Why no straplocks?

[RaginRog]

My friend has a PRS guitar that cost him about $3k, and it came stock with Fender/bass string trees as strap buttons. Pretty good idea, it actually takes him a few seconds to get his strap off, even with a worn strap.

 

[Dave W]

I have straplocks on every thing.

 

[chriscrob]

Yeah, I don't get it. I love some straplocks. My MIA P-bass came with them...which is cool. but the ones it came with sucked real bad.

 

[David Jayne]

Don't need em.

Not a great pic, but those red things on the strap ends are fender washers. Way better than straplocks imo, and they cost me about a dime a piece.

This. I use black ones from the hardware store. Grolsh bottle washers work too, and you get a beer out of it.

 

[Pilgrim]

I don't really need them. I don't jump around and I check straps often. When I have any doubt, I use one of the Dunlops - usually just on the upper bout, as the lower one isn't going anywhere.

 

[Calaverasgrande]

Shouldn't be an issue unless your strap holes are worn out and loose or you do a lot of jumping around and stage antics. I have an old Ibanez with boomerang shaped strap buttons which is pretty hard to get the strap on or off of.

But hey, if you need em, use em. +1 to the fender/bottle washers. Do we really need to shell out $20 bucks on such a basic low-tech issue?

Those Ibanez V strap buttons are great! I had a roadstar II with those. My musicman basses all have EB super locks. Just to keep it in the family. They are kind of clunky bur have yet to fail. I've had Schaller and Dunlops totally fall apart. I like the Schaller design better in principle, but in practice, those things just always worked themselves loose.
I tried the "permanently attached with a washer" thing. But if your strap has a buckle or any other hard bits it WILL gouge your bass if you stuff it in the case like that. I'll pay $20 not to gouge my bass over $0.50 plus bass gouges.

 

[darkstorm]

Straplocks arent relaible and they add an extra length to the strap pin I dont want for guitars with strap buttons on the back of the instrument. Instead of straplocks I modify strap so it can only go on via taking strao button off and loading strap onto it via the narrower back. Then screw strap button back onto instrument. Strap cant come off unless cut off or via unscrewing strap button and removing it off the back of the button. Each isntrument has its own strap so I have no reason to remove straps.

 

[lowfreq33]

All my basses have Dunlops, and I have 3 different straps that will work on all of them. My wireless is zip tied to one strap, I use the other two on the rare occasion I'm using a cable.

 

[Brookdalebass]

I've used Dunlops for years...ever since I dropped a bass that didn't have them.
Like Broadstbully22, the first thing I do when a new bass comes into my life is put new strings and strap locks on. It's cheap insurance.
Thing is, I've horse-traded dozens of basses--but not straps--and now I have a whole lot of the part that goes on the strap in my parts box...guess I should learn to take the Dunlops off when I sell a bass, right? lol

 

[georgestrings]

I have straplocks on every thing.

Same here - I throw my basses around pretty good during a gig, and they're cheap insurance...


- georgestrings

 

[P. Aaron]

Had strap-locks on my 2002. The screw at the horn kept coming loose. Got standard strap pins and have and no problem.

I really like the pins that came with my 2010 Precision V.

 

[mellowinman]

I have never had a strap come off an instrument in all my years of playing. (since the seventies)

I have never had a straplock of any kind.

 

[Lee H]

This. I use black ones from the hardware store. Grolsh bottle washers work too, and you get a beer out of it.

Not in California... Our regulations do not allow the old ceramic stoppers.

 

[grendle]

$3k bass, $17 is cheap insurance just in case. They come stock with Schaller strap locks though. I put them on everything. Straps come off pretty easy, usually when you least expect it. Peace of mind for less than a set of strings, kinda dumb not to imo, but I keep my basses in excellent shape, always cased, polished, etc. Just my .02

 

[Jim Carr]

I have never dropped an instrument. I learned to play in 1963, we had no strap locks, and straps were often 1/2" wide.

 

[MegaSwing]

I gradually fell out of using them and discovered I didn't miss them.

FWIW, the ONLY time a bass has ever fallen off of a strap around my neck onto the floor was because of a malfunctioning major-brand strap-lock system.

It made me skeptical forever.

 

[Staccato]

Grolsch, or homemade picks w/ cutouts
similar to the Dunlop thingies.

 

[funkingroovin]

Straplocks are cheap insurance,plain and simple. Personally,I prefer Dunlops over Schallers..I've found that the Schallers will work themselves loose from the body due to the basic geometry and physics overlooked in their design..

 

[Johnny Crab]

Once you catch your 1964 Gibson T-Bird headed for the floor neck-first(early 1970's), you start using Straplocs. For those I used the leather strap kind that screwed into the bass(same screw as the stock buttons = no mods). Everything else here gets Straplocs before it leaves home.

 

[Jeff K]

I used Schallers for years. Then about 5 years ago I started using these neoprene washers. Easy on/easy off if you need to remove/change the strap. I have a strap for each bass I own, and use a set of these on each one. They're cheap (about .80 cents a set). They're not bulky (like Schallers), so they fit into the case without having to remove the strap. I'll never go back to "actual" strap locks again...