“Sol's Custom” Shamel Ash and Bubinga
Tenor
Custom Build - Sold
Click on pictures to enlarge.
This ukulele was a custom built as a present from the client to her friend.
If you every plan to get a ukulele as a gift to a ukulele player. Please let them has some input! Most ukulele players have an idea of what they want their next uke to be. You don't want them to be disappointed with an expensive gift. Sol was given input and was not disappointed!
The top is made of Shamel Ash (aka Evergreen ash), a tropical ash from Mexico that is used for landscaping in So. Cal. This piece came from a company called Street Tree Rival in Orang County.
The Taylor Guitar company calls this wood "Urban Ash" and has used it for backs and sides calling it similar in sound to the "old mahogany".
I figured that if it sounded like mahogany, it should work as a soundboard as well. I guessed right. It has a nice clear sound that projects very well.
Click here to see what Taylor Guitar has to say about Shamel Ash.
The accent woods are red Mallee burl and had the distinct advantage of being similar in color to the buinga. The neck is Black Limba with a carbon bar for reinforcement.
The fingerboard and bridge are Amazon rosewood..
The rosette is a mosaic of bubinga. The headstock is bubinga as well.
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Tuners are black Gotoh interplanetary tuners.
The back and sides are one of kind piece of bubinga. This piece of wood was supplied by the buyer and is flat sawn. Normally I don't like to use flat sawn because it tends to want to warp, but this build turned out great!
This wood came from Gilmer Wood Co. and was originally meant to be an electric guitar top.
As always this uke has a sound side port that allows the player to hear the same sound as the audience.
The sides are pretty crazy. The binding is quilted sapele.
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The strings are a Pepe Romero wound low G with custom high carbon fluorocarbon string for the rest.
I love the patterning of the sides as they come together on the bottom.
Notice how the color of the limba neck sort of matches the sapwood at the bottom of the back.
Please check out the sound sample preformed by Chad. this was just recorded on a smartphone with no amplification.
This uke is very warm sounding with great articulation. There is also a lot of "color" to the sound.
