The Armour Archive

I have some nice leather that I cut straps out of that I am trying to put belt buckles on. Getting it to bend and fit properly is a Pain in the A$$.

It cant be this hard. Am I missing something?

bigfredb wrote:I have some nice leather that I cut straps out of that I am trying to put belt buckles on. Getting it to bend and fit properly is a Pain in the A$$.

It cant be this hard. Am I missing something?

Skive a channel out of the back of the leather where the rod of the buckle goes.

(does that make sense?)

Also, skive the back side of the end to a point so it lays flat against the strap when you rivet it, and use some glue to tack down the leading edge.

It just looks nicer. Then dye and slick the edges of the strap too.

Do it the medieval way.
Use a solid plate to mount the buckle to the strap.

http://www.allenantiques.com/images/A-147-buckle.jpg

This one is attached to the plate, but the same idea is right for attachment to straps.

That way the leather doesn't have to roll around the buckle at all.

Wade

wcallen wrote:Do it the medieval way.
Use a solid plate to mount the buckle to the strap.

http://www.allenantiques.com/images/A-147-buckle.jpg

This one is attached to the plate, but the same idea is right for attachment to straps.

That way the leather doesn't have to roll around the buckle at all.

Wade

Not all medieval buckles had plates though.. there have been plenty found (mostly the D-ring with tongue) that still have leather bits attached to them.

I will never say "always" or "never" but a metal plate is very common, for many buckles, esp. in the 14th-15th c. which I know better, and it solves the problem.

Wade

Yep. But if he's just trying to put buckles on armor straps, its beyond overkill.

I assume the problem you are having is the leather is not wanting to bend around the buckle bar? Or it is cracking when you attempt to do so?

What I do is wet the leather.

Basically you are trying to fold the leather in half. Dry it just wants to crack. Wet it behaves pretty well.

Steve

CTrumbore wrote: just trying to put buckles on armor straps,

This is the current application.

bigfredb wrote:

CTrumbore wrote: just trying to put buckles on armor straps,

This is the current application.

Fred,

If that is the case, you should certainly do as Wade said, and use a metal plate. This is typical to the point of being almost universal. You can assume that an armor buckle has a plate unless you can prove it does not.


Mac

CTrumbore wrote:Yep. But if he's just trying to put buckles on armor straps, its beyond overkill.

CT,

It may be overkill, but it is quite normal.

Mac

CTrumbore wrote:Yep. But if he's just trying to put buckles on armor straps, its beyond overkill.

Not to pile on to much (just a little) - As Mac said, if this is for armour, that exactly when you DO want to use the metal plate. They really, really seemed to think that was the way to do it. I have played with a good deal of this stuff and I don't think I can point to one armour buckle that was attached to a strap by looping the leather over it - unless that strap was replaced later by someone who didn't know what they were doing. I am talking about "plate" armour - 14th-17th c. here.

I also own a good number of 14-15th c. buckles for civilian wear that still have their plates.

I even put a plate on the buckle I put on my normal, civilian wear belt.

And in addition to being common, and a way to solve the problem, they look cool. Never underestimate the value of cool.

Wade

I made buckle plates out of sheet brass for a project recently. 1" buckles and it was fiddly but the end result was worth it, IMHO. It makes the buckles lay flat, too and I agree-it looks cool.

How thick is the leather, anything over 4oz would be a pain to get to work well folded over a small buckle.

wcallen wrote:

CTrumbore wrote:Yep. But if he's just trying to put buckles on armor straps, its beyond overkill.

Not to pile on to much (just a little) - As Mac said, if this is for armour, that exactly when you DO want to use the metal plate. They really, really seemed to think that was the way to do it. I have played with a good deal of this stuff and I don't think I can point to one armour buckle that was attached to a strap by looping the leather over it - unless that strap was replaced later by someone who didn't know what they were doing. I am talking about "plate" armour - 14th-17th c. here.

I also own a good number of 14-15th c. buckles for civilian wear that still have their plates.

I even put a plate on the buckle I put on my normal, civilian wear belt.

And in addition to being common, and a way to solve the problem, they look cool. Never underestimate the value of cool.

Wade

Yep. Agreed.

Original poster: What are you trying to accomplish? Quick and dirty or historical?

Quick, but relatively historical.

Get some brass and a saw.

If it's for armor buckles, the metal only has to be .025" or .030". You can use brass or steel. In either case, a (new/sharp) tin snip will do the job. The place for the buckle tongue can be knocked out with a fine hacksaw and a chisel. You can use a dremel cutoff wheel if you like.

We discussed these here. viewtopic.php?f=4&t=155781&
I describe my procedure on page 2.


Mac

I used snips to cut them out, folded them around a nail and held them in place with a small vise while I cut out the hole for the tongue with a 4" angle grinder and cutoff wheel. A little finish work with a file, drilled the holes for rivets and done.