Ukulele Case & New Pineapple Flea

I’m not sure why it is, but the most popular design for hard ukulele cases seems to be a very Gentlemanly tweed. It’s a step up from the black box, but not as fun as this rising sun case. But the ultimate has to be this koa ukulele case – so long as you don’t mind people thinking you’re carrying round a baby coffin.

Pineapple Fleas used to look like this. now they look like this.

My favourite ukulele of the week is this Kumalae koa taropatch.

If you’re one of the people bidding crazy money for The Ukulele Orchestra of GB’s new album, stop right now. It’s only a tenner on their website. You are, however, free to bid as much as you like for Darren Hayman’s Ukulele Songs from the North Devon Coast because the cover is adorable.

A few weeks ago it was Lisa and Maggie, this time it’s Bart’s turn to be on a uke.

I wasn’t aware that Mahalo had made a Lyon and Healy Camp ukulele style uke, but on eBay Australia there’s this Mahalo UK290.

Speaking of camp ukulele, the ukulele kitsch of the week.

eBay Ukulele Window Shopping

Purple is obviously this season’s colour. Kanile’a are producing a range called ‘Exotic ukuleles’ and a purple heart wood tenor ukulele has cropped up on eBay. This purple SG-alike is described as a ‘four string guitar’, but with a scale length of 19.5″ it’s fair to call it baritone ukulele.

A couple of nice, vintage Hawaiian ukes: 1927 Kumalae and a Nunes Taropatch.

If this banjolele looks like it’s been through the wars, that’s because it has. According to the etching on the uke, it was at the Somme during WW1. As much as I love the uke, I think lugging that thing around the trenches would be a hassle I wouldn’t need. But obviously this is my lack of battle experience talking as this photo from WW2 features a very similar 8 string banjolele.

Prize for most kitsch item I have ever seen goes to this Marilyn Monroe ukulele strumming figurine.

Ukulele Collection Sell Offs

Three cheers for the credit crunch. Hip, hip. Hazzah!. Hip, hip. Hazzah!. Hip, hip. Hazzah!.

While the papers are full of doom and gloom about job losses and repossessions, the real story of the credit crunch is that eBay is crammed with people selling off their vintage ukulele collecions. Duane Hielman is selling off a pile of vintage ukes from a private collection. All ukes start at $1. Pick of the current crop are a LeDomino and an unnamed koa concert ukulele.

This seller is also selling off the family jewels including a Kumalae 3K.

This seller is flogging a friend’s instrument collection. A number of tenor Martins have already been and gone, but there’s a soprano and a baritone still left.

Of course, if the credit crunch isn’t biting you at all, you could spend a few hundred dollars on a Hello Kitty ukulele. How can they charge that much?

You don’t see K Wave ukuleles on eBay very often, but there’s one up for sale right now here.