Centering Oblong holes for belt making

[JamesR]

I wanted to precisely punch centered oblong holes in 1 1/2" belt blanks for attaching the buckle. This jig allows me to it easily.

The punches are sandwiched between blocks and screwed together. The blocks were sized to snuggly fit into the 1 1/2" wide box that the belt blank slides into.

They were also cut to allow the punch to be centered in the jig. The blocks are easily removed whenever I need to use the punch without the jig.

They are held together with flathead screws and Tee nuts. 

 

[PastorBob]

Pretty clever!  I love seeing creative ideas to solve a problem.  Looks like this solved yours.

[Northmount]

@JamesR I moved your post to leather tools.

[Dwight]

I use a smaller oval shaped punch . . . 

Never quite got the hang of it . . . minor miscues really look bad with it.

Finally put it in a vise . . . made sure the punch was oriented straight away . . . 

Took a file and engraved a line down the middle of the top of the punch.

No more problems . . . works great.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Handstitched]

Very  nicely done .

I just use an oblong punch and a  BFH:  'big f**ing hammer' 

HS

[KillDevilBill]

I thought I was the only one that obsessed over such things. Lol

This is slick!