Is there anything Moore Bettah than this uke?

I have been privileged enough to have dealt with one of the finest craftsman (if not THE!) and purveyor of ukuleles, Mr. Chuck Moore...Mr MooreBettah himself!!!

When I found MooreBettahUkes I was immediately in awe. I was inspired and infatuated with his work. I stumbled across his site soon after I had my Pineapple Sunday in the works. When I saw the Pineapple Sunday for the first time...I thought..."MUST HAVE THIS UKE!!!"
When I found Chuck's site soon after I thought the very same thing.

I began emailing Chuck and complimenting his work AKA drooling over it and we began to talk about all things ukulele. I was not in the position to buy one from him at that time. As soon as I was...my order was placed and I was in line! In between that we had a great dialogue going but I began to feel guilty chewing his ear off when he had masterpieces to create.
He suggested I join the fray here (even though I have lurked here for years now). So, I did...and you have him to thank or send hate mail for my being here. lol

If you have read and kept up with this section of UU, you know that Chuck knows his stuff and is always posting friendly and helpful advice for builders and enthusiasts alike.

Well, I am proud to bring you the MooreBettahUke from start to finish...The Spoonah-lele!!!!!!!!
On with the show:

When it was time for Chuck to begin building my uke, he sent me a choice of koa woods ranging from AA - AAAAA.
Being the UAS inflicted soul that I am, I chose the AAAAA koa wood below:




Let me first say that we had discussed what I wanted in an ukulele in great detail. I didn't want to go all out flashy. I wanted something that would make jaws drop and play incredible. If you have seen his work than you know he accomplishes this with every uke he builds. The customer/luthier relationship (in this case) is a joint collaboration. Chuck being as experienced as he is knows what can and can not be done...as should any good luthier.
Not all of my wants would work with Chuck's vision for the ukulele. Again, it is a collaboration. The luthier knows what will and won't work and should be allowed to have a good deal of freedom to hone his/her craft. Chuck is an artist and trusting him was not a problem.

Continuing on...


Soon after I chose my AAAAA koa wood for my ukulele, he sent the some progress pics below:





The rosette is abalone with B/W/B. The sound hole is bound in curly koa.

Do I even have to say how completely wowed I was?

I refrained from bogging Chuck down with a million questions...although I had plenty! I figured it was best just to let him work his magic and save the questions until later....unless of course I had a problem with something...which I didn't.

I was amazed at the rate of progression. Soon after he sent me these pics these followed:

As you can see, this uke had already taken on life.
Here you can see the channels cut for the binding.




Here you can see the bracing on both the top and back sides of the ukulele. The darker "strip" you see is for the MISI pickup.




Here is a shot of the uke in place. Take notice of the neck. It is made out of Spanish Cedar which Chuck says is the best for a stringed instrument. You can see the channel that was routed out for the carbon reinforcement rod which would be going in.

It was hard not to think about this ukulele while it was being built. However, I did my best not to. I just kept thinking "Chuck's building an ukulele." I didn't obsess that he was building MY ukulele lol. That helped us BOTH out alot I am sure lol. Of course it didn't always work out. Oddly enough, just about when I couldn't hold back anymore and was about to contact Chuck for some updates, he sent them. It was almost like he could read my mind lol.

Here were the next batch of progress pics:

Notice the channels routed out on the top. This is for the abalone purfling:



You'll also notice in that pic that he had put some finish on it and had the curly koa bindings in place.
Here's a nice shot after he slappded some finish on the body:




Here's an alternate view. Notice that side sound port. It is bound in curly koa and B/W/B:

We were certainly getting close to the grand finale. Chuck continued to work tirelessly on the Spoonah-lele while I tried hard not to obsess about it lol.
His progress was quick and the quality...well...you can see it for yourself.

Now, while I did preface this thread with I didnt want much flash...I sure as hell wanted some!! lol
That brings us to one of Chuck's loves...inlay work!!!!
From our dialogue...which had gone on for months at this point...even before this uke was a definite go..Chuck had a good idea of who I was/am and what I wanted. Of course, I gave him a pretty good idea. Being the artist the he is, Chuck took my idea and came up with something that not only met my vision...he kicked it up a few notches!!!
See below:

Take notice of the neck. It is bound in curly koa and B/W/B. Oh yeah...it has a pretty awesome palm tree inlayed into it:




The headstock design is just amazing! You know a MooreBettahUke when you see one!!!




Just about when I was jonesing for another pic update...Chuck sent me an email with the subject header: "Ukulele"
Inside the email the body read: "three."
I had no idea what this meant. I emailed him back and told him. Hios follow up email read "TWO"
I realized we were at the countdown to the finale.

Well today was "ZERO!!!!!"

Here are the professionally shot finished pics taken by Chuck himself:



Take notice of the MISI pickup input and that gorgeous palm tree inlay!!! The entire body is bound with curly koa and B/W/B.

Some Moore shots of the finished MBU/Spoonah-lele!!!

Look at the beauty of the curly koa against that Spanish cedar neck! Oh yeah...that headstock inlay is real purdy too. The tuners are open geared Grovers:







Here is an astounding shot of the back. If you look at this carefully, you can see that it looks as if the neck has legs!!!! This was NO accident or incidental thing. Chuck carefully planned this out from when I chose this koa! AMAZING!!!




...and here she is!!! The Spoonah-lele!!!!




The flame on this thing is incredible. The curl of the wood is spectacular and Chuck is without a doubt AN ARTIST!!!!!!!!

I will be receiving this on Saturday and will post pics of me rolling around nekkid with it. lol.
Chuck tells me that this uke sound great.
He also states that "If I were to build a uke for myself, THIS ONE WOULD BE IT!" Furthermore he tells me he is quite proud of this uke and he is not shipping it off until Thursday because he has people coming over to see it. I guess he has been raving about it to his friends. THIS is HIGH praise from a luthier!

I hope that this thread can be of help to anyone who is considering having a custom ukulele made for them and what to expect. I also hope it drums up some good business for my buddy Chuck! The pics don't lie and if you need further evidence to help you decide who should build your first or next ukulele go to: www.moorebettahukes.com

These progress pics and my experience posted should help you understand the process of the luthier/client relationship and what to and NOT to expect. Be good to your luthier and he/she will be good to you!!!!

A HUGE thank you to Chuck Moore for building this one for me!!!

Here are the specs of the Spoonah-lele as per Chuck Moore:

Tenor, solid koa body AAAAA grade
Carbon reinforced Spanish cedar neck
Ebony fret board, headstock veneer and bridge Fourteen frets to the body, 19 frets total
Bound fret board with hidden fret tangs
Curly koa binding on body and headstock with B/W/B purflings
Interior bracing- Sitka spruce, Honduran mahogany and toon
Paua abalone top purfling
Double ring rosette and bridge decoration-paua abalone
Paua ab and MOP side and top fret position markers @ 3,5,7,10,12 (double) and 15th frets
Headstock, fret board and end graft inlays materials: Pau abalone, green abalone, cocobolo, koa, gold MOP, Tahitian black pearl shell, composite stone.
Curly koa heel cap
Mi-Si pickup with Baggs element
Grover open geared tuners
Micarta nut, bone saddle
Aquila strings
Nitro cellulose lacquer--glossy finish
Dimensions:
Overall length--27"
Lower bout width--8 3/4"
Upper bout width--6 5/8"
Body depth (widest point)--3 1/8"
Nut width--1 1/2"
String clearance above 12th fret-- <.090"
Birth place and heritage--Hawaiian
Blood type. Be positive

Im in love with that headstock. It's just beautiful, like the rest of the uke.. Congratulation with it.. It really is a piece of art

Either you or Chuck owe me a new keyboard. I've drooled all over mine.

Nice ukulele!!!! I got a Moore Bettah a couple of months ago and haven't been able to put it down. You will be very happy. Although mine is one of his 'Not so Basic' ukes the craftmanship is amazing and it sings beautifully. I reccomend to any and everyone that can afford one of his ukes to have him build one.

Great jumping jehosaphat. I'm speechless.

Incredible, masterful work from the man himself...and oh yeah, he's a nice guy with an office in a mango tree by an active volcano! Too cool. Great work Chuck...e.lo...

:bowdown::bowdown::bowdown:

Really amazing...thanks for sharing play her in good health!

Blue

The more I see works of art like this (and it really is)! The more I find to love about the little ukulele and especially this community...I am constantly inspired from every angle, and by every one of ya'll! I look forward to vids of this and all the other custom built art pieces in our fellow uker's hands! I can't imagine how beautiful these must sound...I am truly speechless...( and starting a christmas fund!)

Absolutely stunning! I can't tell if I like the curl of the koa or the design of the headstock more...

Wooooweeee, that's some sexy uke action - congrats!

You one lucky guy to own this ukulele. Wow!

Ugh. I am so ashamed of my building right now. My latest tenor looks like a mock up prior to starting out on a mold.

Really beautiful.

Just stuning - WOW.

The Master

When people comment on how nice my ukes look I tell them to look at Chuck's site. It sure gives us beginners a high mark to shoot for.
And I'm sure Chuck appreciates you not bugging him to much while he was working on this beauty, it takes time to achive perfection like this!

Chuck Moore is a true artist.

Spooner,
I have to confess, I've handled your uke. Dropped in on the Moore Bettah workshop this weekend and had the priveledge of seeing your uke, just about built, with my own eyes. Dude, I'm glad you gave praise where praise was due. I have been saying for a while that Mr. Moore and his little shop in Opihikao is one of Hawaii's best kept secrets when it comes to ukuleles, well, no longer a secret I guess huh?

The uke is simply amazing. The pictures say it all, I don' t need to say anymore except that seeing it in person is even better. Spooner, I know you will love this uke. I didn't get to play it, but can only imagine the sweet sound of this uke. In a few days, another UU member will be posting pics of his uke, I'll comment on that one since I was able to play it.

Chuck is definitely an artist and artist work best when you give them the freedom to pour their creative juices into their work. It takes a bit of trust, but in Moore's work, trust should never be an issue.

BTW, got my wood selected, now the wait, tic, toc, tic, toc.

Oh I need to tell you Spooner, the transmission on my car went out this morning and I won't be able to make it to the post office to ship your uke for another couple of weeks........Sorry about that.
One thing I wanted to clear up, the black bridge patch doesn't have anything to do with the pickup. It's something I learned from David Hurd (Ukuleles by Kawika) in Hilo who builds (or used to) a wonderful sounding ukulele. It's a bias ply carbon fiber sheet that is .030" thick, feathered at its' edges. It's extremely light and stiff for it's size and I've used it on all my ukes for the last year. I have great respect for lutherie tradition but at the same time I never shy away from trying something new.