Spruce has been the traditional wood of choice for guitar-family instruments, but ukuleles are an exception. Mahogany was used for the entire instrument in Martin ukuleles (I've still got a Martin soprano ukulele I got when I was eleven or twelve years old). Ukuleles made in Hawaii have tended to use koa, a wood similar to mahogany, but with sometimes striking grain patterns. Many other woods may be used, but tops are usually softwood, while the back and sides are usually hardwood.
My first hand-made uke was made mostly from wood available at my local Home Depot. I chose hemlock for the top (Home Depot doesn't carry spruce, but hemlock is a somewhat similar evergreen softwood). The back, sides and neck were of poplar. Home Depot offered no other hardwood except oak, which looks good in furniture and cabinets, but is not really suitable for musical instruments.
I needed a hardwood for the fretboard. Traditional woods are ebony or rosewood, neither of which was available at Home Depot. I raided my firewood pile for a piece of locally grown black locust.
Two sets of bookmatched koa (for tops or backs) |
After the glue dries, the new piece can be lightly sanded to "true up" the glue joint. Then the center of the sound hole is marked and a pilot hole is drilled. The pilot hole is placed over an indexing pin in a workboard I use for routing the groove that will later receive the rosette.
Koa top with rosette in place |
Rosettes serve a dual function: they are decorative, and they also reinforce the sound hole to prevent splitting. I make mine from thin acrylic bordered with plastic strips called purfling. The rosette is shaped to fit the slot as exactly as possible—and it's just slightly thicker than the depth of the groove that was routed earlier. After the rosette is glued in place it can be sanded flush with the top's surface.
Carving the top braces |
Back with braces and center graft |