When I was at FHA 2014 I saw several people with the Lap Dawg (on different types of Sticks) and nobody complained about the pressure on their legs.

But... we are all different...

Just my 2-cents...

My Railboard is pretty freaking heavy and it sits comfortably on my Lapdawg until my back gives out. The weight is very well distributed across the thighs.

As heavy as the Railboard is, I have no discomfort at all using a Lap Dawg with it. I previously used a home-made lap bar, and it was really nice and did the job, and it had a larger diameter than the Lap Dawg's arms. Still, I feel much more comfortable with the LD. Again, no pinching or digging sensation with it, and it holds the Railboard steady (unlike my lap bar which allowed the instrument to move laterally).

As far as the weight causing stress on the legs over time - I thought a lot about that but everyone says it's OK the way it is. My personal experience as far as hours playing with a Lap Dawg has been with a Railboard and a Padauk Grand which are not the lightest Sticks and so far I'm OK with the present stock pads. Bamboo, Tarara, Mahogany and other lighter Sticks should certainly be very comfortable with the stock pads. I recently tried going thicker by adding another layer of rubber tubing on top of the stock padding. I did this for one guy who is gonna use a Lap Dawg on another tapping instrument that begins with the letter "W" which is like 20 pounds. Just for the hell of it I did the same thing to my personal Dawg that lives on my Grand and it's definitely softer and I could see some guys with heavier Sticks finding it more comfortable. The tubing I found is a little softer and it slips over the existing pads bringing the final pad diameter out to slightly over 1". It's tight enough to stay put but loose enough to take off if you want. It doesn't create any issues with folding up or fitting in the case,etc. So if anyone wants to try it shoot me a PM and I can send you a pair of 1" slip-ons for a few bucks + a little shipping. It looks like this when it's on top of the stock pad.

Anyone have problems with the truss rod adjustment wrench? I have a grand stick. The thickness of the lap dawg does not allow the full adjustment of the truss rod. There is a position of the nut in that the wrench does not fit because dawg lap thickness.

I love my Lapdawg, but I have the same problem. I have a straight belt-hook post on my sticks which has an even smaller space between the stick and belt-hook (compared to the normal angled post). The space was too small to easily adjust the truss-rod even before I added the Lapdawg. Now, with the Lapdawg, I cannot even get the wrench onto the nut. So, to adjust the truss rod, I remove the Lapdawg entirely, and then re-attach it after adjustment.

Marty

Michael sent me 2 plastic spacers that I placed between the pedestal and the belt hook. Necessary for the SG12 installation. But this could solve your problem. Be sure to apple super glue or something similar on the shims and pedestal and/or belt hook. Otherwise you may get some unwarned shifting between the pieces.

You'll want to do something to work around that. From talking to other Stick players it seams that many do not check (and adjust the truss rod if needed) often enough. I do a quick check when I tune the instrument. Most of the time adjustment is not needed, but when it is ... a little will make a difference that you will feel and appreciate.

As far as the truss rod adjustment access - yes it's probably best to pop the Lap Dawg off for that. If I were to have designed the Stick/belt hook/Lap Dawg as a unified piece of engineering that would not be the case I can assure you. But I had to design the Lap Dawg to function around an existing mechanical environment and try not to be invasive or destructive in the process and I think I achieved that. So this issue is a necessary compromise. Luckily the Lap Dawg can be removed or re-installed in about 1 minute with a screwdriver. I haven't needed to mess with the truss rod on either my Railboard or my Paduak Grand except when I changed string gauges. It's wise to take a look down the edge of your fretboard once in a while though.

I have Lap Dawgs in stock for immediate shipping BTW if anyone out there in Stickland wants one.

What's the shipping time on the lapdawg?