Installing a strap button on the heel, yay or nay?

[Hawkeye]

I am new to Mandolin and have a gently used Eastman MD304 I am learning on. I currently use a strap that attaches to the end pin and then wraps around the headstock just past the nut. It works but I find myself doing a lot of work still holding the instrument in place despite the strap. I wonder if installing a strap button on the heel would help address this and also make it more comfortable to play?

I took my Mando to a local luthier (Denver Folklore Center) and they very much cautioned me against drilling (or even having them drill) a peg or button into the instrument. The main reasons were:

1. potential damage or splitting during the install

2. altering the acoustics

3. violating the wood of a otherwise intact instrument

4. it cannot be “undone”

I decided to hold off at the time but lately I have been reconsidering installing the button on the heel. I am very proud of my instrument and it was a considerable investment by my standards - that being said it’s no relic. I am not concerned about “damaging a piece of history.” But I certainly don’t want to break it or detrimentally alter the acoustics.

I figured I would poll you fine people and take a pulse check on the greater Mando community here… So what do you say in regards to installing a heel button for a strap… Yay or nay?

Appreciate your insight and thank you all in advance!

[Michael_Mark]

I can’t speak to the potential risks of damage/splitting, but I will say that the idea that a strap button will noticeably alter the acoustics of the instrument is far-fetched. The biggest concern I would have is that the luthier could be unfamiliar with mandolins and install the strap button in a wonky place. But if the guy who does it is reputable, the idea of a strap button on a mandolin is perfectly reasonable.

Tim o’Brien is one of the most notable A-style users and he’s got his strap attached at the heel:

[Mike_R]

I second what m&m said. Acoustic changes… nope. Damage? not if done right. I have put (figuratively) tons of strap buttons on guitars and never regretted it. My biggest complaint about strap button installs is when they are put in odd places (I prefer the Martin spec for location). All that said, I have never done it to my mandos. I have a lakota strap that loops around the neck joint. They lay under the fingerboard extension and I never notice them (they are out of the way). I also have one that sounds like you describe at the headstock. I got used to that as well. I am not opposed to a strap button on a mando, just haven’t done it. If you want one, I say go for it. Just with a different luthier.

[Hawkeye]

Decided to go ahead and get the button installed! Thanks both of you for your input.

A follow up question I have is what’s the best strap to go with now to use my new heel button. I have a beautiful brown Golden Gate James Alan Shelton mandolin strap but it seems to be designed only to attach at the headstock/nut for an A-style (how I have been using it) or at the scroll on an F-style. I’m wondering if I can modify this strap to attach to the nut or if I should just start shopping for a new strap altogether? Looking on the Store here none of the mandolin straps explicitly say they are for designed for button on the heel. Any suggestions on what I should be searching for? My preference I would be to try and alter my current strap to keep using it - I love the aesthetic of it and obviously its always nice not having to spend additional money on another strap.