HI; Paxton;;
This may well be the reason a lot of us glue in a thin liner then lace or sew;;you may use tooling leather or predyed, 2-3 oz is handy,I know it's a lot of trouble but ????? if you lace reduce belt with by 1/4 in, perhaps some one who still finish's the back sides will chime in ,,,I gave in years ago ...sorry ...
Doc..