Custom Uke Owners

Martinlover said:

Consider buying a used custom ukulele. You’ll see it finished and you’ll be able to get sound samples. The wood will have opened up already, too. It will usually cost quite a bit less and you can sell it if or when you commission a real custom.

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I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

Rllink said:

I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

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I hear you, but I have heard from another member and have had the personal experience of being disappointed by a custom. And the layout is usually substantial. Meanwhile, I have been selling some ukes and saving up for a custom baritone from Beansprout. Hope springs eternal.

Rllink said:

I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

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TOTALLY Agree - it misses the point. I think the suggestion came in terms of getting to know if the luthier was worth their salt or not. There are other ways to do that though - forums like this one - friends, uke clubs etc. I had played about 5 examples from the luthier who built my first custom before I placed an order. I had also read comments from many more owners who I trust. Became a no brainer to me.

Rllink said:

I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

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^Makes less than zero sense to me. Unless the commissioner of the custom instrument had some extremely unique physical features (like building a uke for Shaquille O'Neill or some other extreme-sized, tall/small player). The relationship between an instrument & its owner/player cannot be distilled to the sole criteria of who the initial intended recipient is. That's just way too oversimplified.
Think of how that attitude/approach would hold if the object were a house or a violin/viola/cello by Stradivari or Guanarius. Many professional violinists are playing on fiddles made/comissioned a few centuries before they were born.

Rllink said:

I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

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I think that "luthier built" and "custom" get used interchangeably, (maybe I'm wrong?), but I would have no problem buying a used custom/luthier built ukulele if I wanted to try it or knew I liked it.

If there was some specific inlay or something unique to a particular individual, I might not want it.

But if what we're calling custom is the choice of woods and a few other features, (sound port, or radius, for example), built by a particular luthier, why would you decide against it, if you liked it? Am I just using a wrong definition for "custom"?

Keep in mind that there are highly sought after luthiers that do not commission. They don’t need to and they avoid the potential headaches. They build what they feel like building. And it seems it makes little difference as people are lined up to buy their wares. So if someone is able to get one of these one-of-a-kind ukuleles, is it less of a custom and less desirable?

John

Bill1 said:

If the uke is shown in a video with sound and you can see it, or you can go to a shop or auction room and play it, it is not likely to have been commissioned by a paying customer. So I don't think it would be a custom uke as being discussed in this thread. It is a high end uke that is for sale.
There is little risk of the unknowns in buying any of the MBUs which have been offered for sale. There have been photos, videos and so on, so the customer has a good idea of what is for sale. Also they are immediately available, there is no waiting while they are being built. Basically they are very fine off the shelf ukes.
I think the question in this thread is about commissioning a uke to be made from scratch. Where the customer specifies various parts and wood etc.. And there is a waiting period while the uke is built, and there is the unknown of what it will be like.

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I understand what you are saying, and you are technically correct. But that unique $10K MB would be a whole lot more custom than someone who checks off the option boxes on an order form. You get 20 people who all happen to check the exact same boxes and you have a short production run. Now have them all show up at the same uke festival with their custom ukes.

John

MopMan said:

there is nothing magical about a custom instrument and commissioning one is a fairly substantial risk

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bazmaz said:

Not if you choose a ukulele luthier of renown. Choosing one blind - I agree.

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Purchasing an instrument that you have not handled is always a big risk in my book. The more expensive the instrument, the greater the risk. I will agree that choosing a luthier of renown will probably reduce your risk in that you may be able to recoup a better percentage of losses in a resale.

MopMan said:

be prepared to wait. a. long. time. in my case, it was a whole year

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bazmaz said:

That REALLY depends on the builder - some have a far shorter turnaround.

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This is true. The wait might not be so long. In my view, choice of luthier is the primary concern. Wait times are by far a secondary concern but they are an unfortunate reality. I would be prepared to wait on my chosen luthier for as long as it takes. That might be a long time. Hopefully it won't!

It is the process of getting a custom ukulele that has me hooked. I like the communication that takes place between the luthier and I. Choosing woods based on the sound I seek and flavoured by the luthier’s recommendations, I savour this step. Next, considering the details like side sound port, radiused fretboard, type of tuners, style of rosette...oh, so many details to luxuriate in!
Then there is the wait. Waiting for the build to begin, waiting for photos of the bracing, waiting to see how the rosette turned out, waiting to see my signature choice of fretmarkers..,the waiting is better than xmas eve.
And, finally, there’s the thrill of seeing a totally one of a kind instrument and, even better, hearing its unique tones for the first time.
Yeah, I’m in love with custom ukulele builds.

I own one custom-built ukulele, made by Bradford Donaldson. I had seen things about his instruments for a while, and many of the members here on the forum said great things about the instruments, and one woman I knew of from the textile world had one of his ukes that was built specifically to accommodate the female anatomy.

When another member told me that Bradford's ukes weren't very expensive for a custom built, I contacted him. And we communicated. First off, the price was low because he built as a hobby. No pressure to finish by a certain date, he would not take a deposit, and when the uke was finished, he'd let me know. I would then pay for it, he'd ship it to me, and if I didn't like it, I'd send it back for a full refund, minus shipping cost.

My desires were simple: Sustainable north-American hardwoods, contrasting binding, personal sound hole, cut-away, pick-up, PegHed tuners, and - if possible - a couple of inlays in the fretboard, headstock, and one on the back of the headstock, that would make it 100% personal. Everything else, I trusted his judgement.

He did it all, and it is my favorite instrument. Great sound, great feel - Sarah Maisel asked to play it at one of the Napa Uke fests a few years back, and liked it very, very much.

Bradford isn't making custom instruments anymore - I was one of the last that he made one for - and I will always be grateful for my timing. It was worth every penny, and worth the 13-month wait.

-Kurt

fretie said:

It is the process of getting a custom ukulele that has me hooked. I like the communication that takes place between the luthier and I. Choosing woods based on the sound I seek and flavoured by the luthier’s recommendations, I savour this step. Next, considering the details like side sound port, radiused fretboard, type of tuners, style of rosette...oh, so many details to luxuriate in!
Then there is the wait. Waiting for the build to begin, waiting for photos of the bracing, waiting to see how the rosette turned out, waiting to see my signature choice of fretmarkers..,the waiting is better than xmas eve.
And, finally, there’s the thrill of seeing a totally one of a kind instrument and, even better, hearing its unique tones for the first time.
Yeah, I’m in love with custom ukulele builds.

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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

We've had this discussion before, and it appears there are different understandings of "custom". In a narrow sense, people mean an instrument that has been specifically built for one individual customer, incorporating his or her personal requests. In a broader sense, it refers to any luthier-made instrument that was built as one-of-a-kind. This is how the term "custom ukulele" is applied by specialized stores such as The Ukulele Site (HMS).

I have both, some luthier-made instruments I bought from HMS or used, whereas others were specifically discussed with the builder and built to my specs. In both cases, I wasn't able to try before buying. And in most cases, I was pleased with the results. Again, most important was to find out what I like in an instrument, and which builders would most likely fulfill this.

Rakelele said:

We've had this discussion before, and it appears there are different understandings of "custom". In a narrow sense, people mean an instrument that has been specifically built for one individual customer, incorporating his or her personal requests. In a broader sense, it refers to any luthier-made instrument that was built as one-of-a-kind. This is how the term "custom ukulele" is applied by specialized stores such as The Ukulele Site (HMS).

I have both, some luthier-made instruments I bought from HMS or used, whereas others were specifically discussed with the builder and built to my specs. In both cases, I wasn't able to try before buying. And in most cases, I was pleased with the results. Again, most important was to find out what I like in an instrument, and which builders would most likely fulfill this.

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Very very well said!
I have been asked does custom mean it’s measured to my hand size like custom made shoes. Sigh.

Bill1 said:

Do you want a stock uke or a custom uke?

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Yes, please.

Mahalo Kurt, it is very gratifying to me that you appreciate your ukulele as you do, you were a delight to work with and I had a lot of fun building it. I would advise anyone considering a luthier built ukulele to take the time to learn as much as possible about the builder as they can and reach out and try to develop as much rapport with them as possible. This will greatly improve the odds for a successful outcome for everyone. In terms of risk, while it can be challenging to manage expectations, my policy has always been to offer a full refund if the customer is not happy. Most builders I know offer the same. Over the last 36 years and several hundred instruments built, I have had two returned. I am no longer accepting custom orders, my life is too uncertain for that, but I am building again and will be offering spec instruments for sale in the UU marketplace. Stay tuned.
Bradford

BuzzBD said:

Mahalo Kurt, it is very gratifying to me that you appreciate your ukulele as you do, you were a delight to work with and I had a lot of fun building it. I would advise anyone considering a luthier built ukulele to take the time to learn as much as possible about the builder as they can and reach out and try to develop as much rapport with them as possible. This will greatly improve the odds for a successful outcome for everyone. In terms of risk, while it can be challenging to manage expectations, my policy has always been to offer a full refund if the customer is not happy. Most builders I know offer the same. Over the last 36 years and several hundred instruments built, I have had two returned. I am no longer accepting custom orders, my life is too uncertain for that, but I am building again and will be offering spec instruments for sale in the UU marketplace. Stay tuned.
Bradford

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You are most welcome, Bradford. That uke is a joy and a delight to play - I don't take it out of the house during winter months, unless I have a gig, but everyone who has played it loves it.

This is not my most expensive instrument, but it certainly is priceless.


(If you make a Spec Soprano that doesn't have friction tuners, please let me know - I don't need another uke, but I'd love to have something like an Amy...)

Here you go Kurt.

Rllink said:

I'm not purposely raining on your parade, but I could never buy a used custom. The whole idea behind a custom instrument is to get one that is specific to the person it is being built for. I would not want a ukulele that was specifically built for someone else. It would defeat the purpose.

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It's not underpants. I am happy to have used customs.

"When I reach a certain playing ability..."

You've reached that ability level. Go for it! "He who hesitates is lost." Getting a custom built will increase your desire to play.

Jerryc41 said:

"When I reach a certain playing ability..."

You've reached that ability level. Go for it! "He who hesitates is lost." Getting a custom built will increase your desire to play.

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Love the response! I just can’t justify the money when my Kanile’a has me obsessed as it is. Like I said, the custom will be a trophy of sorts. My personal level of accomplishment.