[LeDave]

Pentax Padded DSLR Camera Strap 85232 B&H Photo Video

I am looking towards buying one but not sure if if it's worth it. It looks high quality.

[Saxplayer1004]

I have it because it came with one of the lenses I bought used, but I prefer the optech strap. I have a couple different strap options, mainly so I can clip the strap to the D-rings on my pack. Strap is also padded which is nice.

[LeDave]

Just ordered mine alongside with B+W MRC filters, did next day air shipping so I should have it on Friday to make a review about it here for others to see.

[Tanzer]

Looking at the on-line picture, the leatherette ends (on the camera side of the quick-release buckles) seem to have a only a single row of stitching through the nylon strap, rather than a figure-X pattern. It is possible that the nylon straps are more ruggedly attached beneath the fake leather but I have my doubts. Anyhow, looking forward to your review.

The other thing that looks annoying is that the padded portion is one-sided. With my luck, the wrong side would probably rest against my sweaty neck, soiling the nice Pentax logo. I seem to recall some of the better aftermarket straps have padding on both sides.

[audiobomber]

Looking at the on-line picture, the leatherette ends (on the camera side of the quick-release buckles) seem to have a only a single row of stitching through the nylon strap, rather than a figure-X pattern. It is possible that the nylon straps are more ruggedly attached beneath the fake leather but I have my doubts. Anyhow, looking forward to your review.

I expect the leatherette is strictly decorative, with the nylon strapping folded over the buckle and securely sewn.

I'm also interested in the review, even though I have a good system now, a combination of sling and wrist straps. I have completely abandoned neck straps. The Pentax would be worn on the shoulder, which is what I've seen pro journalists using.

[JimJohnson]

The design (other than the pad) is similar to the LowePro Speedster strap:
Lowepro Speedster Camera Strap : AvidMaxOutfitters.com

The neck strap is reversible... Use the 'grippy' side to keep the strap from sliding around your neck, or off your shoulder, or use the non-grippy side so that the strap will easily slide.

LowePro was kind enough to provide me with an extra set of buckles, and I made a strap extender so I can wear the strap cross-body. I also have a waist belt with a quick release mount (same QR as on my monopod and tripods). In the field I wear the camera cross-body, non-grippy side on my shoulder with the camera at my side attached to the belt. The weight is distributed between shoulder and waist, doesn't swing around and the camera is more protected by my arm. Yet I can toggle the QR and swing the camera up to my face or on to my mono/tripod, just like a sling. And of course I can completely free the camera from my body using the strap buckles. This setup also takes very little space in my field camera bag for transport.

[Ratmagiclady]

Heh. Looks pretty good, actually. Kind of about time Pentax came out with something like that.

I use mostly a combination of those Speedsters and the Optech 'boomerangs' as I call them. (Too bad they don't use the same buckles, really. I don't really need the buckles, actually, but it'd be nice to be able to switch em around. )

[LeDave]

OK here's the quick review.

Here's the packaging, I bought it alongside with B+W MRC's for my DA* lenses. Packaging is eh, not that it matters.


It's naturally curved like the Black Rapid RS-7 I had. I decided to buy this one to replace it because I needed my Arca Swiss quick release plate on my tripod mount and the Pentax shoulder strap goes onto the lugs of the camera instead of the tripod mount. Works well together. The shoulder pad is decent quality, not as padded as my RS-7, but the nylon or fabric or whatever it is is just as high quality of a stitching.



As you can see, it does indeed come with an X pattern. It's OK, decent quality.



The clips are hard and require slight force but not too much to release. It's much easier to clip them back on as they glide back into place. As far the fabric on the strap part near the end of the clips and not at the padded area, it's OK, maybe not good of a quality as I hope, it's like the regular strap except MUCH softer.



$20 bucks sounds about right. When I put the strap onto my shoulder, the pad stays in place but the whole strap itself moves up and down so the strap doesn't get lodged or stuck in the way of you shooting photos.

[audiobomber]

Thanks for the mini-review. What is the advantage of the buckles? I would think the camera with part of the straps attached to the lugs is kind of useless.

[LeDave]

Thanks for the mini-review. What is the advantage of the buckles? I would think the camera with part of the straps attached to the lugs is kind of useless.

To be honest, I don't even know! I have no use for them. However I suppose it's to make it easier to remove the camera from yourself.... Which I find kind of lame

[Tanzer]

Great mini-review! I always like to see the genuine Pentax logo on a decent product, which is reasonably priced (unlike the Marc Newson pouch for the K-01 . Thanks for the close-up of the stitching, that is so important. Might have to get one of these myself.

Maybe they will release some other straps (hand straps, holster tether, whatever) that can interchange with matching buckles.

[audiobomber]

Maybe they will release some other straps (hand straps, holster tether, whatever) that can interchange with matching buckles.

If so, that would make sense of the buckles.

[Ratmagiclady]

Thanks for the mini-review. What is the advantage of the buckles? I would think the camera with part of the straps attached to the lugs is kind of useless.

Well, they're handy if for any reason you want to get out of the strap without lifting it over your head/ if you're carrying it slung under a coat/ your hair's more out of control than usual, etc. ( )

Also quite useful if you're given to doing tripod or copy stand work or anything else that might mean the strap's in the way. Good for bug and flower type stuff, etc.

They aren't something I consider necessary, myself, handy once in a while, but some people get a lot more use out of em.

[JimJohnson]

Thanks for the mini-review. What is the advantage of the buckles? I would think the camera with part of the straps attached to the lugs is kind of useless.

Once upon a time many SLRs had lugs with a split ring. You could use spring snaps to connect a strap to the rings. Most SLRs these days use a rectangular eyelet. Split rings don't swivel properly, if you can even get them mounted, and therefore no way to connect the old spring snaps (besides, those spring snaps had a habit of scratching the camera body). It takes time to properly thread the strap through the eyelets, and almost as much time to remove the strap and not lose the parts.

But people (like me) still want a way to quickly detach a strap from the camera body. Enter the trend to use nylon buckles. A couple short floppy ears of strap are better than the whole strap.

I have made use of those floppy ears. I drilled a couple small holes through my viewfinder blind and sewed it like a button to the inside of the ear. I never have to hunt for the blind as it is always right there and easily reaches the viewfinder while the ear remains attached to the camera body. I've been thinking lately of sewing a Velcro tab on the other ear and putting stick-on Velcro patches on the fronts of my lens caps, but I haven't yet convinced myself that something that big wouldn't get in my way.

One of the best things the photographic industry could do at this point is standardize the nylon buckles across strap brands. I would be more tempted to purchase additional straps if I didn't have to spend several minutes to swap them out. However, it seems most photographic accessory manufacturers thoughts are just the opposite. They each deliberately use different strap designs to lock you into their product. Further, most manufacturers won't sell their buckles separately. I've found LowePro will sometimes make an exception, and I therefore now gravitate toward their products. I have made extentions for my LowePro strap that allows me to carry the camera around my neck, or cross-body sling-style. It takes a couple seconds to switch and the extentions take up almost no room in my field bag when not needed.

[Ratmagiclady]

One of the best things the photographic industry could do at this point is standardize the nylon buckles across strap brands. I would be more tempted to purchase additional straps if I didn't have to spend several minutes to swap them out. However, it seems most photographic accessory manufacturers thoughts are just the opposite. They each deliberately use different strap designs to lock you into their product. Further, most manufacturers won't sell their buckles separately. I've found LowePro will sometimes make an exception, and I therefore now gravitate toward their products. I have made extentions for my LowePro strap that allows me to carry the camera around my neck, or cross-body sling-style. It takes a couple seconds to switch and the extentions take up almost no room in my field bag when not needed.

That would be really nice: especially because I love one model of strap each from Lowepro and Optech. (And Tamrac, come to think of it: that was my old standby in the 80's: the kind with the suede pad. ) Also, I see stuff from other manufacturers I'd consider worth a try. depite being generally content. I pretty much swear by Lowepro Speedsters for not-really-heavy gear (Especially really-light stuff: they are very grippy and prevent little cameras from wanting to fly away on me. ) and the Optech boomerangs for anything that might get heavy, but don't seem to care for anything else either company makes in the way of straps.

Optech *will* sell you buckles, too: they just come in the form of their links or attached to one of their cheaper straps. (They're designed to clip together, one end of staps or camera links to another, so if you for instance buy another set of 3/8" links (Which themselves seem to come with quite long lengths of webbing material: there's got to be over a foot of extra material on some I bought. you get a complete pair of buckles. And if you cannibalize one of their cheap plain neoprene straps you get a full set and most of the sewing or linking's already done: just cut off the neoprene and add as much webbing as necessary. )

If I recall, think they actually will also sell a set of extensions especially made in order to sling a camera much as someone described, all made up, (I think the idea is to compete with those R-strap things, more or less,) but I haven't tried those.