For the last 12 months I have been teaching our two eldest grandsons,aged 10 and 6, on the soprano uke and great fun it is too. Recently the 6 year old has been picking up my Gold Tone Little Gem banjo uke and making a reasonable job of it for his age. Now it is that time of year and he has said he would like a banjo uke for Christmas !! All in favour but we are just wondering which one,I think the Little Gem may not be quite the thing for a 6 year old boy even though I love mine.We do have a limited budget and would need a gig bag as well as strap and tuner.Perhaps an open back concert or soprano would be good idea as there would be no need to project the music far Any suggestions folks or is it a daft idea. I will need a few pennies left in the kitty as my letter to Santa will be for a tenor sized banjo uke for no reason other than I quite fancy the bit longer scale !!
Beginners banjo uke
- Thread starter PeteS
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TopDog
Well-known member
Mine is called a 'Countryman' and it has a closed back, and here in the UK it retails around £130 sterling. It's a great little beast!
captain-janeway
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Can he play concert scale? Maybe just give him the Little Gem? It's probably the best quality you're going to find at that price point. Otherwise you'll have to troll Amazon to see if you can find one soprano scale cheap. I haven't seen any soprano scale banjo ukes.
Good luck
Good luck
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I highly recommend the Magic Fluke Firefly. Considering you're getting it for a six-year-old, the fact that it's extremely light compared to most banjo ukes seems like a big advantage. It's open back with very few metal parts. I don't think you'd even need a strap necessarily as it's that light. The cheapest model has a polycarbonate fretboard which might be a bit challenging for some since both the frets and the fretboard itself are black, so you might want to get one with a hardwood fretboard.
I have a lovely vintage Gibson banjo uke but I still play the Firefly quite a bit. That's how much I like it.
I have a lovely vintage Gibson banjo uke but I still play the Firefly quite a bit. That's how much I like it.
Nickie
Well-known member
That might be your best bet. Baz reviewed one on Got a Ukulele, was smiling ear to ear, and gave it a very good rating.
I'm very close to considering the Firefly mini banjo.
I think the lighter the better for a six-year-old. The Firefly description makes me think it would be ideal.
Some laminate banjoleles, along with all of the metal parts, weigh a ton. Maybe too much for your grandson.
Some laminate banjoleles, along with all of the metal parts, weigh a ton. Maybe too much for your grandson.
Nickie
Well-known member
Hey, how is the neck shape on your Firefly? I'm afraid it might be too flat for me.
I believe all Magic Fluke ukes have a fairly wide and flat neck compared to, e.g., typical Chinese made ukes. Mine is no exception. Definitely a more D shaped neck than C shaped.
There are a lot of factors in this choice. Price, weight, and sound being maybe the three biggest differences between these two ukes. The Little Gem sounds far more like a banjo than the Firefly, has many more features, and is much less expensive. (I got mine for $100 shipped. I think it was used--can't remember--but you can't tell.) Gold Tone knows banjos. The Little Gem is light for a banjo uke, but the Firefly is lighter. The Firefly is quieter as well, which could be good or bad. For most adults I'd recommend the Gem. If your grandson likes it. I'd recommend it for him as well, but if you think it's too heavy, the Firefly is a good option. A strap could help with weight. If he has been playing yours and what he likes is the banjo sound, he might be disappointed in the Firefly.
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acmespaceship
Well-known member
Remembering when my son was six, there's no way I'd have given him a Little Gem. The thing is heavy and it has lots of hard pointy bits. Even perfect well-behaved angels (which I am certain describes your grandsons!) would be better off with something that is less likely to accidentally become a deadly weapon ;-)
Plus, the Little Gem is LOUD and Mom/Dad might not be thrilled to live with it. Isn't there a rule about giving LOUD gifts to other peoples' kids?
I'd go with the Firefly or some other model that does not have metal around the rim. Check with the Magic Fluke company to see if they have factory seconds, or look for one that's used. That said, sometimes it's the sparkly look of the Little Gem and the machine-gun sound that captivates a kid, in which case the Firefly won't cut it. The safest move (unfortunately not the most convenient) is to buy yourself a used Firefly and see if your grandson likes it. If so, you can give it to him and it becomes even more special because it's grandpa's uke. If he doesn't like it, you get to keep it or re-sell it.
Come to think of it, are you sure it's the sound of a banjo uke that your grandson likes, or is it the bright colorful plastic? A Waterman might do the trick.
Plus, the Little Gem is LOUD and Mom/Dad might not be thrilled to live with it. Isn't there a rule about giving LOUD gifts to other peoples' kids?
I'd go with the Firefly or some other model that does not have metal around the rim. Check with the Magic Fluke company to see if they have factory seconds, or look for one that's used. That said, sometimes it's the sparkly look of the Little Gem and the machine-gun sound that captivates a kid, in which case the Firefly won't cut it. The safest move (unfortunately not the most convenient) is to buy yourself a used Firefly and see if your grandson likes it. If so, you can give it to him and it becomes even more special because it's grandpa's uke. If he doesn't like it, you get to keep it or re-sell it.
Come to think of it, are you sure it's the sound of a banjo uke that your grandson likes, or is it the bright colorful plastic? A Waterman might do the trick.
Some great suggestions on here so thanks for those so far. We visited an old friend yesterday who I used to play in a bluegrass /old time outfit and discussed this problem as you do. He had recently introduced his 8 year nephew to music with a Rocket concert banjo uke,not wanting to invest too much at this early stage so another one for me to look at,looks ok in Amazon pages,anyone heard of it ?
Bill Sheehan
Well-known member
Pete, I got the "Kmise" brand banjo uke (concert scale) several months ago, and it's been very serviceable. Seems put together solidly. I felt it was too boomy at first, so I took off the removable back and lightly spread out some plastic grocery bags in there to "damp" things a little, and I'm really happy with the way it sounds now. It came with a decent banjo-shaped gig bag, too. I've used it at a number of solo nursing home outings, and it has performed well (now, whether I performed as well is another question!). The nice thing is that it has enough projection that I can play and sing for the folks in the nursing home's activity room without worrying about amplification, and it gets me by with no problem, so it makes for the ideal light-packin' "grab-n-go" gig! As I recall, the price was around $89.00 on Amazon.
wee_ginga_yin
Well-known member
Unboxing of my Kmise banjolele
Thanks Bill just the sort of thing I was after. I have ended up with a Rocket concert banjo uke on the recommendation of a guy I played with many many years ago.It is a reasonable looking instrument with a nice sound,a little more mellow than my Little Gem but no worse for that. Here in the UK it was £85 from Normans musical instruments complete with tuner,gig bag and they put a strap in for me as well. So far it is holding its tuning well,I mean to say grandad has to try it to make sure it is ok fo Father Christmas to deliver!!
Bill Sheehan
Well-known member
Hahaha! Sounds great! Glad you got it taken care of, Pete, and hoping it'll be a hit! I see the Rocket uses a "Remo" drum head; that's definitely a good sign!
(P.S. Hey Wee, nice unboxing video! But now you've got me itching to try one with a maple fret board!)
(P.S. Hey Wee, nice unboxing video! But now you've got me itching to try one with a maple fret board!)
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Bill Sheehan
Well-known member
P.S. For what it's worth, I see that a website called KaleSale is selling the Kmise model featured in Wee's unboxing video (above) for just $39.99. It appears to be a Chinese company. Very tempting, but I'm trying to thin things out!
tombaker
New member
I bought Magic Fluke Firefly for my 10-year-old daughter, she used to learn to play the violin, then she didn't like it, I bought her a ukulele and now we learn to play together with pleasure!
I bought Magic Fluke Firefly for my 10-year-old daughter, she used to learn to play the violin, then she didn't like it, I bought her a ukulele and now we learn to play together with pleasure!
That's great! Wonderful way to bond with her. Have fun!
