Kmise banjolele

Log Dog

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I purchased a Kmise banjolele on eBay for $55 and was shocked when it arrived. First I was shocked by the cheap cardboard uke box it was sent in that was both crushed and punctured. Then How poorly it was packed inside the box. but the huge surprise was there was no damage whatsoever, not even a scratch. The uke tuned first time and barely needed any adjustments to set the strings (best stock strings I have tried so far on any uke). There are some obvious cheapness issues. But they do not seem to hurt this unit functionally. I have some book matched sheets of mahogany to replace the plywood back. Another thing I was impressed about was that the string height and action was perfect. Setup was a breeze and only required insertion of a floating bridge banjo style with a plastic guide to place it. I only had to lightly tap the bridge once to complete intonation and setup.

Now I was not expecting much as far as sound considering the diminutive price. Boy was I wrong. It has a great banjo-esque sound and it's loud. As in too loud to play at night if someone is trying to sleep.

All in all I give it a 4 thumbs up.... That's MHO of course.... Your mileage may vary.

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Now for my uke family... So far LOL!!!

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One last thing.... Plastic banjo finger picks work real well with this setup. The metal ones sound too tinny and seem like they would/could be rough on the strings.
 
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I went to their website but there is little info there. But both are similar enough to be made in the same place. All I know is the price tag made the purchase a great deal. I'm happy and loving how dueling banjos sounds on it. I need to learn some uke bluegrass now. :)
 
Nice. It looks as though you got a genuine deal.
 
It's surprising how boxes can be damaged, yet the contents are okay. I received a UPS delivery of a Kala tenor last week, and the box was a mess. It was ripped open enough that I could see the inner box. The uke itself was okay - aside from the crack in the top that I more or less knew was there anyway.

I saw a Beansprout banjo uke over the weekend, and it was tempting - but too pricey for me.
 
This one was just laying loosely in the 2 ply box that came from the factory. The uke was wrapped in a Tyvek sleeve and that was it. There were 2 holes in the box one that was open big enough to see the uke through. How the uke came trough without coming in multiple pieces still boggles the mind. The fact that I could not find a single flaw has me stumped. The box looked like it was used in the Samsonite luggage commercial with the gorilla from back in the 70s. LOL!!!!! I'm not complaining.... I'm glad the uke was ok.

What is a beansprout banjo? I'm getting ready to build 2 resonator ukes. One concert and one baritone.
 
I guess the value is where you find it. Per dictionary.com, value means to give value for value received. For me the answer is simple, $55 for something that meets my needs vs $1,500 for something that at my skill level would be pretty much the same. I am not knocking well crafted instruments in any way but I am a hobby luthier and I specialize in upgrading inexpensive instruments into pieces that have the feel, playability, and sound of much more expensive versions of the same instrument for much less.

The main thing is that there were no obvious defects in the uke I purchased and it was in a playable condition reserved for (usually) much more expensive instruments. I was very impressed with it's fit and finish that I wanted to say so for any that might be considering one.
 
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I've had one for a few year now. I say it is the biggest bang for the buck in all of my instruments. Has played perfectly out of the box with great set up. It is the perfect street busking instrument for me.
 
I've had one for a few year now. I say it is the biggest bang for the buck in all of my instruments. Has played perfectly out of the box with great set up. It is the perfect street busking instrument for me.
Purchased an Aklot Kmise banjo ukulele on Amazon for $59 a few years ago. Nice introductory price to banjo ukuleles. Solidly built and tons of fun. Enjoyed learning how to set the bridge postion. Run mine with a Martin M600 high G concert strings.
 
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