Home made belts.

[Carlos840]

So, recently i was having a look at the stitched belts Iron Heart sells.
My first thought was "there is no way i am spending $400 on a belt!" my second thought was "how hard can it be?"

The answer is not very.

I bought a few basic tools on ebay, a few belt blanks, had a look on youtube and here are the results:

Belt 1:

Soft oil tanned leather, it was good as a first try because it is very soft and forgiving, but i don't really like it, it is very soft ans spongy and it bleeds color.
I might replace it at some point.

Belt 2 and 3:

Natural tanned leather, a lot harder to work with, a lot more work to finish and a lot less forgiving.
The 2nd one (top one) isn't as clean as i want it to, i was still trying to figure out how to get the stitching i wanted, and how to pierce the holes correctly.
For some reason, the back of the stitching was nice and straight, but the front ended up all over the place and looks like crap...

The 3rd one, bottom one, is pretty much as good as it can get, stitching is straight front and back, angled like i wanted it, i am happy with the result.

It takes roughly 2 hours to do a belt, but that is mostly burnishing and finishing, the stitching takes roughly 5 minutes.
Budget wise, you could probably do 30 belts for $400! The tools are pretty cheap, around $50, the leather is cheap, the money really goes in the buckles, which are pretty cheap in the US.
I found everything on eBay, leather, tools, buckles.

One thing i love, you can make a belt with only one hole! Personally i don't wear belts to hold my pants, and my weight is stable, so i just did one hole per strap, it looks super clean!

This is the technique i used:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffI76U9UyS8

 

[Davy Crockett]

Very good looking belts! if you are UK based there is a very good shop in Newcastle upon Tyne who supply tools, leather and all the other things you will need www.leprevo.co.uk I like my belts made from Bridle leather (very stiff initially) they have also made belts up for me at an amazingly cheap price,
.
D

 

[Carlos840]

Thanks, the bottom 2 are made of bridle leather, it feels like cardboard at first but i am sure it will feel great in a few months!

Thanks for the link, their prices are really good! Might order a couple straps form them, see what they are like..

 

[Carlos840]

Since the first batch i have done a few more, this is really a lot of fun, and my stitching is becoming better and better.

Here is one more, with a sewn in leather keep, this one is for my dad, it's a belt he got years ago and wore till the leather fell apart, it's now good to go for another 20 years!

 

[Enough]

Really nice work, it shows that you have an eye and passion for crafting art. Stick with it. Some day your belts will be selling for $400.

 

[Mil5419]

Great looking belts. I'm currently working on a few belts and I'm a big fan of LePrevo in Newcastle, who are great.

This is the work in progress of my latest belt, using a Cobra 45 buckle from Austrialpin to match a work bag I made recently (which uses the same buckle and Chicago Screws). I'm trying to work on an interesting and subtle way to adjust it for different sizes, as currently you need a screwdriver to take it off the jeans! Not ideal...any ideas welcome.

 

[Mil5419]

I had a play around with different adjustment ideas and came up with this last night. (I don't want to use anything like Velcro)

Still not perfect, but interesting.