The Kamaka Ukulele Factory

Towards the end of last year I was lucky enough to find myself in Hawaii. Perhaps one of the most famous exports Hawaii has given us over the past 100 years has been a small frantic little instrument that has, in the last couple of years, gained a lot of prominence. The ukulele. The Kamaka Ukulele Company is perhaps one of the oldest ukulele manufacturers in the world, founded in 1916 by Sam Kamaka. Today the family still owns the company and Kamaka ukuleles have become famous world-wide as some of the finest ukuleles in the world (George Harrison was a big fan). I managed to go on one of the many tours Sam's son Fred takes each week of the factory and later on that week I returned to factory to complete the story. Below is just a taste of what it is like to make ukuleles!

 

 

 Fred Kamaka Sr