A better plastic uke for my car? :^)

Quadropenta

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Hi everyone
I have a plastic tenor uke [with a Mickey Mouse decal] which lives in my car. Great to have an instrument there not affected by heat or cold. Playable, but also somewhat of a toy. Cheap tuners and a "not especially straight neck"... Its surprising how much I play it. Can anyone suggest an inexpensive plastic uke of better quality--an upgrade?
Thanks, Joel
sc_b003r6h59i-01mickey.jpg
 
I think I'd go for an all laminate uke rather than plastic. I have a cheap Rubin all laminate in my car and it's been fine.
 
I think I'd go for an all laminate uke rather than plastic. I have a cheap Rubin all laminate in my car and it's been fine.

I wouldn't subject any wooden ukulele to a car; the Outdoor Ukulele--as long as you like soprano or tenor, is the way to go.

I have one of the new Enya models coming next month--it still needs to be seen if they are as rugged as the Outdoor Ukulele.

If you have to have a non-plastic ukulele, look at the HPL models by Martin (now discontinued, but available), Enya, or Bonanza Ukulele.
 
Tou might consider the Flight TUS 35
 
The new plastic Enya Nova concert ukulele got a great review on GotAUkulele. Price is $69 in the USA
 
The Waterman ($40) would probably be a step up, but the Outdoor Uke ($115) would be several steps up.

Waterman is a waste of money, Outdoor ukulele is a decent instrument!
 
Second that on the Waterman. It probably isn't any better than what you have.
 
I have the following and would recommend either:

  • Soprano: Flight TUS-35 - inexpensive and sounds way better than its price suggests. This one made me like sopranos. I like it better than my HPL Enya X1 soprano, which cost twice as much and would also probably survive the car just fine
  • Tenor: Outdoor Carbon - not so inexpensive, plays well, and sounds good for plastic. There is also a soprano version I haven't played, and less expensive colours without the carbon fibres molded in. I doubt the carbon fibre has any real non-aesthetic advantage, but it's cool!

I don't have the following but would consider:
  • Concert - upcoming Enya Nova. Costs in the middle of the Flight and Outdoor and well reviewed.

The Outdoor is normally my car uke - I like the black since it is less obvious to somebody looking in the car window.

Tenor is fine for me while playing while in the drivers seat (while parked or passenger only! please don't play while driving!), but I've thought about switching since the smaller one is easier to grab from the back seat.

Even though the plastic uke body doesn't care about the weather, the strings do. You'll probably have to retune and change strings more often than on a uke kept in a more controlled environment.
 
I would like to second the comment about the effect of heat on ukulele strings. Even in the UK, where I live, direct sunlight can heat a car up to the point where nylon strings will become useless. I've been told that strings, that have been over-stretched in this way, can be restored by putting them in a freezer for a few hours, but I haven't tried it.

John Colter
 
I wouldn't personally suggest laminate or HPL because they both have solid wood braces and linings inside still as well as solid wood necks in many models.

I am looking forward to the Enya Nova U ukulele releasing in October. $69 pre-order price until 9/30/19 on enya-music.com. Includes a case too. Carbon fiber and polycarbonate mixture.
I have also tried the Outdoor Ukuleles that were mentioned, and they are nice and would fit the bill. Soprano and tenor sizes, no case included.
I also really like the Flight TUS35 mentioned, but it wouldn't be as durable as the ones I mentioned above..yet more durable than others.
Other than that, and not as good in my opinion.... you have the Woodi/Grover Trophy (on Musician's Friend)/whatever else they are called out there. It is okay at best, in my opinion. Playability is not great. Then one I haven't played...the Vorson abs plastic uke (Amazon) that some like but some report the neck bends...It's the least expensive of the lot.
 
In most parts of the US, for a cold/heat resistant car uke, I’d get an OU soprano. I wouldn’t even look at laminates for a leave-in-car uke.
Makes me wanna replay this (OU Soprano) totally cute & happy video. It’s Friday. Scroll to 1:15.


Of all the plastic/part plastic/laminates, my trusty bought-used Waterman *Concert* ties w/ Magic Fluke Flea Concert for most played, more so than the very burly Outdoor Ukulele tenor.... probably due to size.
 
Pricey. But, I take my KLOS uke everywhere in the car and it can get quite hot out here in the West.
 
Thanks for the great response everyone! This is so helpful.
I guess I'm looking for Outdoor Uke, Flight TUS 35, Enya Nova
in that order.
 
I'm traveling to LA with my Flight TUS 35 tomorrow. It took playing it next to a Magic Fluke to realize how good it was (I have a recent review on my YouTube channel, youtube.com/ukestuff).

That said, I would't leave it in a car...it has an ABS body.

P.S. Flight is releasing a long neck TUS 35 soon, and they have a custom Elise Ecklund model coming out that looks really nice as well, with a few added features such as one strap button and Aquila Sugar strings.
 
Or there's another way altogether.

I'm about to take a 1200 mile drive and instead of risking damage to a ukulele or buying some plastic thingy, I'm going to think. Think about where on the fretboard are all my Ab's and Db's and Eb's; think about whole tone scales; think about chord shapes. When I'm done traveling then I can play. There's a time and place for everything. I wouldn't take the wife, kids, and golden retriever to a boys' night out and I wouldn't take an instrument traveling. That's how I deal with this topic.
 
Or there's another way altogether.

I'm about to take a 1200 mile drive and instead of risking damage to a ukulele or buying some plastic thingy, I'm going to think. Think about where on the fretboard are all my Ab's and Db's and Eb's; think about whole tone scales; think about chord shapes. When I'm done traveling then I can play. There's a time and place for everything. I wouldn't take the wife, kids, and golden retriever to a boys' night out and I wouldn't take an instrument traveling. That's how I deal with this topic.

Some of us relax with a ukulele, and want to do so while travelling too. There is always a place for ukuleles.
 
Pricey. But, I take my KLOS uke everywhere in the car and it can get quite hot out here in the West.

Your Klos is a FANTASTIC sounding instrument! We were just on their web site looking at prices, we liked it so much.

The Outdoor Ukulele is a very decent, but we have a small issue with ours. An annoying buzz has developed and we cant seem
to fix it. It was our car ukulele for over a year and we kept in a padded Gator bag, I don't think it was abused, but it might have gotten a knock.
I'd still recommend OU, no one else seems to have any problems with theirs.
My buddy uses his everywhere and often plays at the beach.
 
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