GIT432.tone_wshop.indd 122 3/16/18 11:54 AM Heistercamp Guitar Straps This month we take a detour to look at the bespoke crafting of an item that connects a guitarist to their treasured instrument…

Words David Mead Photography Olly Curtis

f you’ve ever wondered where players we’re making here – a veg tan hide that has which is then scratched on the back to make like Ronnie Wood, Richard Hawley, been infused with natural waxes and oils it easier to glue onto the suede or leather Paul Carrack and Royal Blood’s and each hide, being a natural product, will lining, depending on which the customer Mike Kerr buy their guitar straps, soak up different amounts of both, which has chosen. Then a template or ‘knife’ is Iyou need to turn your attention to a small gives each strap a unique finish.” selected, depending on the shape or design family-run business nestling in the epic The term ‘pull-up’, we learn, comes from of the strap being made. “When we design a Devon countryside at Hatherleigh, within the fact that if you literally bend or pull the strap to start with we use a card pattern and hailing distance of the wilds of Dartmoor. leather it changes shade. The Heistercamp cut the first few out by hand with a blade,” Here you’ll find Heistercamp, makers of team goes to great lengths to maintain says Nigel. “And then, if that’s successful, fine handcrafted leather guitar straps, the natural good looks within the leather we’ll get a knife [template] made.” all of which are made on site to their they use. “We use full grain leather which customers’ specific requirements. On the is the term for all the natural creasing and Strapping young stitch day of our visit, the team of Nigel and Alaine markings that are left in,” James tells us. Next in the process, we see the knife Heistercamp and their two sons James and “Nothing’s taken off the hide – we love all and leather being put into a special press Craig agreed to make one of their straps the natural markings in the leather. A lot which cuts out the shape of the strap, with so that we could witness every step of the of people would use the top grain, which is offcuts being used for the buckle pieces process for ourselves. the same, but they’ve just smoothed off the and loops. Essentially, this means that The journey begins with choosing one top and all the creases just disappear, which all the parts for the completed strap are of the rolls of different coloured hide from we don’t particularly like because it’s lost all assembled, with the exception of the the selection stacked neatly on shelves in of its character.” buckles. Nigel describes what happens the workshop corner. More used to dealing “We also do our super-soft leather,” Craig next, “Once all the parts are cut out, I’ll with tonewoods than we are leather, we adds, “which is, again, a veg tan leather but stitch whichever thread has been chosen were curious as to the choices on offer. “It’s to make it more supple it’s milled, where it’s around the edge and then from there veg tan [vegetable tanned] leather – for the basically put into a big drum like a tumble we’ll brand the logos in and coat the environment, really, and the look,” Nigel drier and the more they turn it, the more edge and then from there we punch the begins. “There are no artificial chemicals or supple it gets.” holes in – the button holes and the buckle anything like that in there. We use two types Once the appropriate hide and grade of holes. The buckle pieces are riveted of leather: pull-up, which is used in the strap leather has been chosen, a strip is cut off, together… job done!”

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1. Craig selects a hide from Heistercamp’s stock of different colours and leather types 2. After roughly cutting out a strip of leather, the back is scraped to ensure a better surface for gluing on the lining 3. Having cut the strap to shape using a ‘knife’ template in the press, the various components are ready for assembly 4. With the suede lining glued in place, the edges are stitched together on 3 4 a sewing machine

We watched while the suede lining was After returning to Belgium to do his “And now, it’s probably taken over the glued on, buckles were attached, holes cut National Service – in the saddlery section whole business – it’s our top line of product, with a special punch and the Heistercamp of the Belgian Cavalry no less – he returned more than belts,” adds James. We wonder logo branded onto the leather. The sides to work at Shillaker’s and by 1930 he if there was any additional tooling required of the assembled strap were sealed, loops had risen to director of the company. for making straps rather than belts or bags? stapled and edges stitched until the finished Camille’s son David was introduced to the “It’s a similar process, certainly to belts,” article took shape before us. company, later leaving to head up Cox, says Nigel. It might be tempting to think that the a saddler. In 1986, his son Nigel, began “Effectively, most of our straps are just Heistercamp workshop is brimful with working at Cox and, fast-forwarding to a long belt with an extra buckle on it,” modern computer aided design technology, 2005, opened Heistercamp. But guitar laughs Craig. but that’s simply not the case. In fact one of strap manufacturing wasn’t added to the the presses used in the process belongs to Heistercamp catalogue until 2012. EXtra BELt-onS a bygone age and most of the undertakings Nigel picks up the story: “We started with Seeing as all the straps made are bespoke are done the old-fashioned way, by hand belts and bags and then it was our original orders via the company’s website, we’re using traditional tools. So is there a web designer, who was a guitar player, who curious as to how diverse the requests long-standing connection between the said, ‘Why don’t you make guitar straps?’ So received are. Let’s start with widths. Heistercamp family and leather craft? we did a few prototypes and the business “Standard width seems to be about two- “The actual Heistercamp business just took off from there, really.” and-a-half inches,” says Nigel. “Most of it has been going since 2006,” says Nigel, has come from customer feedback, really. “but the boys are the fifth generation of Some people want three-inch, some four, the Heistercamps in the leather goods “We’ve traced leather some two-and-a-half, some want it padded trade. We’ve traced leather goods back and you slowly begin to realise what people in our family to my great grandfather in goods back in our are looking for. Like adding a pouch for a 1884.” This would have been Gustavus wireless transmitter – we just listen and if Heistercamp, born in Belgium in 1856 and family to 1884 but we can do it we will.” who ended up making living a restoring only started making Practically everything a guitarist or shoes. His son Camille came to the UK bass player needs from a strap can be during World War I and took up an guitar straps in 2012. accommodated, with Craig adding: apprenticeship with belt makers Shillaker’s, The business just took “We do little pick pockets, too.” a company who was also the first to What about the slightly off-piste manufacture handbags in this country. off from there” requests? Have there been any really

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GIT432.tone_wshop.indd 124 3/16/18 11:54 AM Nigel’s first experience of leathercraft was working for his father’s business doing luggage repairs before venturing into the guitar strap business

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GIT432.tone_wshop.indd 125 3/16/18 11:54 AM 5. Branding the strap with the Heistercamp logo 6. Craig assembles the buckle piece to attach to the end of the strap 7. The strap is complete, attached to a guitar and 5 ready to rock ’n’ roll!

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strange assignments? “We did a Brian May SticK or SWing this is associated with style in any way? “I lookalike strap, because he has his slide in Another feature that seems to divide thought that to begin with,” says James, the strap,” James remembers. “We only customers is whether the strap is lined with “because if you jump around you want to went by pictures on that one. I’m pretty sure suede or leather – the difference being that swing your guitar around you’re going to that he made it himself from an old belt or the former will grip the player’s clothing want a slippery lining, but it’s more that something and so we tried to recreate that so that the guitar remains still, whereas people don’t like it pulling on their clothes for a particular customer.” the latter will allow some movement. “We or whatever and so they just want it to “If we can do it we will, normally for the used to just do suede and then we had some move a little bit, but enough, whereas suede challenge more than anything, because enquiries at a guitar show with people would literally just grip to whatever you’re you’re always going to learn something,” saying that they liked them to slip and so wearing and wouldn’t budge. So there adds Nigel. we introduced them from that, basically,” wasn’t as much definition from different One of the variables that Heistercamp Nigel confirms. Does the team thing that music genres or anything like that, it’s just will willingly address is adjusting the size of down to the person and how they play.” the strap peg holes to fit the different makes “We found that with the Ronnie Wood of guitar. “Any other straps that you’d find strap, we’ve sold them for acoustic guitars, in a shop would come with a standard 8mm “We did a Brian May so there’s no rule,” Nigel affirms. button hole – and that is our standard, too,” And so the humble guitar strap takes its Craig begins. “But we offer specific holes lookalike strap for one place amongst the bespoke items that can for strap locks to make them easier to fit customer. I’m pretty be made for the modern day guitarist. If you straight on – just a 10mm hole without the have any specific requirements you’d like slit. Then we do the electric-acoustic with sure that he made it to address or can picture the strap of your a 10mm hole at the back and the slit for the himself from an old dreams, you might just find what you’re jack. We’ve also done just the 4mm screw looking for from the team at Heistercamp. hole for a Gretsch.” belt or something” www.heistercamp.co.uk

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