Love my Harry Benz Strap! What are you using?

[M Journey]

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The Harry Benz urūshī - what a great strap!  Before getting the strap, I saw other forum members gushing about Harry Benz straps.  I didn't get it.  They looked like many of the other straps.  I also never handled buffalo leather before, so I didn't understand the hype.  Now that I have a Harry Benz strap in hand, I have become a believer.  More than a believer, I am preaching the Harry Benz gospel.

The strap is narrow (in width) much narrower than it looks in photos, but man is it sturdy.  I really like how robust and durable it feels.  The urūshī strap has hand painted color accents on the sides.  I love that the paint job isn't perfect and shows that it is hand crafted, matching the modus operandi of manual focusing Leica m cameras.  I don't think it will ever come off my m11.  10 years from now, this camera setup (1 camera, 1 lens, 1 strap) will look fantastic as it the kit wears from loving use.  My lens hood is already showing signs of wear (I keep the lens cap off all day when traveling). and the leather strap is breaking in nicely.  I can't wait for the body to start showing some usage (I know the silver bodies keep the like new look much longer than black bodies).  Maybe I will drop the camera on the ground a few times to give it some dents...

Harry was also able to make my strap 58" long, the longest urūshī strap he has ever done (at least according to him).  This makes it the perfect length (for my height and body type) to allow the camera to be worn cross body with the camera resting nicely in the OberWerth Jan pouch attached to my belt.  This allows me to carry the m with me wherever I go and out of sight unless I am taking a photo.

If you are looking for a great strap and/or on the fence about getting something from Harry Benz, do yourself a favor and swipe that credit card.  You will not be disappointed.  It is the perfect forever strap for your forever camera.  

Would love to see what straps others are using, especially if they are Harry Benz straps as well.

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[Al Brown]

Those unprotected rings will 100% scratch your camera.
All my current straps are DIY hand-made out of genuine leather, one is 150cm/5 feet long for the exact same purpose as yours (over the shoulder, in a pouch), the other is super short (80cm/2.62 feet) to carry my other camera on my chest. I found these lengths to be perfect for me.

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[M Journey]

7 minutes ago, Al Brown said:

Those unprotected rings will 100% scratch your camera.
All my current straps are DIY hand-made out of genuine leather, one is 150cm/5 feet long for the exact same purpose as yours (over the shoulder, in a pouch), the other is super short (80cm/2.62 feet) to carry my other camera on my chest. I found these lengths to be perfect for me.

Actually, I was concerned about that as well when I put my order in.  The straps are actually designed to be fatter where the ring is to make it almost impossible for the ring to touch the body.  I actually just tried twisting and turning the strap and rings in all sorts of positions and found that the rings would only ever touch the body if I twisted the strap with a lot of force while simultaneously pushing down on the strap to get it to touch the body.  If it does get some scratches, they that will be well-deserved badges of honor.

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[Al Brown]

If you move your strap 90 degrees or more on the Y axis along the ring the body is already exposed.

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[tritentrue]

My Bauhaus CL has an LSD OverDose LD (below), while the other CL makes do with a Vintage B.   No concerns about the strap marking the camera, just hope the camera doesn't mark the strap! 😂  I'll add a third strap eventually, just haven't decided what camera to buy for it.

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[IMAGEPOWER]

I prefer RocknRoll Straps slim for all my M Leicas. M11 silver feels very light due to flexible construction. Also perfect service, I had one strap on which a thread came loose, they replaced it immediately free of charge.

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Edited March 3, 2022 by IMAGEPOWER

[Jeff S]

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I wrote elsewhere about the SL ‘hinged’ Benz strap I bought for my SL2.  Never bonded with it functionally despite solid craftsmanship (although requiring Loctite per instructions), and sold it to another forum member. The black leather lug connection pieces also left a black residue on my fingers upon initial attachment. The more simply constructed Benz M straps might have proved more to my liking, but I’ve always preferred the time tested Leica 14312 straps for all my M bodies.  

Like bags, straps are subject to personal needs and tastes.  

Jeff

[LeicaS2]

I too use a Harry Benz but a  j-loop attached to a Harry  Benz La Cravate hand strap.

I have it on all my M’s and the ring has never scuffed the camera yet. I then have three different J-Loops to choose from, which I attached in crop form from other posts. 

I usually have La Cravate unclipped free from the J-Loop as the camera is usually in my hand. 

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[M Journey]

11 hours ago, IMAGEPOWER said:

I prefer RocknRoll Straps slim for all my M Leicas. M11 silver feels very light due to flexible construction. Also perfect service, I had one strap on which a thread came loose, they replaced it immediately free of charge.

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I was looking at rock and roll straps as well and they were actually my first choice but didn’t provide an option for the length that I needed.  I’ve seen a lot of positive feedback for their straps.

[M Journey]

11 hours ago, IMAGEPOWER said:

I prefer RocknRoll Straps slim for all my M Leicas. M11 silver feels very light due to flexible construction. Also perfect service, I had one strap on which a thread came loose, they replaced it immediately free of charge.

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That silver evf looks awesome on a silver m. 

[Herr Barnack]

21 hours ago, Al Brown said:

Those unprotected rings will 100% scratch your camera.

Au contraire.  I have had a Harry Benz B strap on my M-P 240 for over five years now with no scratches or rub marks caused by the rings.  Same story with my M10 Monochrom, which has been wearing a black B strap for nearly two years now. 

It's all about the way the strap ends are designed.

[Al Brown]

I have ordered one as I do my own straps to compare and analyze the exposed parts and will report.

Edited March 4, 2022 by Al Brown

[Slam630]

I like his LSD straps. Anybody else got one of those?

[IMAGEPOWER]

vor 12 Stunden schrieb M Journey:

That silver evf looks awesome on a silver m. 

It's an old-fashioned OVF, but works nonetheless 😉 

Edited March 4, 2022 by IMAGEPOWER

[IMAGEPOWER]

vor 14 Stunden schrieb M Journey:

I was looking at rock and roll straps as well and they were actually my first choice but didn’t provide an option for the length that I needed.  I’ve seen a lot of positive feedback for their straps.

They are very helpful...why not simply ask if they could provide a custom-made length of their straps? I am pretty sure they will deliver...

[Herr Barnack]

5 hours ago, IMAGEPOWER said:

It's an old-fashioned OVF, but works nonetheless 😉 

The vintage analog OVF looks a lot more pleasing than the new EVF for the M11.

The Visoflex 2 resembles a miniaturized head of a B grade 1960s sci-fi movie robot that has been sawed off and mounted atop an otherwise beautiful M11.

Edited March 4, 2022 by Herr Barnack

[norbertnl]

Harry makes nice straps indeed. After some usage, they become smooth while keeping their strength. Urūshī looks good an a more senior camera, too. 🙂

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[RMF]

I have Harry Benz straps on each of my M’s and love them; they are flexible despite their thickness, and seems super durable. I also really like that Harry will cut to the exact size as needed. I only wish his wait time wasn’t as long. @M Journey Please tell me more about the Oberwerth Jan pouch; I’m looking for some additional protection and think this might fit the bill. They one concern I have is that I wear my camera cross body and a few inches ‘above’ my waist/belt line . Does the Jan pouch need to attach to a belt?  Does it fold up flat when not on the camera?  I”m also considering Artie Di Mano’s Everdry pouch which seems similar.

thanks

[M Journey]

2 hours ago, RMF said:

I have Harry Benz straps on each of my M’s and love them; they are flexible despite their thickness, and seems super durable. I also really like that Harry will cut to the exact size as needed. I only wish his wait time wasn’t as long. @M Journey Please tell me more about the Oberwerth Jan pouch; I’m looking for some additional protection and think this might fit the bill. They one concern I have is that I wear my camera cross body and a few inches ‘above’ my waist/belt line . Does the Jan pouch need to attach to a belt?  Does it fold up flat when not on the camera?  I”m also considering Artie Di Mano’s Everdry pouch which seems similar.

thanks

The Jan pouch is designed to be attached to your belt via a loop on the pouch itself that you thread the belt through.  I wear it on u front just off to the side. This does require a slightly longer strap then you may have handy.  I like it more than having a sling bag since it’s much faster to take the camera out of and take a picture.  Great for the one camera and one lens setup.  The pouch is great protection for the camera in a bigger bag as well.

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[M Journey]

10 hours ago, IMAGEPOWER said:

They are very helpful...why not simply ask if they could provide a custom-made length of their straps? I am pretty sure they will deliver...

I actually called and they said they couldn’t make it as long as I needed