Strapping Your Way to Greatness (Or Fun): Choosing The Right Guitar Strap

Wearing a guitar strap does not only make you feel more comfortable playing your guitar, but also shows your personal, creative style. Different straps are created to suit your needs and preferences. The materials, colors and designs used all aim to achieve one thing: to help you become a cooler and better guitarist. Although function is the top priority in choosing the right strap for you, the style that you could suit you as a guitar player also makes a big difference. This article looks into the different types of guitar straps, which could give you a better idea on what your preferred strap will be.

Types of Guitar Straps

Given the history and development of stringed instruments like the guitar, there are a lot of types of straps out there that it would be too overwhelming to discuss in this article. Thus I will be focusing on 3 common and basic ones: Nylon, Suede and Leather Straps.

A. Nylon Straps - These are the most affordable and consequently the most sold strap type in terms of numbers. It is a basic need of a professional guitar player; more often than not, you will get to see at least one nylon strap in a guitar player's bag. Another component which makes it loved by many guitar players is its durability, given that it is of a dependable quality. Among these nylon straps, you can see some of them with leather parts on each end, while some have plastic. However, the ones with leather parts, which are more often known as basic nylon straps, are less durable, especially if you play a lot. But, there are better versions with high quality leather out there too. The important thing here is not to rush on buying one; test them as much as you can or simply ask advice from fellow, more experienced guitar players, like this guy, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ryan/snl-scorecard-ben-affleck_b_3302738.html.

B. Suede Straps - These are the more classic types given the materials used, and thus more expensive than nylon straps. Just like nylon straps, basic straps are easy to store in bags, while padded ones, although much more comfortable to use, is not as easy to store.

C. Leather Guitar Straps - considered the best and the most durable among the three, leather straps are the most expensive too. A leather guitar strap can withstand a longer period of time of wear and tear, and it gets more comfortable to use as years go by (just like your favorite wine). The more classic feel of leather straps are due to their materials; some more exotic ones have cow or snakeskin added on the straps.

In the end, what matters the most is how comfortable and confident you are playing your guitar with your strap. Nothing beats the feeling of letting your heart out while playing your tunes, and choosing the right guitar strap type could help you get that.