Dovetail Neck Joint on Slope-Shouldered Uke

All neck joints must be designed to accommodate the geometry of the instrument top, sides, and neck angle to obtain the correct string height and action once all the pieces are put together. Most instruments I've made have a flat area here the neck heel joins the body of the instrument. This allows for an easy joint that can largely be achieved with a router jig. The shoulders on this baritone uke maintain a curvature across the entire edge connecting the upper bouts.

The gap between the test neck and the body is obvious where the shoulders of the uke slope away from the centerline.

A combination of carving out a recess along each side of the narrow part of the neck's dovetail and creating a localized flat area limited to the footprint of the the carved neck heel allows the neck to mate nicely with the body without unnecessarily flattening out the body. The neck will naturally drop deeper into the joint, so it's important to start with the neck plane a couple of millimeters proud of the body. Flossing will allow the joint to match perfectly.