Love my Harry Benz Strap! What are you using?

[Herr Barnack]

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On 3/4/2022 at 3:52 AM, Slam630 said:

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

I have thought of having Harry make me one of his LSD straps, but with a blazing psychedelic full length paint coverage, not just the strap ends.  His plain B Straps are quite beautiful in their simplicity, though.  Ugh, I'm torn between the two ends of the spectrum.  When I at long last get my M11, it will need something special in the way of a strap, though...

 

 

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[SiOnara]

Using the stock one that came with the camera. Love those straps. 
 

 

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Edited May 16, 2022 by SiOnara
Image problem

[Herr Barnack]

@SiOnara  They are very good quality straps, but are too short for across the chest carry. 

I don't like having my camera practically up in my armpit when I'm not shooting.

Edited May 16, 2022 by Herr Barnack

[Anbaric]

I use the humble but ingenious Leica 14312 strap, now discontinued (I guess a nylon strap for the M series doesn't really fit with Leica's corporate image these days, or they decided it wasn't nearly expensive enough). The equally unassuming Nikon AN-4B, another simple nylon strap with only subtle branding, is also a favourite (I currently have one on my IIIg ERC, which is probably sacrilege).

[RMF]

17 hours ago, lostproperty said:

Couldn’t be happier with my black vintage b strap. The quality of the water buffalo leather and attention to detail makes it, to my mind, great value for the money. Fast turnaround, great communication and the option to customize the length of the strap means that I will be back with another order for my M10M. 

Love my Harry Benz straps (I have two) but I wouldn’t call them ‘fast turn around’ on orders… I think it was at least a 4 month wait on my last order. Its well worth the wait,  I just wish I could get them a little quicker as I”d be ordering a few more right away.

[lostproperty]

37 minutes ago, RMF said:

Love my Harry Benz straps (I have two) but I wouldn’t call them ‘fast turn around’ on orders… I think it was at least a 4 month wait on my last order. Its well worth the wait,  I just wish I could get them a little quicker as I”d be ordering a few more right away.

Maybe contact Harry about his turnaround time? Speaking from my own experience — 3 weeks from ordering to receiving my vintage b strap is fast….and I agree, the quality is fantastic and the thickness of the leather makes it very comfortable to wear all day with heavier m lenses attached. 

[Siriusone59]

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1 hour ago, lostproperty said:

Maybe contact Harry about his turnaround time? Speaking from my own experience — 3 weeks from ordering to receiving my vintage b strap is fast….and I agree, the quality is fantastic and the thickness of the leather makes it very comfortable to wear all day with heavier m lenses attached. 

Couldn't agree more about the quality and workmanship.  I ordered a 130cm urushi expecting it to take at least two months,  it arrived in 33 days.  Extremely pleased with the strap and buying experience.

[fsprow]

Black parachute cord, knotted at ends. No wait time, cost about 50 cents. Same since my M3. 

Edited May 17, 2022 by fsprow

[THEME]

10 hours ago, SiOnara said:

Using the stock one that came with the camera. Love those straps. 

Would have loved that one too, but the quality is dismissal. Leica should be ashamed to include such low quality fake leather with the M. The protecting patches at the ends already fray after a few weeks of using the camera, without ever getting wet. Good look with yours!

[SiOnara]

14 hours ago, Herr Barnack said:

@SiOnara  They are very good quality straps, but are too short for across the chest carry. 

I don't like having my camera practically up in my armpit when I'm not shooting.

Yeah luckily I just get away with it length wise.  I just can't put any weight on!

[SiOnara]

3 hours ago, THEME said:

Would have loved that one too, but the quality is dismissal. Leica should be ashamed to include such low quality fake leather with the M. The protecting patches at the ends already fray after a few weeks of using the camera, without ever getting wet. Good look with yours!

Will see how it gets on.  I used the same strap with the Q2M and that's holding up well.

[haribo]

On 5/16/2022 at 3:23 PM, RMF said:

Love my Harry Benz straps (I have two) but I wouldn’t call them ‘fast turn around’ on orders… I think it was at least a 4 month wait on my last order. Its well worth the wait,  I just wish I could get them a little quicker as I”d be ordering a few more right away.

Hi there!

I am sorry that you and a few others had to wait that long for their straps. 
During the long (and strict) lockdowns here in Canada I had to deal with several issues. During the first one of the three i was literally locked out of my studio and couldn’t work at all. About six month before the nightmare started I had moved my workspace into a commercial studio. When Covid hit I wasn’t even allowed to enter the building for three month.
Once back I worked hard to catch up with the backlog. But four weeks later i had to make the tough decision to stop again.

Knowing full well there will be more lockdowns coming, I decided not to extend my lease, give up my large studio space and instead move everything back to my apartment. Which was not as easy as it sounds since I now had to make space for a few more large things like a 6ft long work table and a bell skiving machine.

The process wasn’t easy and took a while. But only a couple months later the move turned out to be a smart decision because the next lockdown hit. 
To make a long story short, although I could at least work during the next, essentially nine month of lockdowns that followed (except for two weeks in the middle of March) I ran into other problems that slowed me down, the list goes from family tragedies to supply shortage issues.

Anyhow, all this is in the past. I am happy to report wait times for orders are a lot shorter now. Weeks, not months. 
Thank you for your patience and of course, supporting my small business during these tough times. 
 

Harry

[LeicaS2]

Harry,

Good to see you back on the forum, and able to catch up a bit.

Your work is the best!

Jack

[Jean-Michel]

Hi,

I just noticed this thread (M11) as I was opening up the Forum page, I do no have a M11. I happen to have a Harry Benz strap for my SL2. Harry made the strap length to my required measurements. His design for the SL2 really, really works well and I am very happy with the strap. There was a bit of a wait, but absolutely worth it.

Jean-Michel

[Prosophos]

I am a fan...

https://prosophos.com/2017/08/16/harry-benz-hand-crafted-straps/

https://prosophos.com/2018/03/10/harry-benz-strikes-again-2/

I met Harry in person when I picked up my straps (purchased with my own money ... this is not a paid advertisement!) and he was kind enough to show me his workspace.  He's a guy who's clearly passionate about his work and is a stickler for details.  The quality is more than evident.

And @Al Brown, I can confirm that his straps do NOT scratch the camera.

—Peter.

[haribo]

8 minutes ago, Prosophos said:

I am a fan...

https://prosophos.com/2017/08/16/harry-benz-hand-crafted-straps/

https://prosophos.com/2018/03/10/harry-benz-strikes-again-2/

I met Harry in person when I picked up my straps (purchased with my own money ... this is not a paid advertisement!) and he was kind enough to show me his workspace.  He's a guy who's clearly passionate about his work and is a stickler for details.  The quality is more than evident.

And @Al Brown, I can confirm that his straps do NOT scratch the camera.

—Peter.

Thank you for the kind words, Peter. 
Trust me when I say my workspace (aka home) changed drastically after moving back from my studio in Yorkville. 
If you like you should come and visit me some time. 

For anybody else who’d like to see more of my work but can’t visit in person, feel free to ‘visit’ me on Instagram, @harrybenz. 
There you’ll find lots of photos, from camera straps to special requests like a half case or a custom lens case (with my own little design twist).
Plus, many photos of non photography related work like fine leather accessories and/or luxury bags for men and women, including many work-in-progress pictures. 
Of course, everything is handcrafted and saddle stitched by hand. 
 

Harry

[ianforber]

Are the Harry Benz straps relatively slippy? I have some nice leather straps but all have a rough underside which prevents the camera from slipping around but that’s not what I want. I carry the camera cross body and need the strap to move as I bring it up to my eye and then back to my hip. The Peak Design Leash is perfect for that but I am not keen on the look on a M11 or the potential for scratches from the metal buckles. 

Any ideas on which straps work for cross body shooting or tips/techniques for how I could make my current straps work better?

[Jeff S]

1 hour ago, ianforber said:

Are the Harry Benz straps relatively slippy? I have some nice leather straps but all have a rough underside which prevents the camera from slipping around but that’s not what I want. I carry the camera cross body and need the strap to move as I bring it up to my eye and then back to my hip. The Peak Design Leash is perfect for that but I am not keen on the look on a M11 or the potential for scratches from the metal buckles. 

Any ideas on which straps work for cross body shooting or tips/techniques for how I could make my current straps work better?

The only camera I sometimes carry cross body is my SL2, with zooms, and the PD Leash has served well.  I preferred it to the Benz SL2 strap, which I sold. No scratches with the PD, and the anchor clips are plastic AFAIK. There are other threads on PD straps here, with others reporting no issues after extended use.
 

On M bodies, I stick to the tried and true Leica 14312 straps (recently discontinued), which are light, flexible, comfortable and durable.

Jeff

Edited August 12, 2022 by Jeff S

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[haribo]

1 hour ago, ianforber said:

Are the Harry Benz straps relatively slippy? I have some nice leather straps but all have a rough underside which prevents the camera from slipping around but that’s not what I want. I carry the camera cross body and need the strap to move as I bring it up to my eye and then back to my hip. The Peak Design Leash is perfect for that but I am not keen on the look on a M11 or the potential for scratches from the metal buckles. 

Any ideas on which straps work for cross body shooting or tips/techniques for how I could make my current straps work better?

I don’t want to come across as actively promoting my work here. Which is why I usually refrain from posting at all. 
But please allow me to clarify this here.

For all my camera straps I do not use cow leather (in all its forms, from calf to buffalo). Which is what’s mainly being used by others for leather camera straps. 
Water-Buffalo, the leather I use is from a different kind of animal. In fact, it’s a different species all together. And hence, the leather does have completely different characteristics. 
To answer your question: Yes, the strap will move freely across one’s shoulder. No, it is not slippery like a strap made from cow leather would be. Big difference. 

Furthermore: A cow-leather strap with the same or similar thickness as I use for my straps, would be as stiff and inflexible as a piece of 4x4 wood. 
In opposite, Water-Buffalo is soft and flexible from the start and will become even softer with time and use. Yet, unlike cow-leather, it will not stretch in the process. Again, big difference.

Last but not least, I designed the connector pieces that attach the split ring to the strap purposely in a way that makes it impossible for the ring to touch the camera’s body. No matter how much one twists it.

Thank you for allowing me to clarify this.

Harry

[ianforber]

1 hour ago, haribo said:

I don’t want to come across as actively promoting my work here. Which is why I usually refrain from posting at all. 
But please allow me to clarify this here.

For all my camera straps I do not use cow leather (in all its forms, from calf to buffalo). Which is what’s mainly being used by others for leather camera straps. 
Water-Buffalo, the leather I use is from a different kind of animal. In fact, it’s a different species all together. And hence, the leather does have completely different characteristics. 
To answer your question: Yes, the strap will move freely across one’s shoulder. No, it is not slippery like a strap made from cow leather would be. Big difference. 

Furthermore: A cow-leather strap with the same or similar thickness as I use for my straps, would be as stiff and inflexible as a piece of 4x4 wood. 
In opposite, Water-Buffalo is soft and flexible from the start and will become even softer with time and use. Yet, unlike cow-leather, it will not stretch in the process. Again, big difference.

Last but not least, I designed the connector pieces that attach the split ring to the strap purposely in a way that makes it impossible for the ring to touch the camera’s body. No matter how much one twists it.

Thank you for allowing me to clarify this.

Harry

Thanks Harry, that’s really helpful clarification.