Ministry of Defense (MOD) Cantle Snaps

[Phil Campbell]

All,

I hope that you and yours are warm and well.

I have the good fortune to be the owner of a MOD cantle but, I do not have the snaps that pop over the posts on the cantle to keep the bag secured to the cantle.

Does the Rabble have any ideas where I may purchase said snaps, or recommend a reasonable replacement?

Thank you

[Tobus]

These won't be original, of course, but they will work: go to Joann Fabrics (or any sewing/crafts store) and look for Dritz sew-on snaps. They come in a range of sizes, and for the life of me I can't remember which size it is, but you should be able to figure it out if you bring your cantle with you. These simply stitch onto the leather of the bag and will snap right onto the studs inside the cantle. For obvious reasons, you'll have to punch holes in the leather and then stitch the snaps in place to align with the holes.

*edited to add:

Photo below shows these snaps in one of my MoD-cantle sporrans that I made. You can kinda-sorta see the stitching through the holes around the edges of the snaps. Note: since I didn't put a stiffener or liner inside my sporran (except for the tartan lining glued to the leather), I didn't stitch through all the holes. Some of them will show through the front of the sporran (peeking out from under the cantle) if you use all the holes. The right way to do it would be to stitch the snaps to a leather stiffener, then stitch the stiffener to the bag. That way the snap stitching is hidden.

[Phil Campbell]

Tobus - Thank you! Your explanation was clear enough that even I can follow, and the pictures were spot on.

I was certain that an XMark Member would know the answer!

[StevieR]

21mm snap fasteners are a perfect fit. I cut two horseshoe shapes from scrap leather and sewed the fasteners to these. The sporran bag is then sewn to these and the whole thing holds a nice shape with minimal strain on the actual bag.

[Tobus]

StevieR's example is precisely what I was referring to as the "right" way to do it.

[MacRobert's Reply]

Here in the UK the snaps are size 10, available from most haberdashers. Circlips also work well and do not need to be sewn.

[Phil Campbell]

Thank you all for the helpful replies! I am heading to the fabric store tomorrow to see what I can find.