Globe banjo-uke

[aimee]

All right, I know it's only loosely mando-related, because I am assuming that my co-worker's yard-sale find is tuned in fifths, but here goes:

A co-worker (her kid, actually) comes into my office with his latest yard sale treasure that he found for 20 bucks. It turns out it's supposed to be a banjo-uke because it once had four strings. It says "Globe" stamped on the headstock and has some curly scroll type things on the headstock too. We found out that the Globe company existed from about 1900-1940.

The neck looks straight, the back is a bit battered,and the scale length is about 7 1/2 ". I told him I thought he got a deal. Can anyone tell me how it would be tuned, and what kind of strings to buy? That is, assuming he wanted to part with it?

[8ch(pl)]

D-A-F#-B.

Normal ukelele strings and tuning should do it. I had one which I tried to tune as a mando with a half set of mandolin strings. It would not stay in tune. I had a new nut (ebony) made for it , put a set of Uke strings put on and gave it to an elderly lady in our folk group who is a ukelele player.

They are a fun instrument and a lot of Europeans play them in "George Formby Societies".

[Jack Roberts]

The used to be a song called "Banjolele" that I heard on television 40 years ago. The chorus still is stuck in my mind:

"Banjo-banjo-banjolele (repeat)
Who cares what's the weather
who cares what's the weather
long as we're together
polly-wolly-oop-oop-aap"

Little kids listen to Barney now, I don't know which is better.

[Bruce Evans]

The neck looks straight, the back is a bit battered,and the scale length is about 7 1/2 ". I told him I thought he got a deal. Can anyone tell me how it would be tuned, and what kind of strings to buy? That is, assuming he wanted to part with it?
7 1/2"!! Really? I presume there's something wrong there. Is that the distance from the nut to the 12th fret?

8ch(pl)'s answer is not wrong, but a more common tuning nowdays is GCEA. You can get string sets that will give you the typical reentrant tuning, where the 4th string is only one step below the first string, or a low 4th string which gives you the same tuning intervals as the top four strings of a guitar. This is how I have my banjolele set up.

If you want to know more about the Globe company you can go to http://www.flea-mkt-music.com/uke-yak/default.asp.
Send a picture to Frets Fayne and he can tell you all about it.

[aimee]

Yeah, I think it was about 7 1/2", todo. I only had a few minutes at my desk in the office to look at it. But I'll print your replies to give to him. Thanks, all.

[Jim Garber]

D-A-F#-B.
Sorry, 8ch... normal uke tuning is either aDF#B or gCEA with the fourth string an octave higher than you would think.

Std uke string will do. or you could fool around with a mandolin tuning in fifths.

Jim

[8ch(pl)]

You're right, I got the strings reversed.