custom build

bt93

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hi, i am looking for a custom build but don't want to spend a lot of money. would i be able to get a soprano with a slotted headstock for around 400.00? thanks
 
hi, i am looking for a custom build but don't want to spend a lot of money. would i be able to get a soprano with a slotted headstock for around 400.00? thanks

Maybe, but I doubt it. I'm looking at a materials list for a soprano that is right at $300. That's alot of work for $100 but as I said, you might find someone that's not interested in the money and would do it just for the experience.
 
I don't believe I've seen a slotted headstock soprano yet. I think they would be seriously too head-heavy. The closest thing would be a Glyph Mezzo-soprano. The problem is that there is the 2-3 year waiting list and the price is significantly more than $400. Since Dave Means charges some of the lowest prices among custom ukulele builders, you're not likely to find someone who builds a $400 custom soprano unless it's done as a favor to you.
 
My advise: Get some estimates from luthiers that you like and then save up some more cash to fit your need.

yes, NEED!:)
 
GX9901 wrote:
I don't believe I've seen a slotted headstock soprano yet. I think they would be seriously too head-heavy. The closest thing would be a Glyph Mezzo-soprano. The problem is that there is the 2-3 year waiting list and the price is significantly more than $400. Since Dave Means charges some of the lowest prices among custom ukulele builders, you're not likely to find someone who builds a $400 custom soprano unless it's done as a favor to you.

Woahhhh....... I never sawthis one.....As a freak of slotted headstock...seeing this just make me dreaming of owning soprono-concert size with a slotted headstock!!! But 2-3 years of wait s quite long though!!!!

George, do you know any one doing this other than Dave??
 
The way to do a slotted head soprano is to use ebony peg friction tuners. That solves the problem of the head being too heavy. I could do a plain mahogany one for around $400.

Brad
 
It's to do with scale and proportion. I think I could do it but wouldn't really want to - there is no advantage to the design and besides, on an elegant body like the soprano's, the shovel end of the uke is always a problematic design area.
 
avoid the waverly tuners....

Aloha,

With a budget of $400 you might want to avoid the waverly tuners too. the cost of these would be over half the amount of you budget. the cost of materials has really gone up in the recent years and labor...well, the sky is the limit there too.

best of luck on your quest for your uke,
Shawn

http://ukulelefriend.com
 
How about a Koa Flea? It has one big slot, and is uncommon enough to be semi custom. ;)
Flea%20Koa-DET.jpg


I want one real bad. :D
 
i am not a big fan of fleas or flukes
 
That Glyph uke looks awesome. I would have thought a slot head on a soprano would look goofy.....not the head size but the thickness required for the tuners. But now that I see one, I'm thinking maybe....
I wonder if weight balance is such a big issue on a soprano ukulele. (I haven't played soprano ukes enough to notice) It seems that they way you hold it, balance doesn't matter like in a guitar
 
This desire for a slotted headstock is the 'Jake effect' I suspect. :anyone:

nyone will tell you that changing strings on a slotted headsteack is a pain and the thickness of it is an issue. As one who started off building 6 and 8 string tenors with slotted headstocks and who has recently started doing it on 4 string tenors, I know what it takes to do this style justice and trust me, on a soprano it's barely doable, though I bow to the great Dave Means for apparently pulling it off! :bowdown::bowdown:
 
This desire for a slotted headstock is the 'Jake effect' I suspect. :anyone:

I guess I would agree with that. I do find that I like the look of slotted headstocks regardless of whether Jake has it or not. But of the slotted headstocks I've seen I'm most drawn to the shape and thickness of Jake's slotted headstock. He uses Gilbert tuners, which I just found out requires a thicker headstock than the Waverly tuners typically used by luthiers such as Dave Means and William King. That explained why Jake's headstock looked rather thick, which I've always found strangely attractive.:p

nyone will tell you that changing strings on a slotted headsteack is a pain and the thickness of it is an issue. As one who started off building 6 and 8 string tenors with slotted headstocks and who has recently started doing it on 4 string tenors, I know what it takes to do this style justice and trust me, on a soprano it's barely doable, though I bow to the great Dave Means for apparently pulling it off! :bowdown::bowdown:

I believe Dave has not done a slotted headstock on a soprano (at least judging from his website pictures). The Mezzo-soprano is sized between the soprano and concert, so it's not quite as small as a soprano.

I've got two ukes with slotted headstocks and I have not found changing strings to be more involved than normal geared tuners. Yes, they perhaps take just a smidge more effort since you can't use a Martin-tie to secure it initially, but I don't find it to be any more a pain in the butt than any other types of tuners when changing strings.
 
I had a slotted headstock guitar for years and used and still use on my ukes the 'safety' tie that nips the strings in place. I did a video of string up once but receievd such negative comments when I posted it on another board that I deleted it from my YouTube account. When I finish the current slotted headstock offering I'll redo it so you can see how it's done.
 
Aren't Violins slotted headstocks ?..Why not do a soprano like that with single or two slots close together with tapered pegs?...it won't play any better tho'.....This fashion thing is wierd :confused: no serious musician cares what your instrument looks like, unless you are a better player than they are, and "then" they are convinced that it is the instrument that makes you better than them....I've come across the same syndrome in "Cycle racing" the young lads think that if they buy the best latest carbon fiber bike available, they can become a winner...But if you really want to win? you have to train approx: 500 miles a week to even stand a chance of finishing a race.
 
i just chose soprano because it is cheapest i would prefer concert or tenor, but they are too expensive:(:(
 
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