Mainland Red Cedar Tenor review

Well I guess if you took it out in the bright sunlight it would look closer to Re Will's picture. I went to mainland's shop to pick out my uke. All the wood combinations look and sound great. I would say the mahogany and red cedar are about the same in darkness but the mahogany looks brown and the cedar looks reddish. The Mango is also beautiful.
 
Thanks, I'm thinking of getting one but the red pics look too similar to my Mahogany.
...sorry to belabor the point, so how does the actual color compare to this pic posted earlier by RevWill?
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I would say its darker than that pic by revwill Paul, but the light does make a difference as well, sorry i can't be of more help m8, the thing with this uke is the contrast between the front sides and back it is a real head turner, honest Paul if you buy one you won't be disappointed its a stunner
 
My red cedar tenor just arrived today. First thing that struck me, was that the fit and finish is not very good. There are lumps in the rope binding and rosette that are very noticeable, and drips/cracks in the finish that you can see from far away. If you are looking for something that is cosmetically perfect then you should look elsewhere.

That being said, the sound coming out of this thing is incredible! Even with the stock strings that feel sticky and not fun to play with at all (Im swapping them out tonight), the uke is loud and has amazing tone and sustain the whole way up the neck. I dont regret the purchase at all because I dont care about cosmetics like that when I buy a uke at this price point I just mentioned it because some might care about that. To me, sound is all that matters and this uke does not disappoint. So glad I made the purchase!
 
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I think that's common with these ukes because the top of mine resembles a potato chip when I look at it in the right light.
I think the thin cedar top is just going to look that way.
But the tone more than makes up for it. I will never let mine go!
 
....My red cedar tenor just arrived today. First thing that struck me, was that the fit and finish is not very good. There are limps in the rope binding and rosette that are very noticeable, and drips in the finish that you can see from far away. If you are looking for something that is cosmetically perfect then you should look elsewhere......

THat's a shame - I know that Mike sells his 'cosmetic blemished' ukes at a very reasonable discount - as he checks them thoroughly before going out ..... have you advised him of these 'defects' (assuming you paid full price for a 'No Blemished' uke?)

So glad you like the sound tho!

Roberta
 
....My red cedar tenor just arrived today. First thing that struck me, was that the fit and finish is not very good. There are limps in the rope binding and rosette that are very noticeable, and drips in the finish that you can see from far away. If you are looking for something that is cosmetically perfect then you should look elsewhere......

THat's a shame - I know that Mike sells his 'cosmetic blemished' ukes at a very reasonable discount - as he checks them thoroughly before going out ..... have you advised him of these 'defects' (assuming you paid full price for a 'No Blemished' uke?)


Roberta

Did you get it second hand? Could the 1st owner have not disclosed that it was a factory 2nd?
These cosmetic issues do sound pretty bad, I hope you didn't get it new at full price.
 
I got it from Sylvan music brand new so I definitely paid full price :( . I for sure would never have picked this one out of the bunch if there was a choice between a few of them, but it sounds great so Im not too worried. I do think that this would have been a factory second no question. Must have slipped through the cracks. Ill try to post pics if I have time later.
 
If you bought it new, sight unseen & untested - I would contact Sylvan Music & tell them of your observations & disappointment, including photos to them, showing the drips and rope & rosette issues. Better still, put it in an email with the pics - and suggest that they either replace it with a 100% perfect one, or that you would accept a reasonable reduction in the price, and keep it - similar to what Mike offers on cosmetic blemished ukes - up to 20%.

Roberta
 
Its a god suggestion, but real music shops with a real physical storefront presence (mega stores like guitar center excluded) could probably use the money more than I could. No biggie, it sounds great and since its already a blem Ill have no reason to baby it and be worried about every single scratch. This is my favorite sounding uke ever. Man I love cedar.
 
I just got a mahogany special also had some cosmetic problems. I bought it because everyone here really praise these ukes. Like the poster above It sounds ok so rather than pay shipping back and forth etc (mike offered to swap it) I decided to keep it. Its not glaring problems but more than I expected givin the rep. Wonder if the factory is maybe slipping? I bought it as my drag around uke anyway so now I can relax I guess that first opps won't hurt as bad,
 
there are cosmetic problems with mine also but the sweet sound more than makes up for them and they add to the character of the instrument
 
I am considering a Mainland Cedar Tenor for a drag arou d as well.

Now are you Ukes holding up?

Do you still love them?
 
I received today Mainland Redcedar/Rosewood Tenor Ukulele. Returning it to the seller. I bought it after Mike (the Founder) instantly confirmed via Email that width at the nut is 37 millimetre. Unfortunately, it is 35 mm; nut width itself is at most 35.5 mm; the ukulele has dings and imperfections on it (as expected? My Islander didn't have any!)

So that I am returning it instantly. Save money for Kanilea!

P.S. BTW rope binding does not look ugly. But sustain and resonance? Twice less than my twice cheaper Enya M6!!!
 
I played a bunch of concert and Tenor Mainland (all cedar tops), and 4 of 5 had a buzz at the saddle when playing the C string hard. Other than that, they sounded great. But I feared that buzz would be tough to fix, and I couldn't live with it... This is looking like a common issue.
 
Congrats on your Mainland.
I just emailed Mike Hater about a tenor for my wife.
The scratches will buff out. 3 of my friends own Mainlands, and neither have a scratch.
They don't let other people play them.
 
Its a god suggestion, but real music shops with a real physical storefront presence (mega stores like guitar center excluded) could probably use the money more than I could. No biggie, it sounds great and since its already a blem Ill have no reason to baby it and be worried about every single scratch. This is my favorite sounding uke ever. Man I love cedar.
I know this is an old thread, but I just love your attitude on this.
 
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