Hawaiian made regular acoustics?

[HeadRx]

Ive been looking around the net and havent found many. When i say regular i mean not the hawaiian shaped. Anyone know where i could buy a 700 dollar hawaiian acoustic?

[Muddslide]

Forgive my ignorance, I'm just unclear--

do you mean a Weissenborn-style Hawaiian lap acoustic or something like the Gretsch "Hawaiian" acoustic that is essentially a regular guitar?

I believe on the former Gold Tone makes a Weissenborn copy that's under 7 bills.

As to the latter, I think they are still available and also under 7 bills.

Is this helpful at all or did I miss your point completely?

[HeadRx]

Yeh, you got my point. A regular guitar.. but hawaiian made.

[pipedwho]

Hawaiian guitars are famous for being made out of koa, and slack key tuned. Add 'koa' to your search keywords and see if that helps turn something up.

BTW a nice koa guitar is on my GAS list!

[theGOOCH]

My Taylor has koa back and sides and I love it. I wouldn't call it a Hawaiian guitar though....I have, however considered naming her Leilani:D

[Queequeg]

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[Muddslide]

I play a lot of ukulele (okay, don't laugh or we're taking it outside!) and notice that a lot of old vintage koa ukes (even very well thought of ones, such as the Kamaka company) have terrible cracking problems. In the uke world, koa is likely the most sought after material for the instruments, but it seems like an unstable wood, or prone to splits and cracks (some of this I imagine has to do with how fully the wood is dried and cured).

Are there any koa guitar horror stories as a correlative to this phenomenon in ukuleles?

[pipedwho]

Originally posted by Muddslide I play a lot of ukulele (okay, don't laugh or we're taking it outside!) and notice that a lot of old vintage koa ukes (even very well thought of ones, such as the Kamaka company) have terrible cracking problems. In the uke world, koa is likely the most sought after material for the instruments, but it seems like an unstable wood, or prone to splits and cracks (some of this I imagine has to do with how fully the wood is dried and cured). Are there any koa guitar horror stories as a correlative to this phenomenon in ukuleles?

 

 

It is probably, as you say, a problem with poor manufacturing technique. The same thing will happen with any wood that is not properly dried before being built into the guitar.

 

Also, if you live in an area with large humidity variations, or very dry / humid regions, it is pretty much mandatory to have some sort of humidifier / dehumidifier. Wildly out of spec humidity is another cause of cracking and separation.

 

Koa is probably more prone to either of the above because of its uneven grain, but any wood is going to be susceptible.

[kwakatak]

+1 to what what Queequeg said.

But they're a bit over $700 though. Koa is probably one of the rarest tonewoods and therefore very expensive.

[Queequeg]

a good Hawaiian ukulele will cost you $700 or so. Guitars will set you back a bit further.
wish I could play a uke. George Harrison loved ukes and brought 'em out after dinner and passed them around to guests and they'd play.

[mikeSF]

if your under $700 search comes up empty and you decide to raise the budget a bit, please look up Steve Grimes, luthier, in the Maui upcountry town of Kula. He builds 6 string acoustics(mostly), archtops, mandolins, tenor ukes. I recently got a chance to visit his shop and he makes some impeccable pieces. He also has a nice supply of figured koa from the big island.
great guy too.
aloha.

Grimes Guitars

[pipedwho]

Originally posted by mikeSF if your under $700 search comes up empty and you decide to raise the budget a bit, please look up Steve Grimes, luthier, in the Maui upcountry town of Kula. He builds 6 string acoustics(mostly), archtops, mandolins, tenor ukes. I recently got a chance to visit his shop and he makes some impeccable pieces. He also has a nice supply of figured koa from the big island. great guy too. aloha.

Mike, you've got some damn nice guitars there!

So if you're recommending someone, they must do some fine work.

[mikeSF]

Originally posted by pipedwho Mike, you've got some damn nice guitars there! So if you're recommending someone, they must do some fine work.

yes, he does fine work. I also played his oval hole flat top and it was great.