'New' Schaller S-Locks

Toopy14

Axe-Master
So after 14 years of playing guitar sitting down, I finally decided to dust off my guitar straps and locks and try playing standing up. It's not as hard as I thought it would be! lol

I have the traditional Schaller strap locks on my Levy's straps that have pretty thick leather on them. One thing I didn't like about oringal Schaller strap locks, was how hard it was to get the nut on a such a short thread and that you needed a wrench to tighten them. I went online looking to order another set and one comment someone made on Amazon, was that the ones pictured in the listing are not what he was sent. He said he was sent the new Schaller S Locks. So I did a quick search and found this video talking about the design changes, one of which is a longer thread length to fit through thick leather straps. There's some other really cool new features too!



I'm curious to know if anyone has bought a set and tried them and if so, what your thoughts are.

Thanks!
 
Do a quick forum search... There have been some discussion on them in the past couple years.

Seems like they do solve a couple common complaints, but from memory they also introduce some new ones.

For me, I've got about 25 instruments with the original Schaller locks... And only use 3-4 straps (my primary 2 are identical, others are for specific cases where I need a different strap height) so retrofitting all of them would be quite expensive.

The strap buttons for the original can be had for a few bucks at Stewart MacDonald, so I didn't spend a fortune on sets for every instrument that would not get used.
 
I have the new S-Locks on a few guitars and I do like them better than the old style, especially the part that fits on the guitar strap. It is much more substantial, fits thick straps better, and is easier to get tight and lock securely in place. Certainly an improvement in my book.

They also fit the original buttons just fine, though they rattle a bit like the old ones do.
 
I have old ones on 6 basses and guitar. The new design button will have the same issue with loosing in guitar body. New nut will be easier to tighten, but it can also get loose, That I have sorted by using a drop of thread locker. New design is little bit longer. In general - it is an improvement, but not worth to change....
 
You never stood while playing guitar for 14 years? :oops::eek: (mind blown)

I hate playing guitar while sitting down.
 
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I saw them at Winter NAMM earlier this year. Ordered straplocks and got the new type. They are very easy and definitely work better than the old ones.
 
I hate playing guitar while sitting down.
Electric I stand, acoustic I sit.
As for the strap-locks I prefer the new ones.
I believe their patent ran out on the old ones hence the new design, if you you prefer the old design Fender now has their own branded strap-locks which are identical to the old Schallers.
 
I have about 20 guitars that have the old Schallers. The new ones look like an improvement. I will not be changing out to the new ones.
 
Do a quick forum search... There have been some discussion on them in the past couple years.

Seems like they do solve a couple common complaints, but from memory they also introduce some new ones.

For me, I've got about 25 instruments with the original Schaller locks... And only use 3-4 straps (my primary 2 are identical, others are for specific cases where I need a different strap height) so retrofitting all of them would be quite expensive.

The strap buttons for the original can be had for a few bucks at Stewart MacDonald, so I didn't spend a fortune on sets for every instrument that would not get used.
I have some old style Schaller Strap Locks and some of the new style Schaller S Locks.

They are in fact interchangable. I can move straps from one instrument to another without concern for if it is Strap or S Lock style.

I do not like that the screws on the S Locks are now allens wrench heads and are integrated into the strap button. I like being able to use different screws if needed to on the old style locks.

I also find the S Lock style a little stiffer when locking in and releasing.

The longer shaft does make getting the locks on a strap MUCH easier.

All in all either style works fine and gets the job done. When I can find the old style strap lock style, I will choose them over the S Locks.

If I had my way, Schaller would have kept the old style buttons and used the S Lock strap pieces.
 
I have some old style Schaller Strap Locks and some of the new style Schaller S Locks.

They are in fact interchangable. I can move straps from one instrument to another without concern for if it is Strap or S Lock style.

I do not like that the screws on the S Locks are now allens wrench heads and are integrated into the strap button. I like being able to use different screws if needed to on the old style locks.

I also find the S Lock style a little stiffer when locking in and releasing.

The longer shaft does make getting the locks on a strap MUCH easier.

All in all either style works fine and gets the job done. When I can find the old style strap lock style, I will choose them over the S Locks.

If I had my way, Schaller would have kept the old style buttons and used the S Lock strap pieces.
All of this ^^^^^^^^

Luckily, when I got the S Locks, I had a spare set of buttons from the Straplocks I got for my Ricky 12, as it came with the buttons.
 
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Electric I stand, acoustic I sit.

Pretty much that too. Acoustic feels intimate, in which case sitting feels more appropriate, electric is for rocking and you can't rock sitting down. When I rock I want to move about, can't do that sitting down.
 
Pretty much that too. Acoustic feels intimate, in which case sitting feels more appropriate, electric is for rocking and you can't rock sitting down. When I rock I want to move about, can't do that sitting down.
How does this relate to Schaller S Locks?
 
How does this relate to Schaller S Locks?

Other then that you need good strap locks in order to properly rock out, not much probably. But the OP did say that he hasn't played guitar standing in 14 years, until now, which was why he needed strap locks to begin with. And 14 years of playing guitar sitting down is pretty :fearscream: in my book.
 
Other then that you need good strap locks in order to properly rock out, not much probably. But the OP did say that he hasn't played guitar standing in 14 years, until now, which was why he needed strap locks to begin with. And 14 years of playing guitar sitting down is pretty :fearscream: in my book.
I do Vai, Van Halen, Rhoads, Satch, Metallica, and many other rock and metal artists. I mostly play sitting down. Standing or sitting has no impact on my playing. The playing rocks whether standing or sitting. No need to go all Angus Young while playing at home.

I do use a strap regardless of whether I am standing or sitting. The reason? If the guitar shifts as I move while sitting it will not fall off my leg. It is a safety thing. It also helps to keep the guitar in better position for playing. Why do I need strap locks if I am sitting? They make it easier to attach and remove the strap. Additionally leather straps wear over time and the button holes get loose. When this happens, the strap can pop off the strap button when tension is eased on the strap.... as happens when sitting.

Strap locks usage is not a standing or sitting thing to me. It is about having a fail safe mechanism to protect things that I highly value.
 
I prefer the Dunlop or Ernie ball locks that double as regular strap buttons. If I need to use a regular strap I can on those.

I don’t like the U design of the Schaller because if it turns upside down for some reason, nothing much is holding the guitar on. It’s happened and the guitar fell off the strap.
 
I don’t like the U design of the Schaller because if it turns upside down for some reason, nothing much is holding the guitar on. It’s happened and the guitar fell off the strap.
Never had that happen on 20+ years and close to a dozen straps. I actually prefer the horseshoe design because there’s something to catch the guitar if the pin does get pulled somehow (which I’ve also never seen happen).
 
I don’t like the U design of the Schaller because if it turns upside down for some reason, nothing much is holding the guitar on. It’s happened and the guitar fell off the strap.
The newer design addresses that to some degree, with the locking setscrew keeping the retaining nut/disc/thingie from loosening, which should keep the U upright....
 
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