General Instructions
Make the smallest hole in the leather that you can get the stud/rivet into. Always stretch the leather a little to admit the stem, rather than having it slop around in a hole that is too big.
Peen up rivets and studs. Do not fold the ends over on the inside of the belt. Put the rivet/stud through the hole and clip off the excess material on the back to about 1/16 or 3/32 inch (2 to 2.5 mm). Use a nipper, cutting pliers, or even a nail clipper. Use a small, light, cross peen hammer, like a jeweler’s cross peen or a tack hammer, to gently spread the end of the rivet/stud. Use many light blows, rather than a few heavy ones.
Support the piece during riveting on a heavy stiff piece of metal (an anvil is ideal, but substitute if you need to). Put a piece of thin cardboard, like the cardboard on a pad of paper, between the metal support and the pewter while hammering, to pad the pewter. Do not use leather or corrugated cardboard for this; they are too soft and the pewter will deform.
Consult our tutorials, with numerous photos, at:
Making a Belt with Billy and Charlie
Getting Crafty with Billy and Charlie: Belt Studs
Attaching a Nick Rolin Chape to Leather – aka Making a Collar of Estate
We always include extra rivets and washers when we ship belt parts – they are for dropping on the floor or losing. Check the website photos for each buckle or chape to see where to place the rivets.
Buckles and Chapes with sockets into which the leather fits
The sockets of these fittings all taper in on the sides – trim the edges of your strap ends to fit the taper. Thin leather if necessary. Slip strap into fitting. Holding strap and fitting firmly to prevent spinning, drill straight through all three layers (pewter, leather, pewter) where you want the rivets. Two rivets are enough for larger fittings (one rivet for small pieces). Use a 3/32” (2.4 mm) drill bit. Press the rivet through the hole, clip it close to the back of the fitting (about 1/16 inch or 1 mm), and peen it up. No washer is required; the back of the fitting serves as a washer.
Buckles and Chapes with folded attachments; Purse Hangers
Make sure the front and back parts of these fittings are aligned, then slip them over the leather and drill all the parts together, as for socket fittings. For the purse hangers, make sure the purse hanger is tightly caught by the attachment straps, pressed up close to the strap, so it doesn’t slip out.
Buckles the strap loops through
Fold over 1 to 1 1/2” (2.5 to 4 cm) of the end of the belt. Punch or cut a slot on the outside of the fold for the buckle tongue. Loop the belt around the buckle with the tongue coming through the slot. Punch or drill small holes (use awl, smallest hole on leather punch, or small drill) through both layers of leather for the rivets. Insert rivets; put a washer onto each pin. Clip excess material; peen up rivets against washers.
Eyelets with Pins
Mark and punch central hole. Use punch or awl to make small holes for pins. Insert pins; clip off short. Peen up pins like rivets or studs.
Tube Eyelets
Make 3/16” (4.5 mm) holes at the places where you want the eyelets. Insert eyelet. Shorten the eyelet so only about 3/32” (2.5 mm) stands out of the leather on the back. A small, curved nail scissors can be used; cut smoothly around. Use a tapered punch, like a center punch, nailset, or commercial eyelet setter, to open out the back of the eyelet so it spreads to all sides. (Pad working surface as above.) Some of the eyelets may split, depending on how smoothly they were trimmed, how the eyelet was opened, etc. As long as the tube itself does not split these are fine. After the eyelet has been opened out, finish spreading and flattening it with the face of a small hammer.
Studs
Measure and mark the spacing for studs Make small holes – an awl is better than a punch. Press studs through the holes. Check their orientation (you don’t want them upside down). Clip off excess material, leaving about 1/16 to 3/32” (2 to 2.5 mm) sticking out of the back of the strap. Peen up the studs with a small cross peen hammer, using a great many small blows – 20 to 40 light taps per stud is reasonable. Washers are not needed for these decorative fittings – be sure your peening-up pushes the metal sideways to make a sort of flat mushroom shape.
Questions? billy@billyandcharlie.com