The indestructibles.

I had a pretty nice Ohana spruce top soprano that I was taking down to the beach. A guy stopped to talk to me and was admiring my uke, he said he was a uke player too, and he asked me if I wasn't worried about having a nice wooden ukulele out there where it might get wet. I told him jokingly, that I was careful not to play it out on the surf. I sold that Ohana, but I also took it camping and on bike rides to the park, lots of places outdoors. It was fine and weathered everything. I will admit that if it looked like it was going to rain I quit playing it and put it away.

I know that there is a big market for indestructible ukuleles that can withstand hurricanes and I can understand not wanting to climb a mountain with something less than indestructible, or paddle your kayak with a mahogany uke, or sitting out in a torrential rainforest singing Raindrops Are Falling on my Head with just any ukulele, but do people actually do those things with their ukes, or is it just the idea that they could attractive to them?

My Klos gets babied and has a dedicated hard case. It's my most expensive uke by far and and dinging it would bug me. I'd probably worry more if it weren't carbon fiber, but the big value I get from it is that I like the look and the sound rather than the toughness.

My Outdoor gets left in the car where heat and cold wouldn't do most ukes any favours, though I suspect a cheap laminate would be fine. The tenors a bit big for bicycling, but it's commuted with me. This is probably overkill.

Thinking it through, the key in both cases is that if I'm worried about the instrument I'm not going to enjoy myself. Whether I should be worried or not is less relevant than if I am worried.

I bought a Fred Shields slid mahogany backpacker concert here on the UU Marketplace. Originally it was for taking on trips to play in the hotel. It is too loud for that! Instead I take a Risa Solid Wood tenor. Which is quiet unplugged but easy for me to hear what I'm playing.

The Fred Shields has gone to a bonfire and a beach and sounded great. And it held up to both just fine. I'd be a little concerned about getting it wet. But as Rllink said, I don't take it into the surf.

It's not indestructible, but it is solidly made. And is small enough to fit into a backpack.

But, I wouldn't keep it in a car.

You joked about paddling a kayak with a uke but I know of someone who takes their plastic uke with them out on their kayak. There was even a picture of their uke in the kayak while they sipped wine from a long stemmed wine glass! Now for me, kayaking would be enough activity at one time without having to play my uke and sip wine from a long stemmed glass at the same time but whatever floats your boat is OK I guess.

mikelz777 said:

You joked about paddling a kayak with a uke but I know of someone who takes their plastic uke with them out on their kayak. There was even a picture of their uke in the kayak while they sipped wine from a long stemmed wine glass! Now for me, kayaking would be enough activity at one time without having to play my uke and sip wine from a long stemmed glass at the same time but whatever floats your boat is OK I guess.

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Lol...some people just want it all! :shaka:

When I've owned those types of ukes they never left the house. Really, I was just after something I didn't worry over at all.

One of my students bought a Bugs Gear to take along on her paddle-board.

My bestie took her Enya composite uke on a backpacking trip.

mikelz777 said:

You joked about paddling a kayak with a uke but I know of someone who takes their plastic uke with them out on their kayak. There was even a picture of their uke in the kayak while they sipped wine from a long stemmed wine glass! Now for me, kayaking would be enough activity at one time without having to play my uke and sip wine from a long stemmed glass at the same time but whatever floats your boat is OK I guess.

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Was this a one-person kayak? Maybe his wife was doing the paddling.

I don't mind the plastic uke in a kayak, but a wine glass that's presumably made from glass could be a problem if it broke.

I'm not a wine guy, but I've gone on my kayak with my uke and some beer. Occasionally take the kayak to a nearby island in the Puget Sound and want my uke and some beverages on the beach. I keep an outdoor uke in the car, but love my carbon fiber ukes as well. My Sumi Maru carbon fiber uke is becoming one of my favorite instruments, and I'm excited to have an Emerald Harp Uke coming soon. I especially like having a high end composite uke when traveling. The uke often ends up in a car for much of the trip, and I want something that I don't need to worry about, but still get a quality sound out of. To each their own.

I have two ukes that I think of as beaters and will use most anywhere. A solid all bamboo because I understand that material is very sturdy, and a laminate thinline with binding all around, both sit out in reach all the time (my seven others stay in a humidified display shelf in a bookcase). I actually don't baby any of them, even the custom made ones. If they get dinged, so be it.

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This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly Grove near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 4 acoustic bass ukes, 12 solid body bass ukes, 14 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 39)

Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
Member The CC Strummers: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers

Jerryc41 said:

Was this a one-person kayak? Maybe his wife was doing the paddling.

I don't mind the plastic uke in a kayak, but a wine glass that's presumably made from glass could be a problem if it broke.

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It was a single kayak and it did look to be a long stem wine glass made of glass from her pictures. She was very enthusiastic about the idea and encouraged others in the group that they should try it and I think she may have wanted it to become a thing but I don't think it's a trend that's going to catch on. I think a part of it too may have been to create a Facebook/Instagram type moment to share. It would be way too involved for me. Now if it were an anchored pontoon or one piloted by someone else I could see it!

I have no doubt that there is someone out there sky diving with their uke. I mean you want to make a point, there is someone out there if you look long and hard enough that you can point a finger at and yell, "see." It's like Jeeps.

mikelz777 said:

It was a single kayak and it did look to be a long stem wine glass made of glass from her pictures. She was very enthusiastic about the idea and encouraged others in the group that they should try it and I think she may have wanted it to become a thing but I don't think it's a trend that's going to catch on. I think a part of it too may have been to create a Facebook/Instagram type moment to share. It would be way too involved for me. Now if it were an anchored pontoon or one piloted by someone else I could see it!

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Well, it's not like there have ever been any problems associated with drinking and boating.

Rllink said:

I have no doubt that there is someone out there sky diving with their uke. I mean you want to make a point, there is someone out there if you look long and hard enough that you can point a finger at and yell, "see." It's like Jeeps.

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Drilling lots of large holes might help with the wind resistance. In the uke, I mean, not the parachute.

Rllink said:

I have no doubt that there is someone out there sky diving with their uke. I mean you want to make a point, there is someone out there if you look long and hard enough that you can point a finger at and yell, "see." It's like Jeeps.

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Are you referring to the 4-wheeled vehicle, or the character from the Popeye comics after which the vehicle and brand was named?

Kenn2018 said:

Are you referring to the 4-wheeled vehicle, or the character from the Popeye comics after which the vehicle and brand was named?

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Contextually we are talking the vehicle here, not the cartoon character. Just for clarification purposes.

I've taken a Fluke around the world. Dry deserts and frozen tundras. I keep it on my desk when I'm not traveling.

For me, it's about having a 'care-free' ukulele, peace of mind, and, yes, pride of ownership

I don't deal with humidifiers (nothing against humidifiers. If you use them, great!) possibly because
I had never heard of them, and then the thought of something wet in an enclosed ukulele case
rubbed me the wrong way. Perhaps I have been mistreating all my ukes... sorry.

I've always liked the idea of ruggedness and sturdiness in anything and everything.
I have dinged and banged (even dropped) my uke but taken them as part of my ukulele
experience. Also, I didn't (and don't) really have expensive ukes (over $500)... until
now

I now have a KLOS Hybrid Carbon Fiber Tenor in hand, and a Synergy Instruments full
Carbon Fiber Concert uke coming soon! Both are about $500 each. But they are both
care-free like my polycarbonate Outdoor Ukuleles.

Again, for me, it's about not having to care about incidental/accidental dings and bangs or
drops... and general weather resistence

keep uke'in',

Uncle Rod Higuchi said:

For me, it's about having a 'care-free' ukulele, peace of mind, and, yes, pride of ownership

I don't deal with humidifiers (nothing against humidifiers. If you use them, great!) possibly because
I had never heard of them, and then the thought of something wet in an enclosed ukulele case
rubbed me the wrong way. Perhaps I have been mistreating all my ukes... sorry.

I've always liked the idea of ruggedness and sturdiness in anything and everything.
I have dinged and banged (even dropped) my uke but taken them as part of my ukulele
experience. Also, I didn't (and don't) really have expensive ukes (over $500)... until
now

I now have a KLOS Hybrid Carbon Fiber Tenor in hand, and a Synergy Instruments full
Carbon Fiber Concert uke coming soon! Both are about $500 each. But they are both
care-free like my polycarbonate Outdoor Ukuleles.

Again, for me, it's about not having to care about incidental/accidental dings and bangs or
drops... and general weather resistence

keep uke'in',

Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with that. My friend buys rugged things and anything that isn't he ruggedizes. I'm talking everything from how he dresses to what he drives. He has a Jeep, the vehicle not the cartoon character, that is all tricked out for extreme four wheeling and it has never been off pavement. And that is good because he spent a fortune on the paint job. It is quite a sight going down the street. I know myself, I have a pair of cowboy boots that I wear all the time and I'm certainly not a cowboy. I have a pair of LL Bean Maine hunting boots and I never go hunting. But we have cold winters and who knows when I might have to walk a mile through six inches of snow to get to the bar. So buying something rugged because one wants to identify with rugged, is great, so I'm not criticizing. I'm just wondering how many really put their rugged ukes to the test.

“For me, it's about having a 'care-free' ukulele, peace of mind, and, yes, pride of ownership” ..... “ Again, for me, it's about not having to care about incidental/accidental dings and bangs or drops... and general weather resistence” , I quote Uncle Rod and think that that pretty much describes the situation and the logic to it.

Personally I don’t have expensive Ukes but the ones that I do have play better than I do. I’ve had a few beaters too, Dolphins and the like, which have played well enough for my outdoor purposes. A properly set-up second hand Dolphin beater might not quite reach the spot for everyone but they do do a perfectly reasonable job and in bang per buck terms they’re very hard to beat. These days I’m looking for something a bit better sounding so my preferred suggestion is to buy a reasonable playing old laminate for not much - or utilise something similar to that that you already own - use it as you will and then not worry about damage. Ukes, and particularly laminate ones, are actually quite resilient and if they suffer significant mechanical damage (cosmetics aren’t too important on a rugged Uke) then then financial loss is typically trivial. Do I care about an inexpensive / not valuable laminate getting wet or weather damaged? Not really and anyway it’s going to be with me and I’m not going to be anywhere particularly adverse for long.

IMHO pride of ownership is over-rated and largely a function of marketing. I like my stuff to be tidy and presentable, but no more than that - if a Uke has ‘honourable’ marks or wounds from long and (normally) careful use then that’s a positive in my view. My respect for players is based on what they do and not what their Ukes look like. Who puts their rugged Ukes to the test? My suspicion is that only a tiny percentage of those who own say an Outdoor Uke actually use it in any circumstance that an ordinary cheap enough old laminate would be unsuitable for ... and that old laminate might sound better too. As well as durability factors it is also important to play something that has a ‘voice’ that is sufficiently good for you to enjoy; if you don’t enjoy using the instrument then its indestructibility has between limited and no practical value.