Quote Originally Posted by frank_a View Post
Punch set I picked up at Jo Ann Fabrics tonight. That was all they had there I could use. I'll order the other stuff Articer suggested tonight or tomorrow, then try and figure out what to do for leather. I found a good link for buckles: http://www.ejoyce.com/pmain?cmd=e_su...e=000100250028

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You might find that this set is too small for the Chicago screws you bought. I have both the "mini" and "maxi" punch sets (as well as other types of hole punches and tools), and IIRC I usually have to use one of the punches from the larger set to make a hole big enough for a Chicago screw. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Since you're making belts that use a bar/tongue, you'll want to use an oval punch for the holes in the belt where the tongue goes through. You can fudge it by punching two round holes next to each other (or overlapping) and trimming out the rest with an Xacto knife, but it's usually a cleaner job if you just invest in an oval punch.

Oh, and you mentioned dye. I'm sure you know that once you dye the leather, you'll need to finish it with something or it'll bleed onto everything it touches. I tend to use Neat-Lac, but there are other finishes out there you can experiment with. Think carefully before dyeing the back side (rough side) of the leather, since it will be touching your kilt.