Fin-Der Mauna Loa

George Finder a US designer who produced Plastic Ukuleles in the 1950's Like Maccaferri he saw his Ukuleles as proper musical instruments and didn't also make toys like Carnival and Emenee.

One of those eBay immutable laws that always seem to happen to me, Three 1950's Plastic Sopranos came on at once, 2 Fin-Ders and a Maccaferri. In order to ensure that I won one of the auctions I have ended up winning two, both the Fin-Ders. This does mean I can leave the original coloured strings on this one. The action of this Mauna Loa is much higher than the other, the Diamond Head but I think this is to do with bowing with age rather than any design difference. The Diamond head is definitely in better shape to play so this will be largely decorative and available for swap's hence having the old strings on this one.

The Mauna Loa was produced from the same moulds as the Diamond Head by Fin-Der though nowhere does it actually say Fin-Der on it and it would have been produced later in the decade. Aside from the obvious difference with the headstock, the front of the Mauna Loa is White whereas the Diamond Head is Cream. The back of my Mauna Loa is Blue whereas the Diamond Head is a kind of Brown Marbled Faux Wood effect, (though in both models there were different colour back's available), The tuning pegs are identical however as is the bridge and the moulding where the fret board meets the body; and no zero fret. Lots of different Ukulele models were produced by US plastic factories using these moulds and apart from the Diamond Head none of them credit George.