Best Snaps, Grommets, and Setting Tools?

AR-Trvlr

AR-Trvlr

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What do you find to be the best snaps, grommets, and setting tools for knife sheaths? Where do you buy them?

I picked up some snaps from Tandy, and had horrible luck setting them - I wound up crushing most of the longer 'tubes' on the cover side.

I'm strictly an amateur, but I don't mind spending money for good tools and materials...
 
Which setter tools do you have now? That would help us help you a little better.

Technique for setting snaps has a bit of a learning curve, I ruined quite a few as well.

The new Tandy snaps (with Tandy stamped on them) are heads above what they used to carry, but the tubes are very thick and if not struck firmly at first they will not mushroom as well as the thinner walls of the older ones. But that improvement as well as the stronger spring inside the snap is well worth the trouble.

Here is my snap setter kit. Very affordable, and reminds me I need to replace one of my setters soon, I'm actually wearing it out! 15 years of daily use. https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/snap-all-snap-setter-set about fifteen bucks retail

I did try, under peer pressure :p , the arbor press https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/craftool-hand-press about 200 bucks to start then you have to choke out 60 more for each pair of dies. Mine ended up ruining more snaps than it properly set, but I hear that more people than not have good experiences with it. I might have gotten a lemon, which reminds me I need to take it to Tandy and have them look at it.
 
I bought the stuff from Tandy in the last year, and that looks like the setter I have, but I'll have to look at it when I get home tonight.

It could very well be that I'm too light on my initial strikes. I'll see what happens if I put some meat into it.
 
I'll try to find the video, there was one put up on youtube that shows in great detail a fellow setting a snap just like I do now. I wish I would have seen that one back then, I'd have saved quite a few snaps. :p That circular motion after the initial strike helps mushroom the post so much more effectively.

EDIT: Here is a quick one on the Tandy site: He doesn't show how the strike is done, but he does show that rocking motion after the initial strike. I use a little wider circle, and a little more consistent, but the method is similar. https://www.tandyleather.com/en/setting-snap-fasteners-leather-craft-video.html

The weight of the mallet is equally as important, with what I've seen and personal experience, a one pound head is ideal. Too little and you work harder and each strike is less productive, too heavy and each strike could cave in the liner that the post is connected to thus pushing it into the dome effectively shortening the post and you wont get the proper mushroom on the post.
 
Slightly different perspective than Dwayne's. I found a mallet not really usable. I couldn't feel the post mushroom. I switched to a small ballpeen hammer that I used for rivets. I had a much higher percentage of success with the ballpeen as I could feel that post colapse and mushroom, if that makes sense. 2nd on the circular motion makes a big diff.
 
Ah! I can see that. :) How does the tool hold up to the hammer? I've always wondered.
 
Not really had any problems. I use my rivet setter the same way much more often a little deformitiy but not bad and thats from years of use.
 
Here is the mallet I use for snap setting, and nearly everything else. https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/craftool-pro-flat-head-poly-maul Its got good feedback, the flat face may be the key? I dont get that kind of feel with the round maul. I wonder if its the smaller contact surface?

My mallet is the older Stolhman version, but they look identical. Never been happier with any of my hammer shaped mallets. Even the old school rawhide I found at an estate sale, but the old school version has a much deeper head and feels odd now.
 
I'm not well versed on sheath making but I've been making leather and canvas bags, clutches, and accessories for about the past 8yrs. I use C.S. Osborne, mostly american made, actually most of it is made in New Jersey. Osborne is a little more expensive than some other leather supply places but your not getting brass colored Bangladeshy tin posing as quality goods. I noticed once I started using Osborne's products my work started looking cleaner and more professional. Ohio Travel Bag Company is a great source as well. The company is run pretty old school and their variety is unbeatable.
 
Dot Fasteners, same snaps the military uses and can be had in several actions, also 3x the price of Tandy snaps and worth it. A press and dies will roll the snaps properly. Never had much luck with a mallet setting them properly, they always flare or mushroom out.
 
I swear by the Press-N-Snap tool for grommets and snaps. Just change the dies and you can set most anything. Grommets I like the CS Osbourne's also. And for snaps the Govt grade Durasnaps make everything more professional and clean. But then again I'm not a leather guy. So there's that.
 
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