Moore Bettah
ukuleles
GALLERY OF RECENT WORK
This gallery features some of the ukuleles that I have recently sold. I show them to you to give you an example of the styles I make and the materials I use. There are a lot of images on this page and I've intentionally left the images large to provide as much detail as possible. Please be patient while they load, I think you'll find it worth it. Please click on any image for a larger view.
DETAILS......sweating the small stuff (Click on any picture to enlarge)
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4 STRING ROPE BOUND TENOR
AAAAA Master Grade curly koa top, back & sides. Mahogany neck. Highly figured cocobolo fretboard & bridge. Handmade maple and rosewood rope binding on both sides of body, end-graft and head stock. Gold mother of pearl & cocobolo rosette with bound sound hole. Gold mother of pearl "hula dancer" inlay and fret position markers. Fourteen frets to the body, eighteen total. Grover tuners and Aquilla strings with a low "G" setup.
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4 STRING TENOR--"Ulu (Breadfruit)"
AAAAA Master Grade curly koa top, back & sides. This is some of the nicest koa I've worked with. Mahogany neck. Ebony fretboard & bridge and headstock overlay. Ebony binding with paua abalone shell purfling on both sides of body, and head stock. Paua abalone and ebony rosette. Ebony bound soundhole. Hand cut Paua abalone and gold MOP "ulu" inlay. Paua abalone top and side fret position markers. Fourteen frets to the body, eighteen total. Grover tuners and Hilo strings with a low "G" setup. Hard shell case included.
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4 STRING TENOR CUTAWAY--"The Wave"
Mater Grade curly koa top, back & sides. Mahogany neck. Ebony fretboard & bridge and headstock overlay. Ebony binding with paua abalone shell purfling on both sides of body, end-graft and head stock. Paua abalone and ebony rosette. Ebony bound soundhole. Paua abalone "wave" inlay and fret position markers. Fourteen frets to the body, eighteen total. Grover tuners and Hilo strings with a low "G" setup. Deluxe hard shell case included.
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Click on any image for a larger view
Click on any image for a larger view
Rockin' Hawaiian Style
The RICK VITO ukulele
Long time former lead guitarist and vocalist for Fleetwood Mac, Rick Vito has performed with some of the most influential musicians of our life time including Bonnie Raitt,Jackson Browne, Bob Seger, John Mayall and contless others. Recently Rick has reunited with Mick Fleetwood again, this time in Hawaii, in the form of the Island Rumours Band, also featuring Willie K and Eric Gilliam. So when Rick contacted me for a new ukulele that better reflected his love for Hawaii than his old baritone Papoose I was more than happy to oblige. Although he gave me complete freedom with the build, it was a joyful collaboration that involved dozens of emails and phone calls to each other. One of the outstanding features of the uke is the tiki headstock inlay that Rick himself designed composed of Tahitian black pearl, and gold and white MOP. The cocobolo neck, headstock veneer, and bridge really compliment the master grade curly koa nicely. The Fishman Matrix pick up with the controls just inside the sound hole allows Rick to make easy adjustments while performing on stage.
Rick performing with the Island Rumours Band at the Grand Wailea Beach Resort in Maui.
Let this be a lesson that mai tais and a steady camera hand are not compatible!
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Tenor 4 string built for Bob Kevonian of the nationally syndicated radio "Bob & Tom Show". Bob was a joy to work with on this ukulele as we shared he same love of nostalgic Hawaii. The "Pin-up Hula Girl" inlay is scrimshawed in fossil mastadon ivory and is reminiscent of a World War II bomber painting. The hibiscus flowers are inlayed with composition stone.
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"Hawaii Island".....Koa with ebony. Curly koa bindings and inlays. Simple elegance.
"Humu humu nuku nuku apu a'a" .............little fish, big name!
Double sound hole tenor. Koa with ebony. Paua abalone purflings.
When four strings aren't enough, or even eight, you'll have your hands full with this double neck tenor ukulele fitted with both a 4 string and 8 string neck. The woods I used for this unusual instrument are spalted curly koa for the body, carbon reinforced Spanish cedar necks, and ebony for the fret board, head stock veneer and bindings. The bamboo inlays are of gold mother of pearl and cocobolo. I chose to use "Peghed" planetary geared tuners for their light weight and their classic, unobtrusive appearance. The dual side sound ports give the player immediate feedback and gives improved tonal balance and overall projection.
Double Neck Tenor Ukulele
Built for a customer who wanted a ukulele that had an "earthy" attitude to it, this ukulele features a tree of life inlay with celestial heavens above. The theme is also carried out in the ebony and cocobolo bound fret board that is firmly "rooted" around the sound hole.
The snake around the trunk of the tree is reminiscent of the medical symbol that represents the customers field of work.
Tree of Life Tenor
Four string cutaway tenor with rope binding and rosette. Spalted curly koa and cocobolo. The side sound port gives the player feed back without compromising forward projection. Cocobolo fret board head stock veneer and bridge. Gold MOP gecko inlays and fret position markers. Bone nut and saddle for exceptional tone. 16" radiussed fret board. Hand rubbed satin nitro cellulose lacquer finish.
The Gecko Dance
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Master grade curly spalted koa with curly maple bindings on top and back of body, head stock and fret board. Custom tri-color rope purflings. Cocobolo fret board, head stock veneer and bridge. Fast action neck and bound fret board has 18 fret total, 14 to the body. Open geared Grover tuners make this a nicely balanced ukulele. The "mermaid" inlay is scrimshawed fossil mastadon ivory (legal), gold MOP, and composition stone. Bone nut and saddle.
4 STRING TENOR "MERMAID"
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Features curly koa body and head stock veneer. Rosewood and maple rope binding on both sides of the body and head stock. Rosewood fret board and bridge. Radiussed fret board. Spanish cedar neck is joined to the body at the 12th fret, there are 16 frets total. Sound hole and side sound port are rosewood bound. "Palm Island" logo inlayed in gold MOP as are the fret position markers. Bone nut and saddle. Grover open geared tuners and Aquila strings. High gloss nitro cellulose lacquer finish. Deluxe hard shell case included.
Rope Bound Soprano
4 String tenor ukulele "Japanese White Eye"
AAAAA curly koa with ebony bindings, fret board, head stock veneer and bridge. Paua abalone purflings. Inlays of abalone shell, pink mussel & koa. Bound fret board and sound hole. Bone saddle.
