Miscellaneous questions about vintage Kumalae koa uke

[moonlessbag]

Hi all, I am soon to be the owner of this vintage Kumalae ukulele (it's been bought and put aside as a birthday present for me). It's had a couple of obvious repairs made (one to the headstock and another to the bridge), but overall it's in pretty good nick for its age. I'd like to have it as a playable instrument, rather than a decorative piece. I have some questions.

Vintage Kumala soprano Ukulele | Reverb Australia

Early to mid 1900's Vintage Kumala soprano Ukulele made in Hawaii by one of the first popular uke makers who made instruments for the Hawaiian family. In stunning condition for age sounds really sweet and plays well for an instrument of its age.We ship worldwide! Contact us for a quote

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1. This ukulele has been in Melbourne (where I am) for a while and doesn't show any signs of cracking. Is humidifying and acclimating it something I need to worry about? I don't think Melbourne is particularly dry and, as I say, this instrument has been here for a while. Still, I want to be kind to it.

2. Does anyone have any tips for getting dust out of ukuleles? This one looks like I emptied my vacuum bag inside it And I don't want to point my Dyson inside it as I suspect that would quickly end up with a Dyson full of koa shards.

3. The delicate question of repairs and alterations! This ukulele is extremely wonky and asymmetrical, as is apparently the case with lots of handmake Hawaiian ukes of its vintage. Its action is also so high that a truck could drive under the strings. This means that it is very sharp up the neck - almost a half step up by the twelfth fret. Are there any options for addressing this, other than a new bridge? I don't want to mess with it too much and lose a connection to the history of the instrument. But given that it's already had a few repairs made (such as the very delicate solution someone made to a corner missing from the bridge, about which I shall say more below...), I don't know that I need to treat it as an untouchable thing. I would of course need to find a luthier for this - any suggestions about people who are good in Melbourne would be very helpful.

4. There's currently a screw driven up through the bridge, which is where the A string is affixed (a corner has broken off the bridge, so without the screw nothing would be there to hold the A string on). Could this cause longterm problems?

5. On the inside of the body is a handwritten number in pencil, "3-8". Has anyone encountered this numbering in Kumalae ukes before? Could this provide a clue as to when the uke was made?

Thank you! Phew, that's a lot of questions. I'm very excited about my new ukulele, enthusiasm for which has undoubtedly been fueled by my hanging around UU

 

[moonlessbag]

Look, it's a picture! It cleverly attracts attention back to this post, increasing the odds that someone might be able to answer one or two of my questions

 

[kkimura]

On number (2), pour some dry un-cooked rice into the sound hole, shake gently and empty. Repeat as required.

 

[rustydusty]

On number (2), pour some dry un-cooked rice into the sound hole, shake gently and empty. Repeat as required.

Plus, it gives the rice extra fiber when you cook it!

 

[moonlessbag]

Plus, it gives the rice extra fiber when you cook it!

I felt an involuntary visceral shudder at the suggestion of eating these decades' worth of grime

 

[moonlessbag]

Maybe I can keep some of the dust and carbon date it - might shed some light on the precise date of the uke's construction

 

[kkimura]

Maybe I can keep some of the dust and carbon date it - might shed some light on the precise date of the uke's construction

And where the uke has been all these years.

 

[moonlessbag]

"It's says it's been in a rice field...?"

 

[EDW]

You can read about various repairs that Jake has done to similar instruments. Besides the Kumalae, there are countless other on his site if you want to do a deep dive

Museum: Kumalae

Ukuleles 1910s Bergstrom/Ditson flamed koa soprano 1920s flamed koa soprano 1920s flamed koa #2 1920s flamed koa #3 1920s flamed koa #...

jakewildwood.blogspot.com

 

[ProfChris]

I have a similar Kumalae, but a style A. I think yours is style B. The pencil numbers inside mean nothing known - mine has 1929a. So dating is always "before 1940", when the factory burned down.

Humidity: probably OK where you are except for winter central heating. Watch out for that drying the air too much. With radiators, don't store it near one!

On the bridge question, you seem to have an original bridge. I'd remove the screw and splice in a scrap of koa to fix the A slot. But the action is more difficult - these were made with high action and approximate intonation anyway. Three possible solutions:

A. Make a bridge with a lower saddle.

B. Shave down that bridge.

In both cases, the saddle position could be moved towards the tail if needed.

C. Keep this bridge (repaired) and slip the back to correct for the body distortion which has caused the high action.

If it were my uke I'd go for B if I could, as the least invasive option.

 

[moonlessbag]

Thanks!

Given that I have no skills with woodworking beyond an ability to hold a hammer, it sounds like I might need to track down a luthier. I've had a quick google of luthiers in Melbourne who work with ukuleles but I couldn't find much. Does anyone have a recommendation?

 

[moonlessbag]

I have a similar Kumalae, but a style A. I think yours is style B. The pencil numbers inside mean nothing known - mine has 1929a. So dating is always "before 1940", when the factory burned down.

Humidity: probably OK where you are except for winter central heating. Watch out for that drying the air too much. With radiators, don't store it near one!

On the bridge question, you seem to have an original bridge. I'd remove the screw and splice in a scrap of koa to fix the A slot. But the action is more difficult - these were made with high action and approximate intonation anyway. Three possible solutions:

A. Make a bridge with a lower saddle.

B. Shave down that bridge.

In both cases, the saddle position could be moved towards the tail if needed.

C. Keep this bridge (repaired) and slip the back to correct for the body distortion which has caused the high action.

If it were my uke I'd go for B if I could, as the least invasive option.

I think you're right - mine looks like a Style B, based on where the rope binding is. A little snippet of info I came across somewhere suggests that the penciled numbers inside may have been used in the Kumalae workshop to designate which ukulele tops went with which bottoms.

One more question - may I ask what strings you have found work on yours? I know strings are a very personal thing but I would be interested all the same.