Schaller strap locks - the definitive Installation thread.

[Leee]

WELCOME TO THE DEFINITIVE
THREAD FOR INSTALLING
SCHALLER STRAP BUTTONS
ON YOUR LES PAUL
(And putting the locks on your strap)

If you want to put old-school Schaller strap locks on your Les Paul, this might save you some hassles, headaches, and embarrassing failures.

Disclaimer:
This will not work with the “new” and “improved” Schaller S-Locks that were introduced in 2018. (And they suck.)

Out of necessity, I finally got a system down that works very well.
It took some trial and error, and a few Eureka moments, but these tips and tricks can make some of your guitar worries go away.

Starting in the early 1990s, I was tired of crummy strap buttons and screws pulling out of bodies on all the used guitars I had bought since 1980.
Don’t even get me started on the vile toothpick trick - it WILL fail.

I seriously considered permanently fastening my straps to my guitars.
Nah … that ain’t gonna work.

So I started looking into the strap locks that were on the market at the time.
I decided that the Schaller horseshoe design made the most sense to me from a mechanical standpoint.
In 30-something years since then, I’ve put them on dozens of guitars.

I’m not here to argue that the Schaller design is better than Dunlop.
(Even though it is)
And if you’re happy using washers off a beer bottle, you don’t need to read this.
If you don’t want to use Schallers?
That’s fine.
Do your thang.

But if you like to learn from other people‘s mistakes, this is your thread!

Tools & supplies:

You’re gonna need a drill.

5/32" drill bit.

A metal file.

Small vise, or Channel Lock locking pliers.

6-point 1/2” & 13mm socket and ratchet.

A large flat blade screwdriver.

And the secret sauce -
2 Buna rubber faucet washers.

I use the ones made by Danco.
Size 00 is about 1/8” thick, and 1/2” inch diameter.
Part number is 88569.

They come in packs of 10 for less than five bucks. You can get 'em at Home Depot, Ace Hardware, or online.

 

[Leee]

The first problem that you will encounter on your Les Paul is that #8 wood screw on the back of the body.
It’s a pretty safe bet that the strap button back there uses a larger screw than the #6 used on the upper bout.

That larger screw supplied by Gibson will not fit through the Schaller strap pin.
We’re gonna fix that.

DO NOT use the screws that come with the strap locks, whether made by Schaller, Grover, Fender…

Seriously -
Throw those cheap-ass screws away.
We’re gonna reuse the screws that your guitar was born with. Protect those threads that have already been cut inside the body.

When you’re done, that oversize screw will look like this:

 

[Leee]

Shout-out to MojoAxe.

They sell strap pins already modified to fix this problem.
I’ve never bought them, since I have done so many on my own over the years, but it looks like a pretty sweet deal.
Here's a link to the web page:

MojoAxe Custom Guitar Parts

Click on it and scroll down.

 

[Leee]

So the first thing you’ll have to do is get that #8 screw out of the body and stick it in a drill.
Doesn’t have to be very tight.
No need to damage the threads.

Then get out your handy metal file and rub the outer diameter of that head up and down the length of the file - while the spinning drill does most of the work.

Should wind up with something like this:

Keep grinding down the outer diameter of that #8 screw head until it will fit within the strap pin.

Next thing you will have to do is to drill out the center hole of the pin, so the screw will slide through.

The drill bit size is 5/32".
DO NOT try to hold the strap pin in a pair of pliers. You will regret it.

Use a thin piece of carboard in the jaws of your locking pliers or your bench vise to protect the finish on the strap pin.

 

[Gridlock]

First, I’d like to give a shout-out to MojoAxe.
They sell strap pins already modified to fix this problem.
I’ve never bought them, since I have done so many on my own over the years, but it looks like a pretty sweet deal.
Here's a link to the web page: Click on it and scroll down.

MojoAxe Custom Guitar Parts

I buy these from MojoAxe and they work great. In fact, I need to submit another order soon since I keep buying guitars.

 

[Leee]

Another challenge can be mounting the strap lock mechanisms on your leather strap. Many are too thick for the supplied nut to thread on.
And the hole punched through your strap needs to be a minimum of 3/8” diameter.
If I have to enlarge the hole on the strap, I usually just hog it out with a drill bit.

You can use your vise grips to compress the leather. I have even used two strap buttons with the strap end in my vise to compress it enough to expose sufficient threads to start the nut.

How to get the nut tight?
Use a six-point socket and ratchet.
Don’t try it with an end wrench.
Might be a 1/2”.
Might be a 13 mm.
There is a difference.
Try each one to see what fits best.
(Don’t round the edges on the nut)

I use a big flathead screwdriver inside the horseshoe to hold backup while I tighten the shit out of the nut with the socket.

Get that strap material compressed enough, your strap mechanism will never come loose.

 

[Leee]

Why the faucet washers?
My first concern was that the screw drops down deeper inside the Schaller pin than the original Gibson buttons.
This being the case, the screw will penetrate deeper into the body.
So instead of using the cheapie felt washer under the strap button, I tried the faucet washers.

They work fantastic.
Tighten the screw down until that faucet washer begins to bulge - and it doesn’t take a lot of effort.
Unless that screw backs off somehow, that strap button will never spin.
And the washer doesn’t compress.
I have some that have been mounted for over 25 years. Never had to tighten them again.

(Yes - they are stable with nitro lacquer)

 

[Brazilnut]

My interest is well-whetted. So how do you fix this problem of an overly-thick strap?? By the way, I use a drill press to file down the screw head. And I love the idea of the faucet washer. Why didn't I think of that?

I take it the neoprene that the washer's made of, or whatever material it is, doesn't react with the nitro?

 

[Leee]

So how do you fix this problem of an overly-thick strap?

Use an old strap button over the hole in the end of your strap, and crank it down in a vise.

I take it the neoprene that the washer's made of, or whatever material it is, doesn't react with the nitro?

The faucet washers are made of Buna rubber, whatever that is.
They’ve been on my 335 and a couple of my Les Pauls for 25 years, and I’ve seen no discoloration on dozens of Gibsons I’ve done this to.

Believe me – I watched this like a hawk.

 

[Leee]

And since Schaller doesn’t make the Schaller strap lock we have all loved since 1981, there’s no alternative but to go to other brands who still make the same thing.

Like Grover and Fender.
Everything interchanges.

Grover Strap Locks

STRAP LOCKS - Grover Trophy

Grover® Strap Locks feature the “quick release” mechanism players want and need.

grotro.com

Fender Security Strap Locks

https://www.fender.com/products/fender-security-strap-locks

 

[Brazilnut]

Thanks, @Leee! You the man!

 

[gitmohair]

Get that strap material compressed enough, your strap mechanism will never come loose.

Bollocks won't it :/ After a number of potentially "annoying" failures I took to glueing mine in place with Araldite (works, but leaves you with a strap with the fittings somewhat permanently installed) before I gave up and just went back to Grolsch washers which work for me and require no mods at all...

Good info in the thead though for those who're looking to do this, so thanks for the posts

 

[Leee]

I gave up

You were doing it wrong.

OK, seriously, that’s why I said you have to tighten the shit out of it.

My secret?
Think of all of the energy and effort that goes into tightening it twice, a third time, and then again…
Get pissed off, grab a good socket, and say to it, “Look you, son of a bitch… this ain’t happening again.”

That’s how I finally conquered it.

 

[gitmohair]

That’s how I finally conquered it.

But was it worth conquering?

A man approached Buddha and said "master, after many years of devoting all my efforts to this one task, I have finally learned to walk across the river". Buddha replied "my friend, why have you wasted so much of your life on this task when it's so easy to get a boat?".

Grolsch washers are your friend

 

[Leee]

But was it worth conquering?

Hell yeah!
I’ll take my victories anywhere I can get them - especially when so many others continue to struggle in the dark.

I’m stubborn that way.
My genetic disposition prevents me from doing it half-assed.

 

[gitmohair]

specially when so many others continue to struggle in the dark

Yeah, fair comment, and the info you've given is great TBF

 

[Zeegler]

I've done this exact same procedure when necessary. Not all guitars have the bigger screws, so the new strap buttons with the allen bolt head work fine for those.

One extra step that is needed is to cut away some of the material at the opening in the strap. It's usually a thin slit with a very small circular opening at one end. When you try to push this on to the strap lock, you get a couple of thick leather "flaps" that push out preventing you from threading the nut on. I cut the hole in the strap bigger so that it fits on the strap lock properly without those leather flaps.

Finally, you don't need to crank the ever loving shit out of that nut to prevent it coming loose. Just a dab of locktite, and tighten the nut normally.

I've been using Schaller strap locks on all my guitars for 35 years and never had a failure.

 

[Leee]

I've done this exact same procedure when necessary.

My brother!!!

… cut away some of the material at the opening in the strap. … I cut the hole in the strap bigger so that it fits on the strap lock properly without those leather flaps.

Right on.
What I have found is that most people don’t have a really good set of small side cutters.
I couldn’t live without my Kleins.
Hell, I even give them as gifts.

It’s not as neat or tidy (or even recommended) but if you have a drill handy with a bit slightly larger than 3/8”, you can use that to hog the hole out.
Just be careful you don’t slice a chunk out of your fingertips while holding the strap.


But, yes, if you have small cutters with a good edge, that is definitely the way to go.

Just a dab of locktite, and tighten the nut normally.

OK, this is where we will have to agree to disagree.
I hate Loctite.
I have stories.
Too many times, that shit has turned up in places it really didn’t need to be.

In my serious motorcycling days 40 years ago, I discovered the magic in a tube of silicone.
Put a little bit of that on screws that have a tendency to work themselves loose.
I found that strength isn’t what was needed so much as something that dampens vibrations and acts as a glue.
You can still disassemble it if need be.

After snapping off a couple of small bolts due to Loctite, I swore “Never again!”
But hey, that’s just me.

I never tried my silicone trick on these strap locks, because the nut is so slim in profile. There’s not much surface area mated in the threads.

I've been using Schaller strap locks on all my guitars for 35 years and never had a failure.

Bravo!