Palm Tree Ukuleles

Palm Tree Ukuleles is based in Colorado and was set up by Colorado Springs by John & Pam Ramsey. Many of their ukes are inspired by the early ukulele makers such as Kumalae and Dias. You can find out more about them on their website.

How long have you been making ukuleles and how did you get started?

We’ve been building ukes since 2005. We had been building guitars, mandolins, and banjo necks for over 35 years out of our music store in Colorado Springs, so we had a lot of experience with building acoustic instruments.

There are a couple reasons we began building ukes. Nathan Fisher, the repair person at our music store in Colorado Springs, had built a few and we thought they were really cool. But we didn’t make the decision to start building our own line of ukes until after our first visit to Maui, where we fell in love with Hawaii and its music.

What sort of players are your ukuleles aimed at?

Everyone! Anybody who likes quality hand built instruments will like a Palm Tree ukulele.

What separates Palm Tree from other ukuleles?

We strive for a light construction build for a warm, open sound. We let our wood age in Colorado’s dry climate for months before using it, which we feel helps stabilize the finished product.

Our primary goal when we started Palm Tree Ukuleles was to build a contemporary uke based on vintage designs.

Your uke designs are influenced by the original ukulele makers. What is it about those designs that are so special?

We just love the simplicity and classic look of the older uke builders’ designs. There are a lot of unique and interesting ukulele designs out there these days, but there’s something timeless about the old-style ukes that we’re really fond of.

What do you think makes a great ukulele?

Tone, playability, design, quality wood, attention to detail. It’s a combination of a lot of little things that come together to make a great instrument.