can start contributing positively to this forum!

I recently bought a Lanikai tenor cutaway acoustic/electric slot head zebra wood blem from Butler on eBay, $150, and find it to be bright with very good presence. I had the same model in monkey pod, but it was not as bright and less presence. I also have an Ibanez acoustic/electric guitar in zebra wood and really like the powerful sound it has. I really recommend zebra wood.

No first hand knowledge, but re: "new users posting"...they are referring to posting items for sale without prior posts, signature, etc. Not much info out there on the acoustic models. I'd probably stick with the Kala version of this uke from someone who does a great setup.

kohanmike said:

I recently bought a Lanikai tenor cutaway

Click to expand...

As soon as I hit "tenor cutaway", I knew who the post was from . . . .

My reputation proceeds me... I'm a sucker for tenor cutaways, as my signature attests.

IZlives, I have a Teton guitar-a local shop here carries them for good reason, they sound great. They just got in the Teton ukes (a soprano, concert and tenor) in the 10 series if I remember right (Mahogany). I played the soprano and really liked it. Lightweight, well constructed and good tone with a pricetag of $99.00. I would not put them in the league of Kamaka though. The one I played was more like an entry level Kala or Lanikai, construction and sound wise. Very good ukes for the money (I still play my Lanikai LU21). I would have no problem buying one and came close to getting the one I played-I just don't need another uke............want, just don't need!

Thanks guys! I had the chance to try an ohana zebrawood uke since I posted this, and I was really disappointed. It was SUPER loud for a concert, but not clear at all. It was really percussive sounding, and instead of that beautiful ukulele sound where you can hear each string ring out it was like one big sound, even when you do a finger roll. I hope not all zebrawood ukes are like that because its the best looking type of uke I've seen, but until I find a good one I'm just gonna have to wait. Unless kala or lanikai makes a good one? They don't have them at my local stores but if its under 200 and sounds good I'd love to buy one

I have heard that zebra wood is prone to splitting.
Don't how true it is, but I would be cautious of buying a bargain uke.

Thanks. What would you consider "bargain"? I don't know a whole lot about ukes, I just know I can't afford kamaka lol. The rest seem to be about the same proce range, so it's really hard to tell the difference between like kala and lanikai for instance without having one of each

In the price range you're talking about there isn't honestly a lot of consistent difference between Lanikai, Kala, etc. In this price range you will find good ukes, okay ukes, and bad ukes regardless of which company logo is on the headstock. If there is one thing that could be said to be consistent it is that they are quite variable in both setup and sound.

That's not to say you should avoid ukes in this price range - if it's what you can afford then buy one and play the frets right off of it. However, you will be miles ahead buying something in this price range from one of the dedicated uke outfits that have good reputations around here; HMS, Mim's, Uke Republic, etc. They cull the outright bad ukes that sound dead, etc. (especially HMS) and they will make sure the ukulele is set up so it intonates well and has a decent action, etc. These are things that are far more important to learning to play than the appearance or what wood is used, etc. I'd rather have a uke made from a shipping palette that has been set up right than the prettiest uke on the planet if it hasn't.

John

Thanks! I think I'm gonna get a lanikai ck-c (koa) from my local store unless there's any reason I should get the lkp-c koa pack instead, since it is significantly cheaper