A few months ago I purchased a Rubin RT-301 Quilted Ash Solid Spruce Top Tenor ukulele and 15mm padded case. They arrived quickly to the US (10 days). My only issue was the nut was not level. My local music shop removed the nut and needed to file down a high spot on the neck under the nut. Now it is great and I love playing it. Also, the case had a strong chemical smell for 1-2 weeks, but I left the case open in the garage until the smell faded.
I have had a number of discussions with someone (name unknown) at Rubin Ukelele through email. I asked about their product plans since they do not have much for sale currently. I also made some product change suggestions that I think many customers would enjoy, like changing the preamp from the Belcat UK-2000 to the Belcat UK-300T with the integrated tuner, moving the cable jack up to the end of the body, etc. I mentioned to him that this forum has many good reviews of the Rubin Ukulele products. He has given me permission to post his responses to my questions on this forum, so here they are, note the date of these messages was Nov 21, 2014:
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From: rubin-ukulele - Amazon Marketplace <[e-mail address removed]>
To: Jay <[e-mail address removed]>
Sent: Friday, November 21, 2014 12:25 AM
Hi friend,
I am very glad to know so many people are interested in our products, also thanks for your help.
This is our plan:
1: zebrawood soprano with pickup (model no: rs-101) will be in stock within 15-30 days.
2: rosewood tenor with pickup (model no: rt-501) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
3: zebrawood high gloss finish thin body tenor with pickup (new model: rt-102e) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
4: spalted maple tenor with pickup (model no: rt-600) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
5: Exotic mahogany high gloss finish concert with pickup (model no: rc-402) will be in stock within 60-90 days.
6: solid spruce top + solid mahogany back/side tenor with pickup (new model: rt-302) will be in stock within 60-90 days.
7: 17" mahogany butterfly style pocket(Sopranino) ukulele (model no: rp-400) will be in stock within 45-60 days.
8: almost 15 new models will be available in 2015.
9: almost all rubin's models will be made to 4 sizes(sopranino, soprano, concert, tenor) in 2015 to make our customers have more choices.
Preamp is still UK-2000, but we will try UK-400T in some models in 2015.
About the electric instrument cable jack, we really have a plan to move it to the right position, but I don't know when.
Another news: all rubin's products will ship to the warehouse based in USA first, and then be sold to our U.S customers.
-------------------
I followed up his response by suggesting they use the UK-300T preamp/tuner instead of the UK-400T since it requires a simple hole for the cable jack. He replied by thanking me for pointing that out.
So, it looks like we have more ukulele models on the horizon from Rubin Ukulele. I look forward to seeing what they come up with. I am hoping for a solid Acacia Koa tenor with UK-300T preamp/tuner, and yes I did specifically ask him for that model. We will see if one becomes available.
Cheers,
Jay
I have had a number of discussions with someone (name unknown) at Rubin Ukelele through email. I asked about their product plans since they do not have much for sale currently. I also made some product change suggestions that I think many customers would enjoy, like changing the preamp from the Belcat UK-2000 to the Belcat UK-300T with the integrated tuner, moving the cable jack up to the end of the body, etc. I mentioned to him that this forum has many good reviews of the Rubin Ukulele products. He has given me permission to post his responses to my questions on this forum, so here they are, note the date of these messages was Nov 21, 2014:
-----------
From: rubin-ukulele - Amazon Marketplace <[e-mail address removed]>
To: Jay <[e-mail address removed]>
Sent: Friday, November 21, 2014 12:25 AM
Hi friend,
I am very glad to know so many people are interested in our products, also thanks for your help.
This is our plan:
1: zebrawood soprano with pickup (model no: rs-101) will be in stock within 15-30 days.
2: rosewood tenor with pickup (model no: rt-501) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
3: zebrawood high gloss finish thin body tenor with pickup (new model: rt-102e) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
4: spalted maple tenor with pickup (model no: rt-600) will be in stock within 30-45 days.
5: Exotic mahogany high gloss finish concert with pickup (model no: rc-402) will be in stock within 60-90 days.
6: solid spruce top + solid mahogany back/side tenor with pickup (new model: rt-302) will be in stock within 60-90 days.
7: 17" mahogany butterfly style pocket(Sopranino) ukulele (model no: rp-400) will be in stock within 45-60 days.
8: almost 15 new models will be available in 2015.
9: almost all rubin's models will be made to 4 sizes(sopranino, soprano, concert, tenor) in 2015 to make our customers have more choices.
Preamp is still UK-2000, but we will try UK-400T in some models in 2015.
About the electric instrument cable jack, we really have a plan to move it to the right position, but I don't know when.
Another news: all rubin's products will ship to the warehouse based in USA first, and then be sold to our U.S customers.
-------------------
I followed up his response by suggesting they use the UK-300T preamp/tuner instead of the UK-400T since it requires a simple hole for the cable jack. He replied by thanking me for pointing that out.
So, it looks like we have more ukulele models on the horizon from Rubin Ukulele. I look forward to seeing what they come up with. I am hoping for a solid Acacia Koa tenor with UK-300T preamp/tuner, and yes I did specifically ask him for that model. We will see if one becomes available.
Cheers,
Jay