Re: Staying cool under the collar

[Paul Schliesser <paulsc@eos.net>]

>Has anybody ever seen a strap that was of cotton or terry cloth where it
>contacts the neck?

Ben,

I like the Op/Tech straps. They are made of a stretchy material 
(neoprene, I think) which is very flexible. The wider (about 2") straps 
have an elastic woven strap backing the larger, padded portion of the 
strap. The large portion of the strap is like a thin sheet of dense foam 
rubber backed by fabric, and runs for over half of the length of the 
strap, not just in a pad in the middle. The pad and the backing strap 
have different degress of stretchiness; this spreads the weight across 
your neck and shoulders, so you don't carry the weight with just your 
neck.

Many of the straps have quick-release fittings. The thinner straps don't  
have the second strap on the back.

The straps are very comfortable and absorb sweat very well. Since they 
don't have any edge seams, they don't chaff, but they also don't slip 
around. They are especially good for heavy cameras (like my Contax SLRs.) 
They also act somewhat like shock absorbers, and help damp any bouncing 
the camera may do.

Sometimes they can get hot on the back of your neck, but they are 
extremely comfortable otherwise.

Be sure to look at the fittings on them; they make some fittings for the 
studs on MF cameras, and some have little fabric loops for the large lugs 
that some modern cameras have. The fittings for snap rings are little 
wierd-looking flexible black nylon things which also protect the body 
from the metal ring.

I've had some of these since the early 1980s; they wear very well.

I have several of them, but I don't seem to have any packaging or labels 
for them with addresses or phone numbers. They are pretty common in 
well-stocked cameras stores, however.

They come in bright red, green and blue, black and gray. (I have black 
and gray ones.) You may have seen them, but been put off by the 
brightly-colored ones. If you like the Leica logo, the red strap will set 
it off nicely. If you hate it, the black strap will match your electrical 
tape. If you like the logo but change your mind, cover both logo and 
strap with tape. If you use duct tape on a chrome body, go with gray.

- - Paul