Welcome…
Hand-Crafted Ukuleles from The Big Island of Hawaii
I am a one-man shop and I use this website to share my journey in building one-of-a-kind ukuleles. I took the name “Pau Hana Ukuleles” to reflect the easy going nature of the ukulele. “Pau Hana“, meaning “done work” or “after work” in Hawaiian, evokes the relaxing feeling when playing the ukulele after a trying day. It’s an instrument that begs to be played under a palm tree with Mai-Tais firmly in hand. Pau Hana Ukuleles also reflects this turn in my life once I decided to retire at the “young” age of 54 from the high-tech industry to pursue my passions of woodworking and music.
Please follow along! –
Tom Russell Kailua Kona, HI
My Pua Nani Ukulele wins People’s Choice Award
Fine Instrument Exhibition – Wailoa Center, Hilo 2017
This was a very pleasant surprise! See more photos.
Recent Activity
Latest Posts
A Bridge Too Far?
How can this ukulele have a plain bridge, right? On my "Under the Palm Tree" ukulele, I get quite a few positive comments for a set of burned-in Honu (Hawaiian turtles) on the bridge. I [...]
Heel End Cap Quickie
Decided to add one final inlay, something for the heel end cap. The End Cap is a decorative piece that sits atop the necks' heel stack to meet the back of the ukulele. It's [...]
The Moon Fretboard
The fretboard contributes to the overall theme of the instrument with the fret markers representing the phases of the moon. I went with sea snail shell for the moon and black mother-of-pearl (MOP) for [...]
Boxing Day
Lots of internal mechanics have been completed. My "Boxing Day" (with apologies to, well, Great Britain) consists of adding and shaping the soundboard and back bracing, adding a label, glueing on the top and [...]
Ukulele Builds
Please view some of my past builds. Clicking the title or photo of the ukulele brings you to a full description, gallery and blog for each instrument.
