I use a neck strap. I find it allows me better control, since I can move my hands and take a more comfortable 2-finger grip on the sticks.

I don't have any problems with getting it in the prop, even at combat matches where we have 90 seconds to start the engine and launch the plane. I do my own hand launches as well. I find the strap helps with the hand launches, one hand on the airplane, one on the stick, no need to worry about supporting the weight of the transmitter.

I also have rather short fingers, so a "normal" grip doesn't quite do it for me, and my thumbs aren't long enough for solid control on "push to the center" maneuvers with out the neck strap.

And I use a Polk transmitter, one of the bigger, heavier transmitters out there. So some kind of support is almost manditory for me.

Funny thing, though, when I instruct, I usually don't use the strap. On the lower-performace planes, using other people's smaller transmitters, I don't have any problem not using it. But I feel really strange on my own transmitter with out my neckstrap.

Oh, when starting the plane, I take the neck strap off totally, it stays attached to the TX. That way it can't get in the prop.