2018 Pete Howlett; "Legacy," Solid Koa, Double Bout, Tenor. Always wanted a Howlett. I followed him on FaceBook for quite a while. Enjoyed his build blog. Great sense of humor in the face of adversity. And have only heard one at a ukulele festival. I liked it a lot. A bucket list tenor. You just don't see them for sale. I like the Revelator Pete developed, but not as much as his older double bout tenors. Then, one recently came up for sale in the UK.
Totally irrational purchase. I had decided to not acquire any more tenors until after I moved to Arizona. In fact, I vowed to divest a number of ukes and reduce my collection before I move. I had successfully resisted several excellent tenors that had come up for sale. Until, I saw this:
View attachment 145223
Original listing photo. Which does not do the instrument justice. I kept returning to the listing for two weeks. I asked the seller some questions. He wasn't keen to sell it to someone in the US. But if I paid the shipping and PayPal fees, he'd consider it.
I then asked for some additional photos. And some more questions. The exchange rate is very favorable right now for USD to GBP.
He sent me a link to it being played.
My resolve crumbled.
It's a great little tenor. With a thin-ish body, it has great projection. Bright for a koa body. It has a thin, D-shaped neck, and Pete's setup. With excellent intonation. It's a true player's ukulele. Totally lives up to my expectations.
Now, which of my "keepers" do I shed in order to make room for it?
