Schaller 14010401 Security Straplocks, Black Chrome

These are classic, well-made strap locks with a really solid feel. The fit and finish are excellent, and they match the stock black hardware on my Jackson bass perfectly. The black version seems harder to find, but it’s absolutely worth it if you care about aesthetics — they are true black, not the gray “smoke chrome” look that some hardware ends up being. They look great on the instrument and feel very secure once installed. The locking mechanism is smooth and confidence-inspiring, and once they’re on, I don’t worry about the strap at all. At this point they’re a must-have upgrade on all of my instruments.

I recently got back into playing and bought a brand new Jackson JS32 Dinky. I also purchased all the support equipment and hardware for it... except for the strap locks. As luck would have it, while wearing my guitar, my signature pointed Jackson headstock almost had a cataclysmic encounter with my hardwood floor as the strap popped off its lug at the horn. I thank my video game honed reflexes for catching it less than an inch from impact. I ordered the Schaller S-Locks in black chrome. The finish is a perfect match to the guitar's beautiful native hardware as seen in the photos. The replacement lugs screwed in effortlessly with high quality self-tapping wood-screw threads. I was able to turn them in using one of the hex keys Jackson provided to tune the Floyd Rose bridge. In the end, the lugs look like the guitar came from the factory with them already on. Time to install them, maybe two-three minutes tops. The install problem came with the strap posts. As shown, I have a leather strap, and the holes were far too tight to fit the post through without warping the strap. Thus, I spent an hour slicing and shearing away at the holes to expand them just enough to nicely fit the posts. If I had to install more of these, I would buy a properly sized leatherworking punch to make the task clean and simple. Everything attached, the straps click on almost effortlessly, and are thoroughly impossible to remove without pulling the release. They are silent and best of all, provide that peace of mind that my guitar will stay on my shoulder and not meet an unfortunate end. As my title suggests, these things should be standard hardware on ALL guitars. If you are a first time guitar buyer, you really want to get a set of these. They are a perfect, tiny example of amazing, well thought out engineering.

Fantastic strap locks. Obviously, a company like Schaller puts out a high quality product. Be advised, like many other reviews point out, “black chrome” is merely just a gloss black, not the smoked-out chrome look that some manufacturers refer to as “cosmo black”. I would prefer these be available in that color as well, but they still look great. The use of an Allen key is an interesting choice for the strap buttons, but they installed just fine for me on 3 Ibanez S guitars. These also come with felt rings as a buffer between the metal of the strap buttons and your guitar. The locks install on the strap with ease. A small screwdriver will be necessary to tighten a set screw on the nut of the lock. The locks with the provided buttons are manufactured to a tight tolerance leaving very little room for the locks to wiggle and cause unwanted noise, but still the locks rotate smoothly and freely around the buttons. Can’t go wrong with these.

I've seen reviews where some have had a problem with these. Some couldn't get the strap off their guitar, some split the wood, etc, etc. Common sense will prevail. First, learn to use it BEFORE you install it on your guitar. When you get it, examine it and understand how it works. All you do is pull out on the end of the lock and slide it off the button. So easy and yet it's a positive lock that won't come loose, until you're ready to remove it. Second, examine the screw and drill the wood first, if necessary. Trying to use the screw as a 'self tapping' screw will surely give you bad results. After all, you're going into hardwood. The other thing I saw was, it won't work on leather straps. This is NOT TRUE. I have leather straps ... good leather straps ... and the Schaller works just fine ... without me having to cut them. Yes, there was a bit of a 'pucker,' but that flattened out once I screwed down the straplock onto the strap. I use these on my heavy, Gibson Les Paul and there are absolutely no problems. If you're unsure about installing them, ask someone you trust to install them. They are so easy to use. You don't have to worry about the strap coming off the button and your guitar hitting the floor. Strapping-up and unstrapping is a one-handed operation ... and quick. You're going to like them, once installed.

Great product. Use on all my electrics.

Every guitar or bass that I have (except acoustics) has a version of Schaller strap locks on it. I have used the old version for years. The issue with the old version was that it was difficult to screw the slim bolt on top of the post to secure it to the strap. Even with that bit of difficulty, they were the best available and all of mine still work well. Never lost a guitar. This new version, S-locks solves that issue by using a round collar that is easy to screw down with just your fingers. Yet they can also be tightened further using a thin hex key and then further locked down with a small screw. This is a no-doubt solution. The other improvement is to the length of the shaft that the collar-bolt uses. It is a good bit longer than the old version so if you have a thick leather strap or strap-ends, there will be no problem getting that bolt started. The third change is that the strap button and the screw that affixes it to the guitar body is now one piece. This was the most frightening change to me because I have had the past experience where the screws were too thin to make a good connection with the body. After using this on a new guitar made out of Swamp Ash, I don't feel this will be an issue. If the screw doesn't fit it can be remedied just like any other screw hole that is too large; a dry toothpick or two to fill the gap. Swamp Ash is a dense wood and the screw self-tapped into the wood easily and very securely with no slippage. The finish on Schaller strap locks is historically incredible, I even have a set of gold that still looks good after 35 years. They are pricey but even if you have a $100 guitar or bass that you want to keep safe, it is worth the money. Save your stock strap buttons and screws. If you get a new guitar, take the strap locks off and put them on the new guitar. When I get a new guitar/bass the first thing I do is put Schaller strap locks on it.

I just ordered 2 more of these. They look great, they work great, and they are easy to install. I have three guitars to set up but only ordered one because I wasn't sure how it worked. There were a lot of reviews about how good they are, but not a lot about the mechanism itself. The little round knob that is shown in the image is actually spring loaded and when pulled releases the strap from the guitar, meaning it is locked on and will not come off unless intentionally released. At first I thought the small rounded knob was difficult to work, but then I realized that was the point. Being round means it won't easily snag on things like clothing and cables, so yes, it is a little cumbersome, but in a good way. So why didn't I give five stars? The paint on the black ones scratches very easily. I had read this and was expecting it, which is why I had a Sharpie on hand. The instructions tell you to cut away the overlapping pieces of the guitar strap. Doing this will ensure that your strap will not be properly secured to your guitar should you remove this item later. So, If you have a collectors item or don't feel comfortable with that, then you shouldn't order this product. The Product uses smaller diameter screws going into the body of the guitar than the my original strap pins, which means that you will have to use the longer screws because the short ones supplied won't tighten, and the original screw that from your strap pins won't fit through the hole on the new hardware. There is no supplied hardware to cover an existing hole (as in a hole used to double as a pick jack/strap pin). This is the case of my Martin acoustic. I decided to mount a new strap pin behind the pickup so I can have both, but I rarely plug in my Martin and would have simply taken the pickup off if it had been an option. It would have been nice if they had thrown in a matching washer and machine nut/bolt in addition to the wood screws. So there are a few minor inconveniences, but the bottom line is the same as the top line. I just ordered two more of these.

These arrived in a timely manner and I did find them to be exceptionally engineered. The fact that the post and screw were 1 piece, and allen head instead of phillips head screw impressed me. Also, the locking nut on the strap end was 1- very easy to install; and 2- impressive with the set screw lock. Once tightened down, there is no fear of it working loose as with other, less expensive manufacturers. Will be purchasing more for my other guitars. Highly recommend to any and every guitarist. Well worth the extra cost to protect your instrument.