Item Reviews for:
Subject
Leather Plus "Seat-Belt" Makes a Reliable Strap
FiveStringer from Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
Quality
Would you consider this product to be made well? How dependable?
Oh, quality is top-notch: The leather is rich and multilayered.... It'll live as long as you will. The synthetic components are idiot-proof, and if you're not an idiot, even better--you've got a strap for life. WITH STRAPLOCKS, you can twirl your bass on this strap, strain against it, and so on, and be as secure as can be that your bass will not end up wrecked on the stage. However, if you take a knife to it, yeah, bye-bye bass. But you knew that.
Reliability
How has it stood up over time?
Withstood and continues to withstand aggressive playing, involving my applying significant pressure to the strap, adjusting it frequently, and generally abusing it as I see fit. And yet...the leather still shines, and the synthetics are intact as they were on the day this strap arrived at my door. My Warwick straplocks "like" the leather ends, and have not "eaten away" at the leather. The strap and locks coexist beautifully, which is not always the case with other strap/lock combos. I play fivers exclusively, and those beasts tend to be heavy. This strap laughs at them.
Overall
Your general opinion of this product.
This is an extremely strong strap, with the leather ends sewn on flawlessly, the synthetic (literally like a new seatbelt) main strap thick and idiot-proof-strong, and the padding substantial and securely sewn. My only quibble is the price: Most of this strap is made out of synthetic material, albeit high-quality. And yet the strap costs about the same as a roughly equal-quality (just not Levy's) all-leather, padded strap. I recommend it because Levy's straps are second to none and your bass (this is a wide strap) will be secure and fatigue will be minimized. However, I hereby scold Levy's for charging so darn much.
Playability and Feel
How does it feel, Heavy, Fast, Chunky? How was the neck? Are the controls easy to get to while playing?
This is a strap for players who prefer to have their bass slung low: Not punk-low, but watch out...if you're a six-string jazz-head with a preference to holding the bass near your chin (ahahah), this IS NOT for you. This strap is most suitable for rockers and hard-funk players predisposed to maintaining significant distance between shoulders and bass (again, this IS a bass-strap, IMHO). It works wonderfully for me. However, if you are of below-average height (significantly, say, 5'6," get a shorter strap: You will not be able to to adjust this one enough to get it above your knees.
Tone
Bright and snappy? Dark and smooth? Were the pickups hot, mellow, thick, thin?
N/A
Finish
How did the stain or paint job look?
Flawless sewing; jet-black dye (leather) without a stain; synthetic materials smooth without any visible flaws whatsoever.
Action
How was the action out of the box?
N/A