Well, too late, M.Ted, though I still have two days to think it over and return it if it's not right.

Believe me, I've thought through everything you said. In fact, I did back off and buy a less expensive Compass Rose in mahogany, not actually because the price was considerably lower (though that was nice!) but because the sound was both brighter and more even from low to high. (The Turner ukes have a low string at the bottom, down an octave from the classis uke tuning. They're also a bit larger than the other tenor ukes I've seen.)

Though all of your advice is sound, I had what seemed to me like good reasons for choosing as I did. Had I started with a less top-end uke, it would have had a shallower, uke-ier sound that would not have been what I wanted, and I doubt that the uninspiring sound would have given me adequate impetus to progress until I was "ready" to move to a first-class instrument.

As well, I am a fair musician already, so while uke will be a new experience, I won't exactly be starting from scratch. (I'm not in the D-28 for flamenco category, thank goodness!)

And finally, a high-end instrument may be harder to sell, but I'm thinking that if I do need to sell it, I'm ultimately likelier to be able to get back close to what I paid for it than I would with a more entry-level model.

Well, perhaps I'm foolish, but it's done -- and sitting in my office next to me. In fact, I can't wait to get home from work and play the thing! So bye for now, I'll check in tomorrow.