My Stew Mac tenor build

T

tonyturley

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 29, 2018
Messages
780
Reaction score
374
This is nothing new to many of you, but being my first, I thought I'd share my progress to date. Through this afternoon, the sound box is now enclosed, and the bindings all glued in place. Upper bindings are scraped/sanded flush, and lower are waiting for the glue to fully cure before scraping. You may notice some pieces of wood laying about in the garage pics; those are some reclaimed BW and Cedar I've been planing with thought of using them on #2, which will be a scratch build.

P1010451.jpgP1010452.jpgP1010454.jpgP1010524.jpgP1010525.jpg
 
Last edited:
I installed the K&K Aloha Twin prior to closing up the sound box. Gonna head downstairs in a few minutes to start the fret work.

P1010541.jpgP1010542.jpgP1010543.jpgP1010545.jpg
 
Looking good! I bought this kit last week when it was on sale. Not sure how soon I can start mine but I’m looking forward to seeing your progress.

edited to add: I just read your other post on this build. It’s nice to see you adding some personal touches like the binding and side soundhole. I’ve been toying with the idea of adding a cedar top but I may just save it for the next build.
 
Last edited:
photoshooter said:
Looking good! I bought this kit last week when it was on sale. Not sure how soon I can start mine but I’m looking forward to seeing your progress.

edited to add: I just read your other post on this build. It’s nice to see you adding some personal touches like the binding and side soundhole. I’ve been toying with the idea of adding a cedar top but I may just save it for the next build.
Click to expand...
Thanks. The build isn't hard, it just takes attention to detail. Having some woodworking experience helps, but I've read of people who built one without any previous experience.
 
I spent a couple of hours this evening scraping bindings and dressing frets. I wanted to work longer, but I needed to go upstairs and actually play some music. My Seagull S6 capo'd on 6 does a credible Uke imitation (I keep my guitars tuned down 1/2 step).

I've enjoyed woodworking since I was a kid, but I didn't expect how addicting luthery would be. In between steps for uke #1, I've been prepping wood for #2, which will be based on a Hana Lima tenor Kasaha plan. I also ordered the plans for #3, which will be a tenor guitar tuned DGBE. I also came across a video of Sierra Hull making a tenor guitar sing. Wow. I can play like that. Not.
 
tonyturley said:
...but I've read of people who built one without any previous experience.
Click to expand...

That would be me. I'm a plywood and 2x4 kind of builder, but my S-W tenor turned out okay. Not perfect, but okay. I was glad that I also bought the instructional DVD by the Mya-Moe husband and wife. That was a big help.

Ukulele Tenor_1.jpg
 
Nice job Jerry! I'd be very pleased with that.

I've also been a woodworking hobbyist since I was a child. Never made a musical instrument until last year when I made a couple of cajons for percussionist friends. They were very well received so it was natural to start on some ukes. I haven't completed a build yet but I have a lot of projects on my bench in various stages; a couple of solid body chambered ukes, three cigar box ukes, an electric bass uke and now the Stewmac kit. None of the projects are particularly intimidating from a woodworking standpoint but I do view the standard acoustic uke as the most difficult. I may be wrong, I guess I'll find out soon enough, lol. In the meantime I really enjoy seeing what everyone else builds and I 'm especially grateful for all of the great advice that's freely shared by the professional and experienced luthiers on this forum.

I can also see uke building becoming addictive.
 
Jerryc41 said:
That would be me. I'm a plywood and 2x4 kind of builder, but my S-W tenor turned out okay. Not perfect, but okay. I was glad that I also bought the instructional DVD by the Mya-Moe husband and wife. That was a big help.

View attachment 112213
Click to expand...
Looks good Jerry.

photoshooter said:
Nice job Jerry! I'd be very pleased with that.

I've also been a woodworking hobbyist since I was a child. Never made a musical instrument until last year when I made a couple of cajons for percussionist friends. They were very well received so it was natural to start on some ukes. I haven't completed a build yet but I have a lot of projects on my bench in various stages; a couple of solid body chambered ukes, three cigar box ukes, an electric bass uke and now the Stewmac kit. None of the projects are particularly intimidating from a woodworking standpoint but I do view the standard acoustic uke as the most difficult. I may be wrong, I guess I'll find out soon enough, lol. In the meantime I really enjoy seeing what everyone else builds and I 'm especially grateful for all of the great advice that's freely shared by the professional and experienced luthiers on this forum.

I can also see uke building becoming addictive.
Click to expand...
Yep. I'm hooked.

sequoia said:
Yes, I can attest how addictive luthiery can be. And it not a total joke either because one can spend vast amounts of money on tools (see Stew Mac, LMI, etc.) and spend vast amounts of time. Beware.
Click to expand...
Too late.
 
I just completed the critical and somewhat nerve wracking operation of aligning and gluing the neck. I'm going to let the thing sit overnight to allow the glue to fully set before I do anything else on it. The "T" you see on the headstock is an engraving filled with epoxy and Black Walnut dust, then carved and sanded flush.

Also, the Indian Rosewood for my tenor guitar build arrived today. Lovely wood. Too bad I need to thin it. I bought the dreadnought size set, so I'll have extra left over for things like bridges, fretboards, and peghead overlays.

P1010549.jpg
 
The uke is now hanging in my shop while the finish cures. I made the mistake of using 100% Tung Oil. First time I've used it. A walnut bowl and a uke have nothing in common except wood. It turns out Pure Tung Oil dries slowly - very slowly. Three days after the final coat, and there is still an slight oily sheen on the body. The neck appears dry. Basically, I'm getting a clean cloth and rubbing down the uke every 12 hours or so. I did notice the oil on the cloths I'm using is diminishing each time, and after this morning's rub-down, the residue on the cloth was less than yesterday. One source I found says it could take up to 30 days for Pure Tung Oil to fully cure. I sure hope not. I have it hanging in an area away from foot traffic, with lots of air flow around it. I was hoping to string it up this week, but I'll just have to be patient.
 
The time is drawing near. The Tung Oil cured faster than I'd first expected, and I added several coats of shellac over the past few days. I guess the ample air flow made a difference. Today I took the critical step of gluing on the bridge. I probably measured 20 times between the dry run, gluing and clamping, and even several times after clamping. I wasn't taking any chances on a misalignment. Here we are sitting on the workbench.

P1010759.jpg
 
We have a uke. I came home from church last night and put on the finishing touches, installing the side fret markers and shaving about .5mm from the stock saddle to lower the action. Strung it with D'addario Low G fluros around 10, then proceeded to stay up way too late playing uke tunes. Even with practicing by capoing my guitar at fret 5 and only playing the top 4 strings, it will take some time getting used to the narrow fretboard and tiny neck. Fumbled around a bit getting used to the spacing, but by the end of the hour I was playing along with some YouTube videos. Having guitar experience certainly helps. I'm going to work on some 12 bar blues when I get home this evening. In the meantime, my workbench is now clear, and I can get on with uke build #2!

The inlay on the headstock is just an engraving filled with a mixture of finishing resin and Black Walnut dust, then sanded flush. The feather on the lower bout is a woodburning. I wanted something subtle, without a lot of detail. I'm pleased with the build, but not satisfied. My next one will be better.

P1010760.jpgP1010762.jpgP1010769.jpgP1010770.jpg
 
That looks great. Is that a feather image on the lower bout? That's a cool addition.
 
You’ve taken a kit ukulele and turned it into a custom stunner. Great work! Not only have you inspired me to start on my kit but you’ve also set the bar quite high.
 
Doc_J said:
That looks great. Is that a feather image on the lower bout? That's a cool addition.
Click to expand...
Thanks. It is a feather. I burned it very lightly to just give a bit of an accent.

photoshooter said:
You’ve taken a kit ukulele and turned it into a custom stunner. Great work! Not only have you inspired me to start on my kit but you’ve also set the bar quite high.
Click to expand...
Thanks. It was a fun build.
 
I was getting somewhat annoyed with my Stew Mac build, as I didn't seem to be able to cleanly fret certain chords, especially a Bb. This evening I loosened all the strings, popped off the nut, and shaved about 1mm from the bottom of the nut using a Japanese Razor File. Glued nut back in place and restrung, and presto, much better action and fretting. Live and learn.
 
Set-up is so, so, so important to how an ukulele sounds and plays. You can build the best ukulele in the world out of the finest wood, but if the set-up is bad it still wants to sound and play like a cheap piece-o-crap.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

U
Sold Stew Mac Ukulele Kits Tenor and Baritone
Replies
6
Views
549
ploverwing
ploverwing
J
Pix of Stew-Mac tenor kit wanted
Replies
2
Views
761
jcalkin
J
Hobo
Stew Mac Tenor 2nd build
Replies
5
Views
647
ksquine
ksquine
U
Binding Choices for Stew Mac Tenor
Replies
8
Views
611
BR Ukuleles
B
I
Stew Mac Tenor - Can I radius the fretboard?
Replies
8
Views
1K
icuker
I
Top Bottom