Wonky wrist needs thicker neck.......

NOTLguy

NOTLguy

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Due to an old hand injury ( the left one ), I have found that the neck on my Gold Tone Banjolele is more comfortable for me to play than my Lanikai concert ukulele. The banjo ukulele neck is 23mm thick very near the nut while the Lanikai is 18-19mm thick at the same place. The Gold Tone neck is more rounded while the Lanikai is more of an arc shape. This roundness continues up the neck on the banjo uke and the neck thickness increases towards the body of the instrument. Mid neck it is 24 mm on the Banjo uke and 20 mm on the Lanikai. At the twelfth fret it is 26 mm on the banjo uke and 23 mm at the tenth fret on the lanikai. At this point, the Lanikai thickens into the heel where the twelfth fret is located. It is much easier for me to form bar chords etc with the thicker neck.

I am contemplating my next ukulele purchase and would like to find a thicker neck for this reason. It occurred to me that as the tuners on slotted head ukulekles are mounted sideways, the head stock is much thicker and that the transition of the head to the neck and therefore neck thickness might be thicker as well.

It would be appreciated if anyone with a slotted head Pono or Lanikai uke could perhaps measure the neck thickness near the nut, mid-neck and at the twelfth fret and post it for me? Any help would be appreciated.

Regards,
Bill
 
Oscar Schmidt makes a wide neck uke - OU6W = 1 3/4" I think. Not loud, but sounds sweet with the right strings, especially plugged in.
 
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Thanks for your replies.

It is thickness (measured from the top of the fret board to the underside of the neck ) rather than width that concerns me. How thick are Gretsch and Oscar Schmidt necks?

Regards,
Bill
 
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Sonomajazz had a nice tenor koa Keilli for sale a while ago...they have a chunky neck. You might wanna PM him...I think he still has it
 
My first thought was the slotted head also, but measuring my Lanikai monkeypod tenor, the neck is only thicker up to about the first fret (I can measure it, but it would be fairly meaningless since the thickness rapidly tapers up to the head thickness at the 0-1 fret. At the 5th fret, the neck and fretboard thickness is 18.2mm, and in the middle of the nut-first fret, it's 19.5. The twelfth fret isn't really measurable, as the neck is again tapering quickly up to the body thickness.

The Lanikai LM-TCA (not a slotted headstock) is a bit thicker, 20.2 near the nut, and 22 at the 10th fret, tapering slowly upward to fret 12, then rapidly after that. I don't know if that's enough to be of any help, or if a tenor even interests you, but I do like that uke...it's a cutaway solid mahogany with a pickup (controls inside the sound hole) with a nice tone and good intonation, and Butler Music has, or had them for a very good price on ebay.

At any rate, apparently the slotted headstock alone doesn't do much for making it thicker except around the first fret.
 
Thanks Flyinby. I wondered if the slotted headstock would make any difference but it appears not by much. I like the monkeypod Lanikai ukes and they are definitely on my list to consider.

Thanks for the input,
Regards,
Bill
 
NOTLguy said:
Thanks for your replies.

It is thickness (measured from the top of the fret board to the underside of the neck ) rather than width that concerns me. How thick are Gretsch and Oscar Schmidt necks?

Regards,
Bill
Click to expand...

Hi, Bill ~ I totally know what you mean about this type of measurement -- I needed this measurement, too, when I was shopping for a new uke as I had the (sort of) same problem as you -- however, my situation was the opposite -- I needed a slimmer neck to deal with my wrist issues. I used to have a Bruko soprano and Pohaku tenor which, to me, had chunky/thick necks.

If I understand what you're talking about, here -- this measurement would happen like this -- at the nut, I measured with a measuring tape from flush with the top of the fretboard on the A string side, and then passed the measuring tape under the neck of the uke (again, right at the nut), up flush to the other side with the G string side of the fretboard.)

I don't recall the exact measurements with my Pohaku and Bruko, however.

I hope you find the right uke that fits your wrist -- believe me, I know how hard it is! And it's VERY important to have proper comfort while playing so we don't hurt ourselves and then no longer be able to play. Ack, that would be awful!

Best of luck to you in your search! :)
 
I prefer a chunky neck as well. Pono has a little beefier neck than others, but for me my Covered Bridge is the most comfortable. 1,5" nut with a nice deep profile.
 
Hochapeafarm said:
Hi, Bill ~ I totally know what you mean about this type of measurement -- I needed this measurement, too, when I was shopping for a new uke as I had the (sort of) same problem as you -- however, my situation was the opposite -- I needed a slimmer neck to deal with my wrist issues. I used to have a Bruko soprano and Pohaku tenor which, to me, had chunky/thick necks.

If I understand what you're talking about, here -- this measurement would happen like this -- at the nut, I measured with a measuring tape from flush with the top of the fretboard on the A string side, and then passed the measuring tape under the neck of the uke (again, right at the nut), up flush to the other side with the G string side of the fretboard.)

I don't recall the exact measurements with my Pohaku and Bruko, however.

I hope you find the right uke that fits your wrist -- believe me, I know how hard it is! And it's VERY important to have proper comfort while playing so we don't hurt ourselves and then no longer be able to play. Ack, that would be awful!

Best of luck to you in your search! :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. You understand what I am looking for and the reason why. I really enjoyed your videos on You Tube. :)

Regards,
Bill
 
Chiming in kind of late here, but I feel your pain on the thin neck issue (no pun intended). I have carpel tunnel in both hands working with computers for almost 20-years. I had two Lanikai ukes that I absolutely loved, but I ended up giving one away and selling the other as after two songs, my left hand would either go numb, or I'd have sharp pains. One brand I've not had any issue with, as already pointed out, is Oscar Schmidt. I can play one of those all day. And, if you're into fingerpicking, the string spacing is a bit wider, so it's nice for that. Also, I've found that anything made by Harmony USA (vintage) is easy on my hands as well. I own four Harmony ukes and two Oscar Schmidts, and can play any and all of them for extended periods of time without issue.

Dan
 
I have tried every uke at The Ukulele Site(aka HMS) and I think the Pono's have the kind of neck you are looking for...
 
NOTLguy said:
Due to an old hand injury ( the left one ), I have found that the neck on my Gold Tone Banjolele is more comfortable for me to play than my Lanikai concert ukulele. The banjo ukulele neck is 23mm thick very near the nut while the Lanikai is 18-19mm thick at the same place. The Gold Tone neck is more rounded while the Lanikai is more of an arc shape. This roundness continues up the neck on the banjo uke and the neck thickness increases towards the body of the instrument. Mid neck it is 24 mm on the Banjo uke and 20 mm on the Lanikai. At the twelfth fret it is 26 mm on the banjo uke and 23 mm at the tenth fret on the lanikai. At this point, the Lanikai thickens into the heel where the twelfth fret is located. It is much easier for me to form bar chords etc with the thicker neck.
Aloha Bill,
Have you thought of neck width could be a factor too....check the width of your nuts... Ha Ha :)

I
Click to expand...
 
I have carpal tunnel also after 30 years of bad computer work station ergonomics and find that my Compass Rose tenor's 13/16" thick neck (at the nut) is the least painful to play.
 
hawaii 50 said:
I have tried every uke at The Ukulele Site(aka HMS) and I think the Pono's have the kind of neck you are looking for...
Click to expand...
+1

I haven't tried every uke at The Ukulele Site(aka HMS) and I think the Pono's have the kind of neck you are looking for...
 
NOTLguy said:
Thanks for your reply. You understand what I am looking for and the reason why. I really enjoyed your videos on You Tube. :)

Regards,
Bill
Click to expand...

Thanks so much, Bill -- it's so awesome to hear your positive feedback re: my 'Tube videos -- it means a lot to me -- thanks, again, :)

To your original post -- I look forward to hearing what uke you find which fits the...Bill! ;-) (Sorry, had to say it -- do you get that all the time?) I hope you love your new uke and can play pain free -- I never thought I'd find one...but, perseverance, along with lots of trail and error finally paid off for me.

Best wishes to you! :)
 
sory to tag on to your thread... but, I see you have the Martin T1K... it's on my short list - how is the nut/neck width on that? I am not yet wonky, but have large hands...
Thx, BP

Hochapeafarm said:
Thanks so much, Bill -- it's so awesome to hear your positive feedback re: my 'Tube videos -- it means a lot to me -- thanks, again, :)

To your original post -- I look forward to hearing what uke you find which fits the...Bill! ;-) (Sorry, had to say it -- do you get that all the time?) I hope you love your new uke and can play pain free -- I never thought I'd find one...but, perseverance, along with lots of trail and error finally paid off for me.

Best wishes to you! :)
Click to expand...
 
Tenor sized Pono's have Beefier necks and Islander uke's have Wider necks due to the wider Nut slot.






.
 
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