Sporran Chains vs. Sporran Straps

[ForresterModern]

Forget kilt shops and sporran makers. Go to a harness maker. A sporran strap is no different than making a set of reins.

And for some of the "horses" around here that is probably appropriate (I include myself in that horses category---see Social Group "Men of Substance")

[Jock Scot]

i prefer a strap - i just wish i could get one. i have asked all the local kilt shops and have been unsuccessful. only one of them could source me one and wanted to charge me £40!!! i found a sporran maker at one of the highland games who agreed to make one for me. he measured me and said it would be ready for me in a week. i paid upfront (£10) and collected it the next time i saw him. when i got home and changed into my kilt i went to put the strap on with my sporran and it was 4" too short. the guy said it was the longest he could make and if i wanted something longer i had to have a chain.

so i now use a normal belt which i bought from Big N Tall (i wanted to make sure it'd be long enough!!) for most occasions and only have a chain for more formal ones.

i think the 'hangers' look pretty cool, but not one single kilt shop in my area had even heard of them and refused to try to source them for me.

Try McRostie of Glasgow Ltd. on: www.mcrostie.co.uk They are saddlers and I am sure they will do the job for you.

[Phil]

You could try these people in Braemar - http://www.sporrans.net/ - they made a very nice plaited leather strap for me.

[Bullpiper]

I second MacMillan's sentiments. My entire band use a local leatherworker at Uptmore Saddlery to do leather repairs, make belts/sporran straps, and sporran hangers. And it is like a time warp. The guys working in the shop are the nicest around. My last repair, which was minor, I was not charged a thing. Local service with a smile.

[KFCarter]

i prefer a strap - i just wish i could get one. i have asked all the local kilt shops and have been unsuccessful. only one of them could source me one and wanted to charge me £40!!! .

You could try Janet Eagleton's shop in Perth. My daywear sporran from her came with a nice, simple leather strap.

http://www.scottish-sporrans.co.uk/

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

...see, here's the thing. There is a world of difference-- no, make that a universe of difference-- between buying something over the counter, and actually going in and having it made.

To begin with, you will take your sporran with you to the harness maker so he can match the colour and get both the width and thickness of the strap right. Then you can pick out the buckle you want-- not just accept the buckle that the store bought strap came with.

If you go to the shop kilted, you get to talk to the proprietor not only about your kilt strap, but about things kilted in general. Yes, instead of spending twenty minutes buying something, you will have used up close to an hour having a real-life, honest to goodness conversation (not like we have on the internet) with a real-life, honest to goodness, craftsman while he uses his skills and talents to make something for you.

It's not just about sporran straps. It's about human interaction as well.

[heilanner]

You could try Janet Eagleton's shop in Perth. My daywear sporran from her came with a nice, simple leather strap.

http://www.scottish-sporrans.co.uk/

thanks, but as MoR said after you, i'd like to be able to take my sporran to the shop to make sure i can get something close in colour (one of my sporrans is a walnutty colour), and as i live north of aberdeen the 160 mile round trip journey would cost me more in petrol than i would save from buying it in locally for £40.

cheers anyway

[Bugbear]

Post deleted.

[heilanner]

well i decided not to go for a strap after all. i paid a visit to one of the kilt shops in aberdeen today and found that after 3 years of asking every time i was in there, they finally got in sporran hangers.



they're going to take some getting used to mind. the sporran hangs a little lower than i normally have it, and if i put too much in it it tends to drag my belt down (which i'll now have to wear all the time - but i guess it's no different to a sporran belt).

and every time i stood up i instinctively went to adjust the sporran chain which wasn't there. i never even noticed i did it til today.

[JSFMACLJR]

I am not a fan of sporran hangers. They just do not look "right" to me, to say nothing of the fact that they certainly aren't traditional. Plus, the hangers necessitate the wearing of a belt, which I rarely wear.

Oh well, to each his own.