Leather Punch Tools

• Practice using punch tools on leather scraps. Close-up snake leather texture to background image by Ragnarocks from Fotolia.com

  Leather punch tools are used to pierce, cut and shape leather. Although these tools are very similar in design, a leather craftsman may have dozens of punching tools of differing sizes and weights. This enables the tooling of different types of leather. Using the incorrect tools for a given type of leather may result in difficulty punching and incomplete holes.

Spring Punch

• Leather spring punches are used to pierce leather and create holes. These punches feature a removable tip which is affixed to a metal rod. A second rod is attached to the first with a bolt and spring. When the two handles are pressed together, the tip pierces the leather. While some heavy-duty, spring punches require two hands, most can be operated single-handedly.

Rotary Punch

• Rotary punches are similar to spring punches, but more expensive. piercer image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com

  An adaptation of the spring punch, the rotary punch contains several tip sizes on a rotating head. Rotary punches are more expensive than spring punches because they come with several replacement tips.

Arch Punch

• Arch punches are chisel-tipped, metal tubes designed to pierce, cut holes and make slits. During use, the arch punch is held against the leather and struck with a mallet or hammer. This force drives the chisel through the leather, creating a hole. The resulting hole has a smooth edge with even fibers. Leftover leather scraps are held in the tip of the tool and can be removed by inverting the head.

Oval Punch

• Oval or oblong punches are used to create elongated holes in leather. Usually, this tool is used for creating a hole for a buckle. These punches are sold both as an attachment and individual hand tool. Hand-held oval punches feature a tubular handle with a slit along one side. This hole enables you to easily eject the remnants after each punch.

Strap End Punch

• Strap end punches are curved chisels designed to trim the ends of straps and belts. These tools are used to create a clean end that will easily mate with buckles. Available in a variety of shapes, strap end punches can create sharp curves or straight edges. Straight punches are also called oblong punches.

Awl

• An awl is a needle-like hand tool used to punch small holes for hand-stitching leather. An adaptation of the awl, the sewing awl, combines the punching and sewing stages into one step.