Youthalele 3

There has been an ongoing discussion in the Luthier’s Lounge about books on how to build ukulele. One issue is that the woodworking skills and tools necessary to do this right are significant. Some years ago I designed the Youthalele as an instrument that could be built in quantity by teachers with limited resources for their students. I have sent the plans all over the world and have had a number of people build 15-25 of them for their class. I did not want to hijack the thread, so I am posting here. If there is sufficient interest in this, I will gladly post the plans and instructions on how to build a Youthalele 3, which have been refined considerably over the years. Here’s what they look like now.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/mJKRLiCTyQpJPRWw7

Brad

Love the Youthalele 3. It is very beautiful! Very unique. I don’t know what else to say. Great work!

Benjamin

Very cool! I'm sure it has been very appreciated by a lot of people. Kids and adults.

Gorgeous, Brad! And the finish is delightful!

How did you seal the back?

Mahalo nui everyone. I have been working on the Youthalele design, with the idea that I could sell them at our local craft fairs for fun. My usual $500-$1000 solid koa ukulele are probably not a good fit, so I have been tweaking the Youthalele design. The back is a photo transfer process using an inkjet printer. I have explored many different ways to do this before I found something that worked. Anyway here’s why this design is a good fit for those who wish to build a serviceable ukulele with out breaking the bank buying tools and materials. The main thing used is 1/8” birch plywood, no thickness sanding required, just cut to shape and glue. I am using a Spanish heel neck joint for easy alignment and a zero fret and reverse nut, which eliminates the scarf joint on the neck and any critical nut adjustments. These things sound surprisingly good, I have acquired a number of cheaper laminate ukulele over the years and they compare favorably to them.
Brad

Brad,
I am very interested in the plans and instructions on how to build a Youthalele 3.

Hey! That's my ukulele! In fact, minutes ago I wrote Brad to tell him how much I've come to like it.

In January I was supposed to go to Hawaii, and one of the things I planned to do was meet Brad and see his ukes. I had the tickets, and the hotel, etc. Then I ended up in the hospital instead. Brad kindly sent that uke (or one nearly identical) to me to help me feel better--which it did, not just the uke, but the gesture itself gave me such happiness.

As I was telling Brad, I recently (and temporarily) tuned my Kiwaya concert a little funky, so when I want a reentrant uke that's tuned gCEA, I've been grabbing the one he made. It's so nice. It sounds great and feels good in the hands. I wondered why the neck was completely straight and the explanation makes so much sense. It doesn't change the playing at all. It's really a pleasure to own and I hope others give it a try. My granddaughter--the target market--loves it. She grabbed it when it arrived and suddenly, finally, showed interest in the uke. Oh those happy days when grandchildren could spend the day or the weekend.

Thanks again, Brad.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/TdxaThAaierbwQSS8

All of Brad's instruments are wonderful. I have two (one custom concert, and a soprano I asked for the moment I saw a photo of it on-line.) There aren't a lot of instruments I'd consider buying sight unseen, but if I was looking for another uke and Brad told me that he had the perfect ukulele for me, here's the price - I'd be on PayPal just as soon as I knew I had enough money to buy it.

I'd buy one of the Youthaleles in a heartbeat - but I'm not the type of person who could make one, no matter how simple it is supposed to be. I've glued my fingers together numerous times, and that was opening the superglue; I tried to use a drill press, and knocked it over (okay, just the one time, but still...); and I've noticed that, whether I'm using a bread knife, a crosscut saw, or a circular saw, the cut is always, and invariably, diagonal, top left to bottom right.

So yeah, not gonna try and build a musical instrument. My palms got sweaty watching Joel Eckhaus play the Musical Saw.

sarastro said:

Brad,
I am very interested in the plans and instructions on how to build a Youthalele 3.

Click to expand...

^^^ What sarastro said!

Hey guys, nice to hear from old friends and thanks much for the kind comments. It looks like we have enough interest to give this a shot. My intent is to provide a template that will allow the builders to design and build a ukulele that best matches their particular skill set and available tools. I will strive to provide as large a range of options as I can.
Brad

I am currently getting things together, upgrading my fixtures and building a couple of Youthalele so I can take pics of the process. I will move the thread back down to the Luthiers Lounge, so look for the title of Building the Youthalele in a couple of days and please participate in any way you can, preferably by building, but if not, all comments and questions are welcome.
Brad

BuzzBD said:

I am currently getting things together, upgrading my fixtures and building a couple of Youthalele so I can take pics of the process. I will move the thread back down to the Luthiers Lounge, so look for the title of Building the Youthalele in a couple of days and please participate in any way you can, preferably by building, but if not, all comments and questions are welcome.
Brad

Click to expand...

Hi Brad! I don't think I'll be trying the Youthalele myself, but I think it's really cool that you're doing this!

Mahalo Snowden, hopefully people will discover something interesting.
Brad