Doyle Parker is the creator and designer of all banjo and guitar straps at Hunt-N-Pik.  Besides leatherwork, he also has an extensive background in rodeo and horsemanship and spent twenty years of his career giving horsemanship clinics all over the country.

Doyle’s  first exposure to leatherwork was as a kid at Connolly’s Saddlery in Billings, MT where his mother worked.  Over the years, he’s had the opportunity to work in the winter off-season for some of the best saddle-makers in Montana which is evident in the exquisite craftmanship he brings to every leather product he builds.  His early work led to a life-long interest and passion for designing and crafting everything from saddles to mountain-man possible bags, and, more recently, banjo and guitar straps!

Throughout Doyle’s career in both horsemanship and leatherwork, he’s designed various types of leather straps to meet specific requirements.  About six years ago, he was asked to design a removable banjo strap for a well-known musician.  This led to the Button-Post attachment design that is exclusively sold by Hunt-N-Pik.

You’ll notice that many of the techniques used in our straps are methods for securely attaching leather that Doyle adopted from the horse world. These are tried and true methods that have been functional for years, so we feel confident using these techniques as part of our straps. Not to mention, they look great too!  

When Doyle is not in his leathershop, you can find him giving ski lessons on Red Lodge Mountain during the winter, or gardening with his wife and daughter during the summer.