BlackRapid strap wear

Carlo

Carlo

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Carl
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Noticed some alarming wear on the bottom of the carabiner on one of my BR straps the other day.
It's about 4 yrs old, but has only had moderate use, so i'm a bit shocked! Checked on the BR site and they're only under warranty for 1 yr and that doesn't include 'wear and tear' so I doubt they'd cover it anyway!
They do offer a 40% discount on trade in if you have an item thats worn, but i'm sure all that would be swallowed up sending the strap to them (the US) and paying for postage for a new one!
They also dont appear to sell just replacement carabiners anymore.
Does anyone have any ideas on replacement parts as i've got more pressing matters to spend £70 on!!!!
btw, checked my other BR strap, and that too has almost similar wear!!

IMGL4118.jpg IMGL4110.jpg
 
Wow, that's bad!

Mine are 2 years old and see regular use but show no sign of wear like that.

What gear do you have slung on it?

Might be worth contacting BR direct with those photo's, possibly a metallurgy issue with a certain batch?

GC
 
I have heard of them actually wearing through on other forums ,the best bet is to drop black rapid a e.mail with photos as in the other cases also out of warranty btw the straps were replaced f.o.c
 
gcgraphs said:
Wow, that's bad!

Mine are 2 years old and see regular use but show no sign of wear like that.

What gear do you have slung on it?

Might be worth contacting BR direct with those photo's, possibly a metallurgy issue with a certain batch?

GC
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The heaviest kit I usually have on it is a 1DX + 70-200 f2.8L IS II, so roughly 3kg (i think!)
 
Must look at mine but fairly sure I might have noticed wear that dramatic!

I would email them with the pictures....... cannot hurt to see what their response is???
 
I have just checked mine and it is not quite though almost as bad as your. I'm a bit surprised to be honest. I have mine nearly 7 years i suppose and for the last 2 years there has been either a D750 and 70-200 f2.8 or 150-600 hanging from it.
 
Never seen that before. My BR is maybe 2 years old with no wear at all apart from some surface scratches.

Has it not started to feel a bit notchy before it got that bad?
 
Carlo said:
The heaviest kit I usually have on it is a 1DX + 70-200 f2.8L IS II, so roughly 3kg (i think!)
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Wouldn't think that's excessive at all, my main one is a "double" with a D500 plus a 70-200mm f2.8 and 200-500mm f5.6 attached each side.

Be very interested in any response you get from BR.

GC
 
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I think it is time for an upgrade.

I had one of these older models (RS-7) and recently replaced it with a brand new Sport Breathe and it is much better in many ways. Better fabric, more comforable to wear. Redesigned fasteners and carabiners are quieter and feel more solid.
 
sk66 said:
I was going through them about yearly (about 15lb load)... they are a zinc alloy. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it's not stainless steel. I would get something like this, or abandon BR like I did.
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Interesting solution, but not sure what the "eye bolt" that screws into the body/lens etc is made of? Just asking as I assume wear will move along to the next weakest link in the assembly.

What did you move to as an alternative?

GC
 
I won a BR strap in a raffle, took it out of the box - put it back in the box and then sold it. I am not willing to hang expensive gear on that sort of tat.

Made my own out of bits and bobs I had lying about + an "Eye Bolt" from E Bay. It has been used with my 1 Series and 300 F2.8 + 800 F5.6 for the last 4 years - no wear.
 
gcgraphs said:
Interesting solution, but not sure what the "eye bolt" that screws into the body/lens etc is made of? Just asking as I assume wear will move along to the next weakest link in the assembly.

What did you move to as an alternative?

GC
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Peak or OpTech... Attach the removable "loop ends" to the BR eye. I'm 95% certain it's stainless which is why it eats the zinc alloy hooks.
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I kind of prefer the OpTech Utility sling straps... it's more comfortable, cheaper, and it has two attachment points on the loop for redundancy.
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I had a black rapid fail on me, whilst carrying my 7d2 (camera off at the time) and 150-600, the carabina came straight out of the socket with my lens falling to the ground, thankfully on very spongy grass so no damage occurred to the lens. Had the strap a couple of years I think, I emailed them about the issue and after supplying them pictures, they just replaced it for me with the latest version. They also advised me to check it periodically over time to look for any signs of wear and tear. There customer service was very good. I have had no issues with my new strap.
 
Just done a bit of googling, it seems they are currently on connector version CR-3 and CR-4 for most new products (can see any listing of material type). The latest fastener (FR-5) is now listed as stainless steel with moulded nylon coat (FR-4 was the same stainless steel but with black vinyl coating). The video on BR website for the FR-5 says ‘coating provides extra protection against natural wear and tear’. I guess with two metal surfaces rubbing together we should expect some wear. Looking at your photo it looks like the hardened surface coating has worn away and the soft inner material has then been allowed to quickly wear.

It seems Connector CR-2 was previously available as a spare, and looking at the reviews on BH Photo was a well known part to wear.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/645437-REG/Black_Rapid_CR_2.html

Just found confirmation the CR-2 was zinc alloy and both CR-3 & CR-4 are brass and zinc alloy. The fastenR FR-3 was stainless steel construction (similar to the one in the OPs photo). If that’s the case it’s not surprising the zinc alloy connector wears like this.
 
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Thanks Steven, certainly food for thought.

I've got a couple of the Op-Tech straps but never thought of connecting them to the BR eye-bolt. Agree they are comfy but I've never got on with them as I'm normally carrying a
sk66 said:
Peak or OpTech... Attach the removable "loop ends" to the BR eye. I'm 95% certain it's stainless which is why it eats the zinc alloy hooks.
_DSC4545.jpg


I kind of prefer the OpTech Utility sling straps... it's more comfortable, cheaper, and it has two attachment points on the loop for redundancy.
_DSC4543.jpg
Click to expand...

Thanks Steven, food for thought there.

I've got a couple of Op-Tech straps but didn't think about attaching them to the BR eye-bolt. The main issue I have with the Op-Tech straps is I'm routinely carrying a pack and the Op-Tech straps slip over the pack straps:sneaky:. The BR sits nicely under the bergen straps.

Out of curiosity what are the plates/clamps that you've attached the eye-bolts to?

GC
 
rob-nikon said:
Just done a bit of googling, it seems they are currently on connector version CR-3 and CR-4 for most new products (can see any listing of material type). The latest fastener (FR-5) is now listed as stainless steel with moulded nylon coat. The video on BR website for the FR-5 says ‘coating provides extra protection against natural wear and tear’. I guess with two metal surfaces rubbing together we should expect some wear. Looking at your photo it looks like the hardened surface coating has worn away and the soft inner material has then been allowed to quickly wear.

It seems Connector CR-2 was previously available as a spare, and looking at the reviews on BH Photo was a well known part to wear.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/645437-REG/Black_Rapid_CR_2.html
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The Nylon (PA) is an MoS2 surface coating to give a lower coefficient of friction. Similar to Nylatron.

GC
 
Wow that’s bad,
I just purchased the Black rapid sport breathe,
And I’m very happy with it,
Being my first decent strap and first Black rapid,
They must have amended the design on the newest release versions,
The screw in loops are now what I can describe as a plastic composite material rather than metal/alloy as previous versions were,
Only can assume that it won’t wear as bad with it being plastic,
Doesn’t help your situation but that’s the current affair on the latest ones should you do decide to drop £75
 
Liam_89 said:
The screw in loops are now what I can describe as a plastic composite material rather than metal/alloy as previous versions were
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The latest screw in fastener (FR-5) are listed as stainless steel core with moulded nylon coat hence why they look like plastic. The connectors CR-3 (on the Sport Breathe version) and CR-4 seem to be listed as a brass and zinc alloy material. Hopefully better wearing but I guess we should still expect some wear to occur.
 
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rob-nikon said:
The latest screw in fastener (FR-5) are listed as stainless steel core with moulded nylon coat hence why they look like plastic. The connectors CR-3 (on the Sport Breathe version) and CR-4 seem to be listed as a brass and zinc alloy material. Hopefully better wearing but I guess we should still expect some wear to occur.
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Makes sense Rob, the brass/zinc alloy will always be softer than any steel so will be the "sacrificial" part. Still alarmed at the rate of wear in the OP's situation though.

GC
 
I might take a look at mine tonight though never noticed anything like that before. If mine is still in good fettle I might wrap some wear resistant tape around it and just replace the tape when it looks ready to wear through.
 
That swivelling little carabiner in the Black Rapid strap always looked a silly design and prone to wear to me. That's why I went for the Joby strap which has a reassuringly large ball bearing swivel and much less wearable attachment, and a camera screw attachment designed to be even less likely to come unscrewed. Unlike the Black Rapid, it looks like a good carefully thought out engineering design.
 
sk66 said:
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I got rid of my BlackRapid after losing confidence and bought the Peak Design Slider like yours, Steven. But I have an Acratech Arca-Swiss Quick Release lever Swift Clamp on mine. Expensive but only a fraction of the cost of the camera gear that depends on the reliability of the strap!

Make sure you upgrade (free) to Peak's latest Anchors for extra strength.
 
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I too discovered similar wear on my BR strap a few weeks ago. I checked it about once a month, and a few months ago there was no sign of wear apart from the "grooving" marks on the carbiner. To find it worn about 75% through after just a few days use was quite shocking, so I suspect that it wears through very quickly once it starts. I contacted BR directly and they got back to me the next day, offering me 40% off a new one, but only if I post the old one back to them.

I worked out the costs, and by the time you pay for the VAT for importing to the UK, potentially a customs handling fee to Royal Mail or other courier for collecting the VAT, pay for overseas signed delivery to send your strap back to them, the savings over a new one from the UK worked out to be less than 5%. I did point this out to BR, who said that they were looking at other options for overseas customers, but the 40% off offer was the best they could do at the moment.
 
JohnStewart said:
I too discovered similar wear on my BR strap a few weeks ago. I checked it about once a month, and a few months ago there was no sign of wear apart from the "grooving" marks on the carbiner. To find it worn about 75% through after just a few days use was quite shocking, so I suspect that it wears through very quickly once it starts. I contacted BR directly and they got back to me the next day, offering me 40% off a new one, but only if I post the old one back to them.

I worked out the costs, and by the time you pay for the VAT for importing to the UK, potentially a customs handling fee to Royal Mail or other courier for collecting the VAT, pay for overseas signed delivery to send your strap back to them, the savings over a new one from the UK worked out to be less than 5%. I did point this out to BR, who said that they were looking at other options for overseas customers, but the 40% off offer was the best they could do at the moment.
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Good example of how clumsy customer care can undermine a brand in seconds - compared to Peak Design's reaction to a similar problem with their pro-active, free, prompt and global replacement service. Peak Design even seem to have turned a problem into a brand enhancement.

Why don't they fit a proper steel attachment clip in the first place? They cost pennies. It's always been a rather crude and unattractive aspect of an otherwise very good (and expensive) sling strap.
 
JohnStewart said:
I too discovered similar wear on my BR strap a few weeks ago. I checked it about once a month, and a few months ago there was no sign of wear apart from the "grooving" marks on the carbiner. To find it worn about 75% through after just a few days use was quite shocking, so I suspect that it wears through very quickly once it starts. I contacted BR directly and they got back to me the next day, offering me 40% off a new one, but only if I post the old one back to them.

I worked out the costs, and by the time you pay for the VAT for importing to the UK, potentially a customs handling fee to Royal Mail or other courier for collecting the VAT, pay for overseas signed delivery to send your strap back to them, the savings over a new one from the UK worked out to be less than 5%. I did point this out to BR, who said that they were looking at other options for overseas customers, but the 40% off offer was the best they could do at the moment.
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As noted I have yet to look and my BR connector.....................however by way of an observation as to how they handle feedback and customer relations. When I bought mine I also got the tether kit, I was concerned(?) about the fact the tether was clearly IMO designed for the likes of Nikon connection points and that they marked the Canon lugs. I was reassured that there was a new design being looked at and that they would send me one FoC. I waited something like 6 months and then reminded them of the impending new design to be informed that no new design was going to be done and even if it was, whoever promised one FoC should not have done so. OK, I can understand that they can change their minds and not develop a new/alt choice tether design but it soured my view of them as they denied that (should it have become available) they would have supplied it FoC.

So in regard to them looking at other options to help/supply overseas customers, I would not hold your breath. Afteral, they have been supplying into international supply chains for a good few years so why on earth have they not put in place some "options" by now???

I am not 100% sure about their customer relations handling and for me I will in future as required look at alternatives

PS the function and use of the strap has been great so the principle & the design is very nice (NB I have attached an AS type clamp to mine for swaps as needed to body connection or tripod foot on the lens)
 
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JohnStewart said:
I too discovered similar wear on my BR strap a few weeks ago. I checked it about once a month, and a few months ago there was no sign of wear apart from the "grooving" marks on the carbiner. To find it worn about 75% through after just a few days use was quite shocking, so I suspect that it wears through very quickly once it starts. I contacted BR directly and they got back to me the next day, offering me 40% off a new one, but only if I post the old one back to them.

I worked out the costs, and by the time you pay for the VAT for importing to the UK, potentially a customs handling fee to Royal Mail or other courier for collecting the VAT, pay for overseas signed delivery to send your strap back to them, the savings over a new one from the UK worked out to be less than 5%. I did point this out to BR, who said that they were looking at other options for overseas customers, but the 40% off offer was the best they could do at the moment.
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That 40% offer is available to anyone (it’s on their website). You don’t even have to return a BR strap either.

I’m not surprised it wore through quickly once the surface hardened layer had worn away.

HoppyUK said:
Good example of how clumsy customer care can undermine a brand in seconds - compared to Peak Design's reaction to a similar problem with their pro-active, free, prompt and global replacement service. Peak Design even seem to have turned a problem into a brand enhancement.
Click to expand...
Peak Designs response to their anchor problem was the reason why I finally purchased one of their straps. I purchased a strap with faulty anchors knowing they were sorting it out. It was their customer response that finally pushed me to buy their strap.
 
gcgraphs said:
Thanks Steven, certainly food for thought.

I've got a couple of the Op-Tech straps but never thought of connecting them to the BR eye-bolt. Agree they are comfy but I've never got on with them....

Out of curiosity what are the plates/clamps that you've attached the eye-bolts to?

GC
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The clamp is like the one Richard linked to. I prefer the version with the 3/8 hole and reducing bushing, the bushing acts a bit like a nut on the opposite side and it is actually harder/stronger than the aluminum of the clamp. That said, properly treated aircraft grade aluminum has a shear strength of around 30k psi... IDT there's any real concern with either version.
The eyelet is more of a concern if you DIY... A LOT of them are made very poorly with bad threads/tolerances. I also use Loctite 638 on all mating surfaces, but red loctite should be more than enough (even blue?).

I've never had an issue using a StrapClamp over several years. But I still prefer the redundancy of having two attachments to a strap loop (OpTech) as opposed to one at each end (Peak). And I prefer the redundancy of a secondary connection to the camera in the form of a safety lanyard (or hand strap) as shown here.

StrapClamp_300px.png
 
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Right FWIW

I had not recalled that I ordered the nylon coated eye-bolt, at the time I think they refered to it the silent option!

So no signs of any wear ~ either due to lower usage mine has had and/or the fact the eye-bolt is the nylon coated one???
 
Box Brownie said:
Right FWIW

I had not recalled that I ordered the nylon coated eye-bolt, at the time I think they refered to it the silent option!

So no signs of any wear ~ either due to lower usage mine has had and/or the fact the eye-bolt is the nylon coated one???
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That should help. But I would still keep an eye on it. The problem is the coating must be (?) fairly thin and nylon doesn't bond well to other materials... I.e. it is almost certainly more of "a thin sleeve" around the stainless and if/when it breaks it will it progress rapidly.
That said, everything wears w/ use... even the loop connectors which have a lot less friction/movement.
 
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Some great advice there people, I have 2 pairs of the Optech loop connectors so That'll probably be my first attempt at solving the problem.
Peak design sound good options also, I'll check out their line of straps.
Not heard back from BR though!
Thanks again
Carlo
 
sk66 said:
That works, but it's a lot of metal clanging around. My BR and Carry Speed connectors would even tend to squeak sometimes. I definitely prefer the "silent" loop end connectors.
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That is what you would think, well it was what I thought before I used this setup. It is silent so far and it's been a few years now. I was concerned about this aspect and the fact that it is somewhat heavier but my fears have not materialised and it is still reasonably light.

Nothing is perfect but I find this home made system works better, is much more robust and comfortable than the commercial offerings that I have seen/tried. I am certain a "proper" manufacturer could do a much better job, but they don't seem to want to so far.
 
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