Juliette Report post Posted October 1, 2015 Hi Everyone, I've been learning so much from this forum - thank you! I have a recurring problem with my bag straps that I am hoping you all can help me with: I am using an English point strap end punch from Weaver Leather to make the ends of my bag straps. I use a 1" punch on a 5/8" wide strap because I like the more obtuse angle that it creates at the end. . . problem is I can NEVER get this thing to perfectly center, and my two curved wings are almost always just slightly lopsided. I am a perfectionist, so the littlest bit of unevenness bothers me. . . but it also becomes a problem because then I attach the strap to the exterior bag by edge stitching (with my machine) around the perimeter of the strap end. . . so any lopsidedness really becomes apparent. Does that make any sense? I have tried making end punch/stitching templates out of scrap leather straps, and this works okay, but is still not totally foolproof. . . Does anyone have any tips or words of wisdom when it comes to quickly centering that strap end punch, and also stitching evenly around that point? I'm so tired of wasting precious strap leather! Thank you all so much for sharing your knowledge! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CWR Report post Posted October 1, 2015 If you have a set of wing dividers, use them to find the center of your strap and mark the center. Then place the point of your punch on the mark left by the wing dividers and make sure that the gaps at the rear are the same on both sides. This should get you pretty close. CW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidL Report post Posted October 1, 2015 Same technique as CWR instead use the dividers on the side of the strap. Paper template where you can mark with an awl where the end should lay comes to mind for a faster method. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sbrownn Report post Posted October 1, 2015 I set a small square on the edge of the belt to square the punch and make sure the gaps on both sides are the same size. This eliminates having to locate the center of the belt. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
impulse Report post Posted October 2, 2015 Ditto sbrownn - by far the simplest and most accurate method! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Juliette Report post Posted October 5, 2015 Thank you everyone for your responses! I appreciate the tips and I'm looking forward to figuring this out, and stop relying on just plain luck. I have never used wing dividers, but I have googled them and now know what they look like. I am a beginner at this, so CCW and DavidL, do you think you could elaborate on how to use the dividers from the end and/or the strap side to find center? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Juliette Report post Posted October 5, 2015 Thank you, sbrowne and impulse! I'm a beginner and having a hard time visualizing this . . . do you put the square flush with the short strap end and one long side of the strap and then use the measurements on the inside of the square to try to center the punch point along the short end of the strap, or do you mean that I should set the square so that it is along one long strap side and the bottoms of the two legs of the punch? or have I go this all wrong? Any guidance is much appreciated! Thanks again so much for all your help! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidL Report post Posted October 5, 2015 Long story short, keep the divider leg against the side of the strap. This picture may help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Juliette Report post Posted October 6, 2015 Excellent - the picture is perfect! Thank you DavidL! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sbrownn Report post Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) I should set the square so that it is along one long strap side and the bottoms of the two legs of the punch? Yes. Make sure the amount of punch overlap is the same on both sides of the strap. I use a drill press to push the punch instead of a hammer. Edited October 6, 2015 by sbrownn Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
