12Pcs Hollow Punch Set (3-16mm)

That is a completely different job from a pin punch, and the distinction is worth making because the two are easily confused by name. A pin punch is a solid drift for driving pins and dowels out of holes. A hollow punch is a sharpened tube that cuts a hole in soft sheet — it removes material rather than moving a component, and it should never be used as a drift.

What it is genuinely for is a long list. Cutting holes in gasket material and making gaskets by hand when the original is unobtainable — which for anybody maintaining older machinery is a regular necessity. Punching holes in leather for belts and straps. Making holes in rubber sheet, cork, felt, fabric, canvas and tarpaulin. Punching holes in plastic sheet and thin card. Cutting holes in webbing for eyelets. Any of these done with a knife or a drill produces a ragged, out-of-round hole; a hollow punch produces a clean circle with a properly finished edge that will not tear from its own irregularities.

Twelve sizes from 3 to 16mm is what makes the set useful rather than the individual punch. Gasket and strap work rarely lands on a size you already own, and having the range means you cut the hole the job needs rather than the nearest one you have.

The material is carbon steel, which takes and holds the fine circular edge these need.

The buyers are engineering and maintenance workshops making gaskets, vehicle and machinery mechanics, leather workers and saddlers, upholsterers and canvas workers, shoe repairers, sign and display makers, and hardware dealers.

The one thing that determines how long these last is what you punch onto. Always back the work with a piece of end-grain hardwood, a nylon or polythene block, or a sheet of lead — never onto steel, concrete or a bench top, all of which will blunt or chip the cutting edge on the first blow. Strike squarely so the edge lands flat and cuts all round at once. Keep the punches dry and lightly oiled, since a rusted cutting edge tears rather than shears. And if a punch stops cutting cleanly, the edge can be dressed carefully from the inside with a fine stone. Message us on WhatsApp for a price on the set.