CloudySky

Thanks guys! This is exactly what I need.

I found a couple hides on eBay a while ago, but I haven't seen anything since. I'd like to buy in small quantities (one hide at a time).

Wow, these responses are great! Thanks guys.

I have a drill press and a burnisher attachment. I want to burnish the edges of leather for watch straps. What compound should I apply to the edge of the leather for a nice finish? Where can I buy it? Thanks!

Thanks for all the tips guys!! After some practice, I've gotten better. I also just mark all of the holes in the leather with the punch before I actually punch them. I'm going to make a tool to do this though. I just ordered these parts from Tandy and I'll get a small steel plate made at my local machine shop that will allow me to screw in 4 of those tips in a row. Then I can just align this new tool and hammer the steel plate a few times to punch the holes.

I need something like that, but with bigger holes. The tine of the buckle on the strap is large enough that the holes have to be punched rather than just poked (leather needs to be removed). Thanks for you contribution; i think this points me in the right direction.

Its really easy to see if one hole is even slightly misplaced, so a tool that automates this process would be ideal. I'm punching them individually now and I'm not 100% satisfied with the results