Char Guitars

My friend Mike asked me if I could make him a uke that he could cart around places and practice with out being heard.Hes called it His ACME uke. A Mi Si pickup was installed for the times when He wants to be heard, as well as a circuit to plug in a headphone when He wants to be in”silent mode”. It also has an onboard tuner. This is the design he He sent me. It has a decidedly Danish vibe to it so Teak seemed to be a good choice for the body. The electronics were a bit of a challenge as I had to figure out how to integrate all the components together. I had to get some help with that one.And fitting all that stuff into the cavity was also a challange. Aside from that everything went smoothly. Got a custom knob from my friend Dave King who is a fabulous bass builder and  happens to make custom knobs on the side.I figure its the one piece of jewelry on it so I might as well pick something cool.Fret board is Ebony as well as the headstock  and bridge.For more photos click here.

Since we are on the topic of Montgomry Wards coincidentally I got in this Reso uke made for  Wards by the Regal Company during the period when they were license to make Dobros for the Dobro company. This uke has the “spider” style  cone and is very cute. Not as punchy as the National style reso ukes but it has a very sweet sound.Mor photos click here.

Montgomery Wards, like Sears, was another catalogue company who sold thousands of household products many manufactured with their brand name. Also, like Sears, musical instruments were some of their offerings. This is a splendid example made by Washburn for Montgomery Wards. Spruce top, ladder braced, Brazilian rosewood, with a fair amount of “bling”. We installed a trussrod, reset neck,refret, repro bridge. One of the nice ones. For more photos click here.