Aloha!
For sale today is this lovely C.F. Martin & Co. soprano ukulele, Style 1K, from the late 1920s. The body is solid koa, the top triple-bound with rosewood on the outside and inner strips of black and white. The back is bound with a single band of rosewood, and there is a 5-ply circle of inlay around the sound hole, banded in black and white. The fingerboard is rosewood with 12 nickel-silver bar frets and position markers at the 5th, 7th and 10th. The nut is ebony, the bridge koa with an ebony saddle. The tuners are Grover Simplex No. 92 from the same period, but are not original to this instrument. Plays smoothly with nice action (4/32\" at the 12th fret, G string) and new Fremont Medium Black fluorocarbon strings. The total length is 20-3/4\", the body length 9-3/8\", the scale length 13-3/4\", and the width at the lower bout 6-1/4”. No case but it will be carefully packed.
The sound is superb. It has bright, precise highs typical of Koa, together with a full midrange and overall warmth of tone that comes from age. Also great sustain and big volume: it really fills the room.
CONDITION: Very good after repairs. There are 2 well-repaired cracks on the top, 2 on the back and 3 on the left side (see photos 2, 4, 5, 10). All have been cleated and glued, and in one case splints were added to fill three tiny voids (zoom in on photo 2, right of bridge). In addition, the side cracks have been reinforced with vertical struts for stability. The center back brace was replaced with one from another ‘20s Martin soprano uke. There are nicks, scratches and minor dings as shown in the photos. The finish is original, and has been lightly French polished to seal repairs. A very pretty instrument.
NEWBIES: If you have a zero response score, no problem -- offer away -- but please contact me by e-mail first, or I will have to cancel your offer.
SHIPPING: I ship only to the U.S. mainland, Hawaii, Alaska and U.S. Protectorates. No international sales due to the rosewood fingerboard, which is protected under the CITES treaty. Also no P.O. boxes, please. Domestic shipping is usually via UPS Ground ($18.00), with an extra $25.00 for shipment to Hawaii, Alaska or U.S. Protectorates.
Mahalo for looking.
