Julian Hipolito was the last of what Fred Kamaka Jr. calls “The Dream Team” — four master craftsmen who for decades made the world-renowned Kamaka ukuleles. Those four — Julian, his brother Jose, their cousin Kenneth McFeeley and George Morita — were hearing-impaired but able to tune each piece of the ukulele to precise standards just by tapping on the wood and feeling the vibrations.

Hipolito died March 6 at the Queen’s Medical Center. He was 77.

The four men were trained in woodworking at the Hawaii School for the Deaf and the Blind. Jose was hired at Kamaka Ukulele in 1955. The other three followed, with Julian starting in 1958.

“Dad trained them to do work on the saws,” Chris Kamaka said. “They learned to do the sanding, tuning of the top of the ukulele. It took them a long time to get the hang of it up to the exact specifications my dad wanted. He would show them a top that was too thick, and then one that was too thin, and then one that was perfect.”

“A hearing person would tap the top and hear the vibration. They had to feel it,” Fred said.

The Hipolito brothers and their cousin McFeeley lived in Nanakuli in a Quonset hut on Haleakala Avenue. They would catch the 4 a.m. bus all the way to town to come to work.

“At the end of the day, they’d be all dusty from the wood on the ride home, but people knew them and would say, ‘Oh! They work at Kamaka!’” Fred said.

The four men communicated in sign language and developed what the Kamakas call a “pidgin” sign language to communicate with the hearing members of the Kamaka team. “They could read lips really well,” Fred said. “At one point, I took a night program in sign language so I could try and understand them better.”

The Kamakas say it takes a certain kind of person who wants to work in a hot factory, someone who can handle repetition while always maintaining the highest quality in the product. Julian was disciplined this way, but he was also a practical joker who often tried to get a laugh by putting out plastic lizards or fake cockroaches to scare the ladies.

On weekends, Julian was often on the go, catching the bus to meet with friends, wearing a baseball hat covered in pins that he liked to trade with people he met.

Hipolito worked in Kamaka’s factory for 47 years before retiring in 2005. He kept in touch with the family, riding the bus and later the Handi-Van to come visit, and he would always show up for big events and the annual Kamaka Christmas party.

“He would stop by, or I would see him at Ala Moana at the food court,” Fred said. “He had his favorite table where he would meet with other friends who were hearing-impaired.”

The way the Kamaka factory works, each of the workers has a role in every ukulele that is made. “Between the four of them, they made thousands of ukuleles,” Fred said. “These were instruments that they couldn’t hear, but they made them so that others could enjoy the music.”

Julian Hipolito wasn’t married. He is survived by three nephews and a niece. The Kamaka family is helping with the memorial service, which will be held Saturday at Ballard Family Mortuary in Moanalua.

Fred said, “I told my daughter to draw a picture of these four guys up in heaven and a sign that says ‘angel choir concert tonight’ so they can finally hear what they made.”

Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.