There is, however, a problem with the construction it's multiple pieces thrown together, and thats not something you want when dealing with holding thousands of dollars of gear. While it didn't happen to me, I've seen the flaws of the FastenR-2 design in that the "hook" piece that you connect the R-Strap to, can come off!
That's all it took for me to consider upgrading to the FastenR-3.
Right off the bat, I love that it's a single piece of metal (from the screw to the top that you connect to). There is still a rubber insert to provide a tighter lock, but it's now about 1/2 the size of the FastenR-2's (it also has grooves on it I think this is to give it a tigher "lock", but I could be wrong).
The design is OK. Nothing incredible, pretty basic. I like the looks of the FastenR-2 more (I don't care for the odd color of the FastenR-3 it changes colors from silver to black to green, depending on the light you look at it in, but thats not a big deal).
My big concern was using the FastenR-3 with a DSLR and a battery grip (shooting vertical). The F-2 had a swinging hook, so it would hide itself and not bother your hand when using it in vertical-mode. I was worried the F-3's solid hook would dig into your hand when using it vertical fortunately it doesn't!
One problem with it is that the hook part now has a big "bump" (the part with the "R" logo on the picture). This makes it odd to sit the camera down on a flat surface (the F-2 had a flat surface and the hook swung out of the way).
The only reason I see it worth upgrading is for the security/peace of mind the solid-piece connector brings. I definitely prefer the look of the F-2, but apparently it's flawed -I just didn't want to take the chance.
As a bonus, buying the FR-3 allows you to use your existing FR-2s for other objects (like a flash most of which now have an adapter with tripod threading that will work great! or a point & shoot)
One note about this after using it for a week getting the ConnectR (carabiner) into and out of the FastenR-3 is more difficult than the FastenR-2 I think this is actually a good thing as it practically eliminates the possibility of it falling off the carabiner if it were to open (with the screw-in lock it shouldn't, but if you forgot to screw it in, for example) the fastenR-2 is much easier to connect/disconnect. Depending how often you do this, it could be a good thing (more secure) or a bad thing (harder to attach/detach).
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As title, this is well made little thing that give you the confidence to hang your expensive equipments on the single tripod screw. However, it is so over priced due to a lake of competition. Since they're the only one avaliable here, I just pay for this little screw for my single sling solution to be complete.FYI: For the strap, I went to the tactial sling section. The pricing is way more reasonable and the one I got (A Tac(tm) Single Point Tactical Sling) is well built with quality materials.
Summary:
Pro: good quality and made.
Con: overpriced.
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This design is greatly improved from the earlier ones sturdier. But it makes it even more difficult to lay the camera flat with this attached. Nevertheless, still feels good and sturdy to use this rather than the earlier FastenR. I keep one permanently attached to my 70-200 tripod attachment so that when I mount that lens, I move the black rapid attachment to attach to the lens and not the camera body,Honest reviews on Black Rapid FastenR-3
I was a Black Rapid Straps RS4 owner once. I found a cheaper alternative to that with this device added to the RainbowImaging Innovative Neck Strap. Those two combined is 25 dollar less then the similar RS4.Saving money is a good thing in this economy. I think the quality is very good, but could have been a little cheaper.
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I have one of these fastened to my Manfrotto RC4 platewhen i need to mount the camera to my tripod, i have to unscrew this studwhen i did recently, i realized that it had started unscrewing itself over time was a mere millimeters (in my case, it was about within 30 minutes more for me) from completely unscrewingwhich would have caused my Canon 5D 3 and 24-70 L lens to drop onto solid cement. Black Rapid acknowledged their fastener stud will come loose and said i "needed to check to make sure it's fastened tightly every time i use the camera"... a poor excuse.If you do buy this, make sure you purchase the Op/Tech Connector Uniloop for 7 bucks, which fastens to your BlackRapid strap and loops around the little silver camera strap pin that is on the bottom of your camerathis will provide a secondary fail-safe.... if the fastener ever comes loose and separates from the camera, the Connector strap will catch the camera and save your gear. Found the info on forums regarding BlackRapid and works very well. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0010HA6A6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
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