the Spinners guitar straps?

Subject: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 03 May 15 - 08:09 AM

i've got to do some gigs where i walk round. not keen on the guitar strap!

alternatives;-

i seem to remember The Spinners used to have these things that looked a bit like wampum necklaces, and part of the necklace snaked cunningly under the belly of the guitar and hooked into the sound hole.

did these things work, and are they still available, and what are they called? any help on the matter would be appreciated.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,alex s no cookie
Date: 03 May 15 - 08:33 AM

I used to use these - I think they are used mainly for (lighter) classical/flamenco guitars, ukes and mandolins. You can find them on ebay as uke/mandolin straps. However you may find that as they offer only one point of support you have to support your instrument with your left hand unless you anchor it with your right arm - not too good for a guitarist due to the weight.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,Eddie1 - Sans cookie as ever
Date: 03 May 15 - 08:45 AM

Yes, used mainly for classical or Flamenco guitars and no balance achievable. Might be better to buy an end pin to fit in the "heel" of the neck. Provided you have a non-slip backing to the pad on the strap, this will hold the guitar quite comfortably?

Eddie

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,punkfolkrocker
Date: 03 May 15 - 12:53 PM

Al - earlier this year I started a thread about luxury leather straps
in part to alert mudcatters to a mad sale at amazon
where some supposedly original retail price Levy's Leathers straps
were knocked down from approx 60 quid to less than 20..

I got a thick padded wide strap and attached a cheap Planet Waves
Acoustic Quick-Release to the headstock.

It works a treat...
and as a result I'm strumming my acoustic more than I ever have in the previous decade or so...

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: Stanron
Date: 03 May 15 - 02:06 PM

I've always associated the sound hole straps with classical guitars. You have to make sure the guitar is held in place at all times. Take your hands away from it and it will spin on down to the floor. Also I wouldn't use one on a guitar I valued because of the potential damage that could be done to the sound board.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,Ray
Date: 03 May 15 - 02:11 PM

Can't speak for the Spinners; they wre always treated as a joke when I was involved with the folk world, but I bought something similar for ukulele a while back from Eagle Music - toughened, non stretch, fabric with bent metal piece inside which hooks on the lower part of the sound hole.

Whether they do one big enough for guitar or even whether still sell them I don't know; the search facility on their website is little short of pathetic.

I did see an interesting device at a guitar show a couple of years ago. It consisted of a harness which went round your shoullders with a clip at the front and a spiggot which attached to the back of your instrument with suckers. Looked reasonably stable; the person demonstrating the thing was spinning a guitar round on it. No don't remember the name and suspect the product has since gone to the wall the usual way of such novelties.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 03 May 15 - 03:38 PM

Get a strap button on the neck-heel if there isn't one there already, get a standard guitar strap, and practice playing standing, using the strap. It's just like anything else to do with playing an instrument - it feels strange initially if you're used to playing seated, but you do get used to it.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,punkfolkrocker
Date: 03 May 15 - 03:42 PM

I've found that with the new wide strap, after trial and error setting a comfortable length,
I can position the guitar with the neck at the angle I want
and it stays put without drifting downwards...

..and that's wearing a smooth cotton shirt...

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 03 May 15 - 04:18 PM

I have mine hand-made by Sully's Straps in the U.S.

The shoulder-piece is lined with suede, and it ain't going nowhere. Fantastic straps, no metal bits to damage your guitar, just leather, thread and a lot of top-class workmanship. And reasonably-priced.

Sully's new straps page

Sully also makes superb straps from vintage horse-tack, but they are obviously more expensive.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: Bugsy
Date: 04 May 15 - 08:34 AM

I've got a wide leather Gibson guitar strap and a similar Maton strap. Both work very well.

CHeers

Bugsy

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: PHJim
Date: 04 May 15 - 10:47 AM

Willie Nelson uses the type of strap you're referring to. His is macraméd in red, white and blue. Remember macramé? I had a macraméd strap in the sixties, as did a lot of other folks.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 04 May 15 - 01:04 PM

Big Al, you seem to be asking for the impossible. You cannot walk around and play guitar at the same time unless the guitar has a strap.

But i know what to do. When you set up the gigs, specify an armless office chair for you to sit in. Then when you have to move, scoot rather than walk. Make sure it is a safe, modern chair, not some old junker that tips you backward.

That's the only thing I can think of.

Subject: RE: the Spinners guitar straps?
From: GUEST
Date: 05 May 15 - 05:52 AM

Big Al said "i've got to do some gigs where i walk round. not keen on the guitar strap!"

What's the issue with the strap? Uncomfortable, can't get a good playing posture?

How do you currently have the strap set up? If one end goes to the head of the guitar, I can understand your issue. I only think you can get a decent posture with strap buttons on the guitar body...

The classical guitar strap with a hook (anyone remember Pete Atkin and Clive James' song "Thief in the Night" - "Around his neck a ribbon with a slender silver hook, like some military order, second class"?) has its own issues as others have pointed out. In particular, it relies on you continually holding the instrument in place.