Gaskets (sail ties) and Hot Buttered Rum

Watching The Ocean Race getting ready for the Southern Ocean brings back memories of tough times I have had while sailing. One of those was taking the yawl Temptation from Anacortes, WA to Vancouver BC after she had been repowered.

We were going to Vancouver for the Southern Straits race which is normally on Easter weekend. The race starts on Saturday, so Thursday we were in Anacortes heading north through the Straits of Georgia on a particularly foul day.

Temptation had a brand new engine that hadn’t been put to the test. We were all concerned about reliability, but the race was calling. Leaving port we were able to sail but the owner finally decided we could make better time under power.

Time to lower the sails. Two of us were sent to the foredeck to handle the jib. We got the sail down, but controlling it on deck was a problem. Laying on top of the sail with seas washing over, the two of us were able to get gaskets (lengths of polyester webbing) around the sail and lifeline stanchions. We were wet, it was dark and we still had a ways to go.

When we finally were tied to the dock in Vancouver the senior (by age) member of the crew announced that he was making everyone a hot buttered rum. At least, that’s what I heard. Get the alcohol stove going, heat water and prepare our beverages. For some reason we didn’t have much light in the cabin, so we couldn’t see what was going on.

Our hot buttered rums were delivered but after a single sip we could all tell something was amiss. There was no sweetness in our drinks, just hot water and rum in a 50/50 mix. I believe we all finished our drinks but they could have been so much better!


Temptation Style Gaskets
Ocean Race Special Pricing

To help celebrate The Ocean Race, we are offering T-Style Gaskets (Temptation Style), made from heavyweight white polyester webbing. Each gasket is 8′ in length and they are sold in packages of 5. For the duration of The Ocean Race 2023 we will be selling a pack of 5 for $19.95 plus shipping.

Temptation Style Gasket
Buy Sail Gaskets

Add Tree Straps

While at Tractor Supply this afternoon I stumbled on a product they were selling that needed Tree Straps

The Cam Jam is sold without Tree Straps but obviously is intended to be used with them. We have Tree Straps in stock. From 1″ to 2″ widths, 12″ to 30″ lengths. All with rugged brass grommets.

If you want to support trees but not the Cam Jam company, Tree Straps work well with twine, bailing or tie wire along with a lightweight cord such as Parachute Cord.

Let’s get outside and plant some trees!

Extension Strap for AKC™ Pet Booster Seat

Note: Discontinued due to AKC design change

This fine pooch was going on a trip. He likes to hang out in a booster seat while driving so one of the American Kennel Club™ booster seats was purchased for the trip.

Fortunately the owner tried it prior to flying out only to find that the strap that goes around the back of the car seat was way too short. A few emails later and we came up with a solution that didn’t require sewing. It also needed to be easy to install and be fully adjustable.

The two cam buckles attach to the webbing that comes with the booster seat. The side release buckle at the bottom of the photo allows for easy installation in the vehicle and loads of adjustment.

Here is the booster seat with the strap extender installed. Everyone is now ready to travel!

We are not affiliated with the American Kennel Club™ , we just make a strap that happens to work with one of their products. If you need to purchase one of their booster seats, they are available online from many merchants. The extension strap we manufacture in our Cle Elum, Washington facility.

Support your US based suppliers

A customer wanted a strap that used a buckle that I don’t carry, nor do any of my domestic suppliers. The customer sent me a link so I could buy them online. The problem was the supplier was located in China.

I had to turn this project down. Why?

When we source a product from a domestic supplier, either manufacturer or importer, they provide us with product liability coverage for their products. Importers located in the United States will either carry their own insurance or work with the overseas manufacturer so they carry insurance that covers sales in the United States.

If we were to order product directly from China through an online e-commerce site there isn’t any insurance coverage. Any liability falls directly on the importer, most of whom do not realize the risk they are assuming.

Don’t Amazon, ebay or other e-commerce sites protect their customers based in the United States?

Not if you are buying from a “Third Party Seller” which is what any company shipping from overseas would be. Forget any help, you are on your own.

What is the solution?

Simple, buy from a company based in the United States!

OK, what if you are living outside the United States?

If something were to go wrong, really wrong you are still protected by our insurance. It might be a mess but at least you have options.

Just trying to return a product will still be difficult just due to the cost of transport and that is not what I am discussing.


Westpac Marine, the parent company of Straps to Go has been in business since February 14, 1984. We used to service marine lifesaving equipment and understand the product liability implications from that high risk business. We have been sued for problems with imported products and through this process learned what needed to be done to protect both ourselves and our customers.

This is a crazy world we live in and it seems not a week goes by when you don’t read about a problem with a product that just shouldn’t have any issues. Dog leashes were in the news not too long ago, breaking and injuring the user (human not canine).

We don’t sell products that fail to carry product liability insurance.
We don’t make straps that are destined to fail.
We care about our customers and their safety.

Trail Bum Backpacking Stool

If you are in need of a multi-purpose camp stool check out the Trail-Bum by Trail Dogs. Those beautiful black straps with orange sewing came from our shop (the embroidery was done by a third party.

According to my wife this must be comfortable. Years ago I had an orange T-shirt that I would not give up. I was informed that the “orange thing” must be comfortable otherwise I would have sent it to the dump years ago. Since then by definition everything orange must be comfortable. I am sure that these stools must follow my wife’s decree.

I can attest that the straps are plenty strong. They are all heavyweight polypropylene. The two on the outside are 2″ width and the middle one is 3″.  Sewing is all with Tex 90 polyester thread, in orange of course, which will provide great abrasion and UV resistance.

April 13, 2021
The manufacturer of this camping stool discontinued the product quite some time ago. No inventory of completed stools is available nor do we have any of the strap assemblies we made. We have looked in to making more straps but have concluded that we do not wish to be in the camp stool business and installing straps on a completed stool is quite impracticable.


Cannery gear

We were asked to make a knife sheath and adjustable belt for workers in fish canneries. They needed to be rugged, inexpensive and easy to use.

The sheath is made from our 2″ #673 webbing which is extremely stiff and in commonly used for scuba divers weight belts. A pair of rivets and a bit of sewing and you have a functional sheath.

Every sheath needs a belt and this one needed to be adjustable and easily worn over cannery aprons or waterproof rain gear.

Here we used heavyweight #560 polypropylene webbing in an 1½” width. There are a few inches of elastic webbing to keep it taught without being uncomfortable and a side release buckle to make it easy to put on and take off. Finally a slide keeps the tail end of the belt secure and makes sure it doesn’t decide to loosen on its own accord.

Like the sheath there is minimal labor in producing the belt, helping keep the cost down. Is this something to wear around town? No, but it does fulfill the need if you are working in a cannery.

New shipping options coming soon

Most of your orders for webbing and buckles have been shipped out using Priority Mail.  This has proven to be an inexpensive and reliable way to get goods to our customers. At times we receive orders that are so small that the minimum charge for Priority Mail is larger than the cost of the goods. We have been shipping these orders using First Class Mail which generally saves you, the customer, a couple of dollars.

We are working on providing that option for all orders that weigh less than 16 ounces. This requires that our shopping cart is able to calculate the weight of your order and then serving up the appropriate shipping options with their costs. Most of our components have been weighed and entered in to a database. Code is being written to do the calculations but it still needs to undergo testing. Our hope is to have this up and running by the end of March.

In the interim, if you are ordering a couple of buckles and want them to ship First Class Mail, let us know in the comments section. We try to keep your shipping costs as low as possible anyway but there are times when you might want an order a day earlier (First Class Mail tends to take a day longer than Priority Mail) in which case tell us what your needs are.

Gear Wranglers

Looking for something a bit lighter than a strap, check out our Gear Wranglers. They are perfect for securing your light gear, attaching a plant to a stake or even keeping the bag of potato chips closed.

Gear Wranglers are made using 1/8″ elastic cord and a cord lock to adjust their length. The come in 12″, 24″ and 36″ lengths and are packaged 6 to a bag. Like our Rod Wranglers the elastic cord ends are secured using a zipper pull.

Order your Gear Wranglers now, if you order 3 packs (you choose the size) and put the code ROLLIE-PAYS in the comment section of our check out, Rollie will pay the shipping by US Mail. This offer ends November 30, 2016. Our shopping cart is not smart enough to pick up on this offer but be assured we will take care of it prior to your credit card being charged.

If you don’t need that many Gear Wranglers, but want a great way to keep your fishing rods corralled, check out our Rod Wranglers, you can even use them to make up the 3 packs for free shipping.

Rod Wrangler
Rod Wrangler

Reflective webbing

We now carry 1″ black polyester webbing with a 9/16″ reflective strip down the center. This material is thinner than the standard webbing we sell which makes it easy to sew on to bags, packs or even a coat. It is still sturdy enough to use for the adjustment straps on a backpack or with a buckle to fasten something to your bike rack.

Polyester webbing is great for many uses since it has minimal stretch and doesn’t want to adsorb water. It is also quite abrasion resistant although the reflective strip will get worn off due to abrasion. We sell this material by the foot and you can order it online or come by our shop to check it out.

The trend seems to be that all of our outerwear is getting darker and darker making it difficult for drivers to see us when we are walking or biking. Carrying a bag or pack with plenty of reflective surfaces will help you or your children stand out as our days become shorter and weather gets worse. This material is easy to sew so adding it to existing gear should not be a major issue for anyone with a sewing machine.

Here is a picture of our reflective webbing taken in a rather dark room without flash (there was a dim night-light to the left of the webbing)-

reflective-web-dark

And here is a picture of the same piece of webbing taken with the flash turned on-

reflective-web-flash

The webbing in these pictures was about 12″ long and the picture was taken using an iPhone from 15 feet away. It is pretty amazing stuff!

Hunting season is fast approaching

We have made it through the dog days of summer, back to school gear is in the stores so hunting season must be fast approaching.

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We have 1″ buckles and nylon webbing in Coyote Tan. Polypropylene webbing in brown, taupe (light brown) and a bit left in forest green if you are looking for earth tones.

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If you need to make a sling, this 2″ polypropylene webbing is perfect. It has two rubber strips, the lighter color in the image, which help keep it planted on your shoulder.

We sell components but will also sew whatever you can design. Our minimum order is 1 and if you are in the Tacoma area, stop in and we can discuss your project.