I took a ride into town today and stopped at the local music store to put a couple things on consignment. As they were doing paperwork I perused the wares and came across this gem. It's a Regal baritone ukulele with no model name/number that I could find. I need to dig deeper inside with a camera and see if I can find any markings. The top is 2-piece solid spruce, the sides are solid mahogany, the back is 1-piece solid mahogany, the neck is 1-piece solid mahogany, the fretboard and bridge appear to be Brazilian rosewood, the nut/saddle are bone, the rosette is inlaid, not a sticker, the faceplate is 3-ply with Regal engraved into it, 3-ply top binding, single ply binding on the back, the finish is thin nitrocellulose lacquer with finish checking on the body, and everything seems to be original including the friction tuners that work great.
The uke was a bit dirty so I gave it a light cleaning. The fretboard was very dry but is looking and feeling much better after an oiling. I haven't changed the strings yet but have some on the way that I'll swap when they get here. I'll do a deeper cleaning at that point. I can't believe how well this thing plays, the action is low and comfortable with no buzzing anywhere. The tone is really balanced and sweet. I'm so amazed with this uke, I wasn't expecting it to be so nice when I picked it up. Regal ukes may not be high up on collector's lists, but man what a player. I was guessing it's from the 50's but based on what I've read, may be earlier. Post WWII Regals were plywood from what I've come up with, with a couple models with the solid spruce/mahogany build being dated from the 30's. I have no idea where this uke falls into the timeline so if anyone has any ideas, I'd appreciate it.
Time to post some pics and get back to playing this thing.
The uke was a bit dirty so I gave it a light cleaning. The fretboard was very dry but is looking and feeling much better after an oiling. I haven't changed the strings yet but have some on the way that I'll swap when they get here. I'll do a deeper cleaning at that point. I can't believe how well this thing plays, the action is low and comfortable with no buzzing anywhere. The tone is really balanced and sweet. I'm so amazed with this uke, I wasn't expecting it to be so nice when I picked it up. Regal ukes may not be high up on collector's lists, but man what a player. I was guessing it's from the 50's but based on what I've read, may be earlier. Post WWII Regals were plywood from what I've come up with, with a couple models with the solid spruce/mahogany build being dated from the 30's. I have no idea where this uke falls into the timeline so if anyone has any ideas, I'd appreciate it.
Time to post some pics and get back to playing this thing.
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