The Ukulele Dude’s Collection of Ukulele History Items
Ukulele StringsStrings have developed over the decades. Originally the strings were made of ‘cat gut.’ Cat is short for cattle and are typically made from sheep or cow intestines that are cleaned, washed, sized, and twisted. They are still made for many fine instruments. Most manufacturers now use nylon polymer to make strings. Lower notes often have the strings wound with very find aluminum or copper wire. |
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I found a box of miscellaneous strings for sale on Craig’s List, they had been stored in an attic and came out of a music shop about 50 years ago. The ukulele strings were all gut strings and some of them where colored rather than the standard beige. |
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Bluebird Banjolele strings made from metal. |
The Arthur Godfrey Uke Player
 Made of bakelite and rubber, this was sold in the 1950’s. Pushing the button pressed the strings down against the appropriate frets created the chords. |
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