1.5 inch neck.

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I'm playing ukuleles with a 1 3/8 inch neck. I have pretty big hands, but there are no chords that I just can't play. If I were to buy a ukulele with a 1.5 inch neck, would I even notice the difference?
 
I'm playing ukuleles with a 1 3/8 inch neck. I have pretty big hands, but there are no chords that I just can't play. If I were to buy a ukulele with a 1.5 inch neck, would I even notice the difference?

Forgive me for being pedantic, but are you talking about NUT width (as it seems from you numbers) or NECK width as in front of fretboard to the back of the neck where your thumb goes?

If NUT width is the question, as a beginner I had trouble with nut width less than 1 3/8", especially with the D Maj chord if played 2220 stacking 3 fingers. I know some folks 'cheat' and use the thumb, but refuse to do that, and instead play a D Maj chord as 2225, which is essentially a barre of the C Maj chord up 2 frets.

I don't ever plan to play the D Maj chord as 2220 since my fingers are too fat, even on tenor, and the same fingering on baritone with a 1.5" nut is more comfortable, but still awkward.

Now after 4 yrs of uking, I have no issue even with a 34mm nut on a soprano, but the 30mm nut on a mando family instrument, or on a tenor guitar gives me fits.

Also, I find that a nut much wider than the limit of about 1.6", for only 4 strings seems like a wide span to me, and that comes from having converted several 6-string guitars to 4-string instruments that had a 1.67" or 1 11/16" nut, it's just too wide for 4 strings to me, and I may be looking at making a 5-string single course mandola out of a 22" scale guitar and string and tune it in fifths FCGDA, which will give a string-to-string spacing closer to a classical guitar, which is where I spent most of my time playing before taking up the uke...

Now if you are taking about neck thickness front-to-back, just ignore me, as I may in fact be an idiot! :)
 
I'm comfortable with all the necks on all my instruments and don't have a big preference but out of curiosity, I just took a rough measurement. My smallest is my Pono PC Bari at 1 6/16". Next is the LoPrinzi sop at 1 7/16" and largest is a Creedy Bari (small Appalachian luthier) at 1 9/16". I was surprised; I thought the Pono would have been larger.
 
I am talking width at the nut. I have no problems crowding my fingers between the frets as it is. I think that my concerns are the difference in reach for those chords that require the span of three or four frets, and barring chords. I play bar chords quite often.
 
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I prefer 1.5 inch at the nut. While it doesn't seem like much, it does make a difference if you have big hands.
 
I'm comfortable with all the necks on all my instruments and don't have a big preference but out of curiosity, I just took a rough measurement. My smallest is my Pono PC Bari at 1 6/16". Next is the LoPrinzi sop at 1 7/16" and largest is a Creedy Bari (small Appalachian luthier) at 1 9/16". I was surprised; I thought the Pono would have been larger.

I thought that the standard was 1 3/8" and 1 1 /2" , so that is what I'm dealing with. But also, I don't play baritone, so if they are different, which would not surprise me, it still won't affect my purchase.
 
My only 1.5" is a baritone, but I did feel more comfortable on it than I had been on my concerts & tenors, I just find the actual 20.125" scale not very much to my liking, my other bari is only 19.75" scale & that is more comfortable for me. Likely I would just get used to the scale if I gave it more time.
Anyway, getting back to the point at hand, yes, I did find the wider neck more comfortable.
 
Having the opposite problem (small hands, short fingers) I definitely notice a difference - for my small hands, ukes with a 1 3/8" nut are just more manageable than those with a 1.5" one. But other contributing factors are string spacing, as ubulele mentioned, and also neck thickness. An example that takes all of this into account are LoPrinzi ukes - they have the wider nut, but a super slim neck profile, yet my pinky can't reach the 4th string comfortably on their soprano, which I attribute to string spacing. But a friend with much larger hands and much longer fingers found that particular uke really easy to play, even in a soprano size.
 
I'm playing ukuleles with a 1 3/8 inch neck. I have pretty big hands, but there are no chords that I just can't play. If I were to buy a ukulele with a 1.5 inch neck, would I even notice the difference?

It's one of those situations where people just have different experiences. Neck or rather nut width and string spacing are linked but only in so far as the width of nut limits string spacing. My own experience is that wider string spacing (30 mm over the strings for me now as opposed to 28-27 mm) has definitely allowed me to play far more and more easily; and I do notice the difference when I go back to a 'standard' Uke. If you would like a wider neck (1-1/2") you will likely struggle to find one, I'm sure that there have been posts in the past on their availability and one of my Ukes (with a wide neck) is an Islander - relatively expensive in the UK but much better priced in the USA.

IMHO Kiwaya make amongst the very best of Ukes and, as I recall, they have wider than standard nuts and string spacing - as do several other high end products, draw your own conclusions. If wider spaced strings is what you're after then the Fluke Ukes have them too and it's sometimes possible to find a 38mm nut, trim it to size, and fit it to a narrower neck. I did that to one of my Sopranos (Kala KA-P) and just love how the wider spaced strings work for me on the Soprano scale, YMMV.

Edit. Peavey's Concert Uke (Composer or Jack Daniels) is a great laminate Uke at a reasonable price, it has wide space strings and I have played a pal's - he really hammers out good stuff on it. Aria entry level laminate Soprano and Concert Ukes have wide nuts, I played a friend's Concert model and think that they're a very affordable instrument that can work just fine for the club player.
 
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Kiwaya make amongst the very best of Ukes and they have wider than standard nuts and string spacing, as do several other high end products - draw your own conclusions.

I've seen a couple others state this before and what I find curious is that my Kiwayas (KTS-5 and KTC-2) both have standard 1 3/8" nuts. I'm wondering if the Kiwayas with larger than standard nuts are laminates? I have a Famous (made by Kiwaya) laminate and it does indeed have a 1.5" nut (and as such, is a bit harder for me to play).

And the Fluke is a perfect example of a uke with a wider nut, wider string spacing, and chunky neck that I find near impossible to play.
 
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I'm not necessarily looking for wider string spacing. I'm looking at an Islander actually. In fact, I'm wondering if I should look at something else for that reason. I've noticed that most manufacturers do not include that in their specs. I was also looking on line at an Ohana. I can't tell from the picture how wide it is, but it is not listed in the specs.
 
I'm not necessarily looking for wider string spacing. I'm looking at an Islander actually. In fact, I'm wondering if I should look at something else for that reason. I've noticed that most manufacturers do not include that in their specs. I was also looking on line at an Ohana. I can't tell from the picture how wide it is, but it is not listed in the specs.

IIRC, in one of her videos on YT, Mim has said that she is the largest worldwide dealer for Ohana.

Maybe worth getting in touch with her...she can tell you...

or just email or PM Ken Middleton on UU, as both are close with Ohana

Also, I know that Oscar Schmidt has a line of ukes specifically with a 1.5" nut, so maybe worth checking them out: http://www.oscarschmidt.com/products/ukes/ I think they call it the 'Comfort Series'...
 
I'm not necessarily looking for wider string spacing. I'm looking at an Islander actually. In fact, I'm wondering if I should look at something else for that reason. I've noticed that most manufacturers do not include that in their specs. I was also looking on line at an Ohana. I can't tell from the picture how wide it is, but it is not listed in the specs.

Are you looking at a concert or a tenor? I have two concerts (Teton laminate & Bonanza HPL) that both have 1 3/8 nuts. I recently acquired an Islander tenor with the 1 1/2 nut. There are pros and cons to each for me, and I'm trying to figure this out myself in the event that I want to replace my Teton concert with something else. I can definitely play some chords, like the Dmaj mentioned in an earlier post much easier and cleaner on the wider tenor. However, the same chords feel different between my Teton and my Bonanza concerts. The Teton has Aquilla strings and the Bonanza has fluoro strings. The Bonanza with fluoro strings seem easier. I have medium to large hands for a gal, but stubby/chubby fingers. I struggle mightily with barre chords. At this point, I'm too new at playing (since April) and I've only had the tenor a few weeks. I can't say 100% which size I like best. I do know that the size of a concert feels the best to me overall. Choosing between a traditional concert and something like a Kala Elite with the 1.5 nut is what I'll have to decide if I eventually get another Concert uke.
 
...... And the Fluke is a perfect example of a uke with a wider nut, wider string spacing, and chunky neck that I find near impossible to play.

It seems to me that we, perhaps foolishly, expect one size of Uke to fit all rather than just accepting that hands of different shape and size need different things to accommodate them. We wouldn't expect to all fit the same size of gloves or shirts so why the same size of Ukes? I don't find the Flea at all chunky (the Fluke neck is a similar size) but have discovered other things about Fleas that don't suit me. We're all different, one of my club's lady players just loves her Flea and comments on how comfortable it is for her to use - she has many Ukes but assures me that her Flea would be the last one she sold.
 
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I'm not necessarily looking for wider string spacing. I'm looking at an Islander actually. In fact, I'm wondering if I should look at something else for that reason. I've noticed that most manufacturers do not include that in their specs. I was also looking on line at an Ohana. I can't tell from the picture how wide it is, but it is not listed in the specs.

Rolli.......I stay way from 1-1/2" nut width like the plague on tenors and baritones, my uke size of choice.. I have short fingers and my fretting hand is screwed up, so just the extra width makes it extra tough. But on a soprano or super soprano I prefer the extra room the 1-1/2" width provides and I own two super sopranos with that width and it was a big help, probably because I don't play soprano much and it feels cramped.
 
I do notice that while my nut width varies from small to fairly wide, my neck profile is invariably slender. That is probably why I am not bothered by the wider necks.
 
I thought I would like it, but it's noticeable even going from a Fluke Concert up to a Fluke Tenor. The Tenor is slightly wider and it messes with my brain/ finger tendencies. I prefer the narrower one on the Concert, but I do have smaller hands
 
I'll be at the local uke jam this coming Saturday, and I'll see if anyone has a Kala Elite concert that I can strum for a few minutes. There were about 30-40 people at the jam last month, so maybe I'll get lucky. Maybe someone will even have a Loprinzi?????

A new concert uke would be a Christmas present to myself, so no huge rush. However, I think I've contracted UAS in just 4 short months of playing, so who knows. I was saving up for a tenor when one got dropped in my lap, so I still have that money burning a hole in my pocket :)
 
I thought I would like it, but it's noticeable even going from a Fluke Concert up to a Fluke Tenor. The Tenor is slightly wider and it messes with my brain/ finger tendencies. I prefer the narrower one on the Concert, but I do have smaller hands

I have both concert and tenor Fleas, and concert and tenor Flukes, and have not noticed any difference in the neck or nut width.

String spacing 'seems' the same to me, but I have not measured it yet, but will and report back.

MFC says that the concerts are a 1.4" nut and tenors are 1.45" nut. I guess some folks are more sensitive to a 0.05" difference in width.

see the specs here: http://www.magicfluke.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=1830
 
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