Strap locks: do you actually need them?
Guitars fall off straps for three reasons: the button is worn smooth, the strap hole has stretched, or a new stiff strap has not yet closed around the button. Strap locks solve all three by replacing the button with a socket and putting a spring-loaded pin on the strap that cannot come out until you press the release.
When to skip them
- A broken-in leather strap on a factory button, on a guitar you play at home.
- Acoustics with a headstock tie, which cannot take a lock at the neck end anyway.
What we sell: one strap, the Soldier double-layer cowhide strap, in black, dark brown, tan or white. Suede-finish back, length set through a row of slots on the tail. £54.95 with free UK delivery.
When to fit them
- Guitars over about 8 lb. When a heavy guitar drops it does not bounce.
- Worn or wobbly buttons.
- A brand-new strap, for the first month. A stiff two-layer strap is exactly the case this is written for.
- Any stage where you move. A guitar that swings is a guitar that tests the button.
Fitting
- Unscrew the existing strap button (one Phillips screw).
- Screw the new button into the same hole. No drilling.
- Push the pin through the strap hole and tighten the nut on the back.
- Press the pin onto the button until it clicks. Pull to check.
Ten minutes per guitar. If the original screw hole is loose, fill it with a matchstick and wood glue, let it dry, and re-screw.
Do they mark the strap?
The pin sits in the existing hole. On a thick leather strap the hole holds its shape; on thin nylon it can tear, which is another point for leather. The Soldier double-layer cowhide strap has one hole in each solid leather end, which is the standard shape any lock pin fits.
We do not sell strap locks. Every music shop does, and the common brands all fit the same standard button.