Char Guitars

This has got to be the Mother of All Cocolele’s! Over the top as far as cocolele ukes go.If anyone has any info on this please let me know. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve seen alot of ukes. Its obvious they were going after a turtle shell look for the back with the coconut shells. The scale length is almost tenor. Neck is curly Koa . Im not sure what the top is but its not Koa. It might be Mango or Monkey Pod. I have no idea who made it and there’s no label. The only possible identifying mark is an arrow head etched on the headstock. Pretty great collectors piece.Ill post more photos later as take it apart for restoration.For more photos click here.

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.

My customer, Quico, who has a love for the work of the great 19th century Italian guitar builder Louis Panormo, asked me if I could build him a 5 string tenor uke that had the  look of a Panormo guitar. Always being up for something challenging, and interesting as well, ( I am also a great fan of romantic period guitars) I talked to my friend John Doan (pictured below)  whose circa 1810 Panormo I had in my shop at one time. I asked Him if I could borrow it for a bit of poking and prodding.He let me measure it and take lots of photos.

Quico also wanted to have installed Ruck style sound ports. The back and sides are Brazilian rosewood and the top is red spruce. I used Mastodon for the nut and saddle and the bridge pins are vintage ones I got somewhere along the road. They just seemed to fit (no pun intended).The bindings and rosette are super curly Cuban Mahogany. This uke has a really amazing sound.It doesnt sound like your typical uke. It got volume  but has a very balanced sweet tone with exceptional highs that dont sound clipped but have some sustain. A very fun project. Quico suggested that I might expand the idea to make a Terz guitar. It’s a thought. More photos click here.