The forgotten uke...

SteveZ

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Did you ever have a uke that became, for lack of a better term, forgotten? It's the one that found itself buried in the closet and passed by when it came time to grab an instrument for some fun time.

Buried in my storage area was a Lanikai tenor (LU-22TFM) that I got used from another UUer. It's a laminate, and one of a series (300 of them) that was commissioned by Elderly Music Company for its 40th anniversary. I bought this uke because it was inexpensive, attractive and I trusted (still do) the seller. Also, I have had good experiences with Elderly Music and the instrumdnt brings back good memories.

However, as time and other instruments came and went, this uke was ignored in favor of newer stablemates. I tried selling it once with no takers. I eventually took the strings off of it, planning to retune it and try selling it again. I never got around to restringing, and literally forgot about it.

Recently I had to rearrange my storage area and this unstrung uke got to see daylight again. I had an extra set of Aquila 31Us (CGDA, concert), a set which I routinely use on tenors. So, on with the new strings and the wait for the couple days it takes the strings to fully stabiize. All I can say now is, "Wow!" The uke rocks! Tuned CGDA (low-C), it's a great mate with my Martin which is tuned CGDA (high-C).

Perhaps I should keep rummaging through the closet....
 
That's awesome. Like a NUD without any cash outlay. ;-)

I yet to literally forgot a uke, but I have ignored a couple for a long time for various reasons and then when I picked them up again, was blown away by how good they were. It's sort of the opposite of "absence makes the heart grow fonder."
 
Interesting the coincidence of these posts. A couple days ago I replied to a post about a "different" style uke. It prompted me to show my custom mandolele, which I hadn't played in quite a wile, so I pulled it out of the display case and strummed for a bit. It sounded better than I remembered. I also updated my photo of it.

Mandolele black finished 700.jpg
 
What's worse: Forgetting that you have a specific uke, or forgetting where you got it from? Either way, they always seem to sound nice when rediscovered.
 
I did put some up in the loft out of the way for a little while, but they were never forgotten, & are all back in my room again. ;)

I like messing with different ukes at times, & although I'm not that fond of the soprano scale any more, it was a soprano that I played the day they came out of the loft. :)
 
perhaps we could get our significant other(s) to hide a few of our less-frequently used ukes,
sort of like Easter egg hunting, then, as we come across them later, we could all have the
joy of rediscovering them? :)

just a silly thought.

keep uke'in',
 
I have a Lanikai concert that has a very nice sound. I just recently began playing it again after taking it out of the closet. It is a nice uke!
 
I haven't forgotten one yet but I have, like others, neglected some until they nearly felt new. What a fun hobby w all have.
 
This happened to me over the weekend. I have a Makai concert in solid mango that I stuck in a crappy gig bag and completely forgot about. I've been spending some time with her since then and have come to the conclusion that she's a good one but the Aquila Reds on her may not be the best strings for her.
 
I have that exact same model, and it, too, languishes in the land of the forgotten. Maybe I'll retrieve it and try your tuning. Thanks for the suggestion!
 
A few weeks ago I was in the basement and I found my original car-uke. An Islander AS-4 which is a long neck soprano in walnut laminate. I bought this new with a gig bag for about $112.00 and it sounds great with Martin M600 strings. Lots of people have played it and thought it was an expensive instrument. I have it upstairs now and it is getting some playing time. It deserves some love and attention.

20160928_075736.jpg
 
Mine are in the living room, so no forgotten gems...but sometimes I don't play one as much, and when I get back to it, it's a NUD all over again, (without the expense.) It's a fun benefit of being fortunate enough to own more than one ukulele.
 
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