Official Luthiers Forum!

I'm a school teacher, and my students are starting ukuleles next week in their music class. To get them excited about it, I borrowed the uke I made my dad a while ago. It was my second completed instrument and when I saw it, I was kind of embarrassed. So I went to fix it up. One thing I did was thin the top. I have always wondered if it was too thick.

So, it seems I got a little excited with the ROS and along the "treble" side of the lower bout, there is a dark area where I can see the lining through the top. I figured the top is shot, I'll make a new one and replace it. But in the mean time, I wondered... Plus my kids thought it would be really cool to see if it did rip apart. Yesterday, we strung it up and much to their disappointment, it's working great.

If I strum lightly with the fat of my thumb, it is a beautiful smooth mellow tone, but a heavier hand or a firmer surface like the back of my nails, and it sounds really twangy, especially the treble side string. (It confuses me how a string can sound out of tune playing by itself.) I'm waiting on fresh strings to arrive and am planning to fiddle with the nut and saddle, but I wonder if it's the sound of the super thin top. I mean, it kind of has a banjo sound to it, so could the thin top be acting more like a banjo membrane than a guitar?

I guess I'm not really sure what my question is. Assuming the sound is the top, can someone help me visualize what's going on? How does why does a banjo sound like it does? Why doesn't a guitar?

Thanks for any thoughts.
(For what it's worth, tenor uke, spruce top, hana lima plan)
Mike

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Mike Lindstrom

if it sounds good , play it. Heck look at Willies guitar , he is missing half of it

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it