How to prevent strap slippage through buckle?
A strap running through a buckle is typically easy to loosen and tighten as desired. Usually, it stays in place. Sometimes, however, it slowly (or quickly) works its way loose, as though the thickness or smoothness of the webbing doesn't quite match the size or shape of the buckle. What can I do to make the strap more grippy?
The specific problem I have is with a new backpack (no wear and tear), and it happens in dry conditions (not wet and slippery). The straps even have cloth-elastic bands wrapped around, right next to the buckles.
One method could be to add a separate clasp, as per this question. Also, I imagine I could intentionally soak it in sea water and then not rinse it, leaving the salt crystals to gum up the works (I know this happens to kayak gear and it's usually a nuisance). Other techniques? I consider replacing either the strap or the buckle to be too drastic a solution.
This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/q/24213. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
3 answers
If you've got the strap to the perfect length and want to maintain that length, you can sew a small fold in the strap, similar to what's used at the end to stop the whole strap running through. Slitting the stitches means you can change your mind later. Realistically this won't help for a waist belt that needs to adjust to different clothing, except as a backstop to limit the slippage.
These buckles work by friction between the two layers of webbing that want to move in opposite directions, so you need to increase the friction, probably by increasing the pressure. One way to do this is to sew another layer of webbing on the outside, but this could be a fairly tedious task if the region that needs building up is long. You'd probably need to find lighter webbing of the same width as the existing strap. You may be able to test this by just threading a length of webbing through the buckle with the strap, and pinning it.
Another way (that I haven't tried) should be to build up the buckle itself. Depending on the shape, a couple of cable ties around the past that presses together the two straps should be enough.
This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/a/24217. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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I find that simply tying a half knot below the buckle keeps it from slipping:
This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/a/24239. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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The solution on my backpack/bike helmet is a rubber band/hair tie like cord around the straps just below the buckle. In order to readjust the buckle you have to loosen the elastic cord around the straps and pull it away from the buckle.
Not sure exactly why this works, but I haven't had any problems with my helmet coming loose or backpack straps loosening either.
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