IF YOU'RE GETTIN OLDER

[DirtySteve]

That's the first I've heard about Well-Hung guitar straps! They look like they are well made. I've been buying wide straps from Heavy Leather for several years now. I'm an old fart also and I can vouch that a well made wide strap can make a world of difference. BTW my LP traditional is just shy of 9 lbs,

He's a member here, but he hasn't posted in a while. @TVvoodoo

 

[TVvoodoo]

Damn ... been a while since I showed up here. Frankly, I got no Marshall power here so, it's like hangin' out at the Mustang forum when you drive a Camaro.

That said, thank you for those who tagged and mentioned. @Jethro Rocker @StrummerJoe @fitz et al.

I am indeed the Well-Hung strap guy but not really my style to push it in places where there's little interest. But if I may say, this catches me now in flow state of strapcraft as in a week I'll be vending at the Edmonton Guitar show where I drag my sorry ass out of the StrapLab and interact in-person with some actual human citizens (and a whole lot of guitar players) for a day.

My whole deal since 2011 was to craft a wider, longer more trusty, and above all more comfortable straps.
I started with the old Agile forum where we regularly took delivery of 11, 12 pounders or even more!

Anyway, I try stuff. Lots of things. I want to innovate without creating harnessy, floofy-looking things that look like they came from the old man orthopedic store.

Just this past weekend, for example, I built a couple of prototypes for what I am calling the "BeastMaster" guitar strap, specifically designed to sling 8.5-12 pounders.

It's a stretchy strap, but with big differences fom the typical. It's 3" wide, with a very "controlled" stretch. It's also much thicker than the typical, and features silicone/rubber grip inside. Can be personalized to match like I did for my greenburst. I've been testing it now for a couple nights and it really is something else. Anyway... just one example of a developing line and I'm REALLY looking forward to watching people try it at the show and see if they too feel it could be a game changer.

 

[dro]

I took 69 years to get a good Les Paul.
I am not giving up on it now!

Don't get me wrong. I'll not give up totally on Les Paul.
Although I have spoiled myself with Custom Shop stuff lately.
CS 1968 RI Les Paul Black Beauty, was my intro into Custom Shop.
I've had Custom Shop acoustics.
These Custom Shop electrics are amazing.
Had played 336's before, with 57 Classics. Never been a fan of 57's
Custombuckers are where it's at for me.

 

[donwagar]

I'm 72, my back is bad. I'm used to standing at a gig, and my #1 gig guitar ('01 R9 8 lb 12 oz) is too heavy for anything over an hour.

I switched to my '57 Special, it's only 7.0 lbs. And I've always loved P90s anyway.

One day at my local store I found a new SG Tribute, they aren't expensive. Only weighs 6.2 lbs. I don't care for 490 pickups, I switched it to a 57/57+ set. I'm still a Les Paul guy, but I'll use the SG at places I'm not real comfortable taking my Special.

 

[ampeq]

I am not sure at all that a wider strap could relieve the pain on the back.

At most it would alleviate the pressure on the shoulder but the weight on the back will always be the same ... as well as the pain.

Think of it like a bulldozer trac, it disperses the weight over a larger area. A 10 lbs. LP would be nothing in a backpack, but put a 1” wide strap on it and it becomes uncomfortable. I have used a real leather 3” strap from the get go with my ’77 LP and it works great. But there are tons of guitars out there that are under 7 lbs., my ESP E2 is light as a feather and can rock with the best of them.

 

[donwagar]

I don't think it matters how well the weight is distributed, it's still gotta go down your spine.

 

[Mike_LA]

Nope, you guys got it alllll wrong.
You don't need no facking strap
You need a Fly
5lbs of sonic goodness

 

[Derrick111]

Nope, you guys got it alllll wrong.
You don't need no facking strap
You need a Fly
5lbs of sonic goodness
View attachment 158046

Those guys are in bed by 6pm so don't waste your breath tonight...

 

[Nadir]

Think of it like a bulldozer trac, it disperses the weight over a larger area. A 10 lbs. LP would be nothing in a backpack, but put a 1” wide strap on it and it becomes uncomfortable. I have used a real leather 3” strap from the get go with my ’77 LP and it works great. But there are tons of guitars out there that are under 7 lbs., my ESP E2 is light as a feather and can rock with the best of them.

This is the "pressure".

"weight" is a different thing and the only way to reduce it is to reduce "mass".

I don't think it matters how well the weight is distributed, it's still gotta go down your spine.

^^ this ^^

 

[ampeq]

This is the "pressure".

"weight" is a different thing and the only way to reduce it is to reduce "mass".


^^ this ^^

Time for the hole saws I guess. My LP is almost 10 lbs. and I have a very bad back. (From racing motocross) without a 3” strap minimum I can’t play it for long. With it I can play most of the night. But even my lighter guitar’s I need a break every hour or so. It's not so much my spine, it's more my shoulder / neck area.

 

[Nadir]

This is exactly what I said in my first post: wider straps alleviate pressure on the shoulder.
But they are useless in case of problems to the spine.

 

[CrystalBearer]

The compressive force on the back comes from 2/3 of our individual body weight (the upper body) as well. If we somehow manage to reduce our body weight significantly, in a healthy manner, I believe a lighter body could alleviate the back problem more effectively than a heavier body in the long run.

 

[ampeq]

If anyone has a bad back and is thinking about having someone operate on it, take this into consideration.

Across the street from my machine shop lives a friend of mine with a very bad back. They talked him into operating on it, so he did. (I told him NO, get a few more opinions.) After screwing up the operation, he could not walk and had massive pain. Another Dr. took him in for emergency surgery and fixed some of it. Long story short, he is now in a rehab place that he will be leaving in a couple weeks. They have told him it will be 18 months before they will even know IF he will even walk again. Both his guts and legs are all screwed up. He has to sell his house because it is in no way wheel chair friendly. He is only about 50 years old.

The next time you think you had a bad day........

 

[jmp45]

Nope, you guys got it alllll wrong.
You don't need no facking strap
You need a Fly
5lbs of sonic goodness
View attachment 158046

They are light.. My lightest is the Epi Coronet 5 lbs 14 oz.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

My '14 Standard Light 120. Thin body and 9 hole weight relief. 7.8lbs.

View attachment 157928View attachment 157929

Would you say the sound is traditional Les Paul basically? I didn't know these were a thing.

I barely remember the Les Paul Custom lite from the '80's.

 

[scozz]

Took the best one off the wall at GC.

They made me feel like a KING that day.

Traded some dusty cheap guitars out of my closet, and wala...
A brand new quilt top burgundy Les Paul.
Sweeeeeeeet

Pics please.

 

[scozz]

They are light.. My lightest is the Epi Coronet 5 lbs 14 oz.

Coronets are nice guitars, almost bought one a couple of times. But that headstock,… oh the headstock!

 

[TheLoudness!!]

After I win the lottery, I'll buy some of those beautiful Gibsons y'all have on this post.

Always be on the lookout for used. Guitar Center online is a great place to score used.

I bought my '84 Flying v about 2 months ago for $637.50 from a seller on Reverb. They claimed the truss rod was bad. I took it a somewhat local shop and he said it was fine. I did have a plek job done to it though. Even after that, I still don't have much coin in it.

I mean it's not a Les Paul Custom or anything exotic but...just a great guitar.

I also will buy a bare husk and build one from the ground up. I agree that a lot of new pricing doesn't make sense at all.