I've been looking at the Craftool 3900 to set line 24 snaps. Can anyone tell me it will set pull the dot snaps?
Also, any opinions on the Craftool press.
Thanks and best wishes.
I've seen people mention using the Tandy dies on PTD snaps, but haven't tried personally. I would think the locking tab in the socket would get in the way without a bit of modification to the die, but don't know for sure. Like Paul said, I'd ask Tandy. If nothing else, you can probably find just the PTD socket die that'll fit your chosen press from another manufacturer.
Paul, I believe you hit the mark on a snap setter. It would appear to be so much more accurate as well as easier.
I was just about to pull the trigger on the 3990 when I saw a press on KnifeKits.com which is somewhat similar but has a turret and includes both sets for rivets and snaps for about $200.00. It is made by CKK. I wonder if you have any experience or thoughts about that machine. It's call the Pro model combo kit:
https://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=41_526&products_id=5285.
Thanks so much for your friendly help.
I have both.
The CKK press there is a 1/2 ton (I think) arbor press. You can find that model cheaper from other places but you'll need to drill a 3/8" hole in the anvil (or something else) yourself. It comes with the hole and set screw in the ram from the factory though. I bought mine in an auction I think. Mine is poorly machined and the action is rough, but I coulda got a lemon. I would guess CKK does quality control on the ones they mod.
The Tandy press can be moved around at will, and as Paul mentioned, the depth is adjustable. The arbor press needs to be bolted or clamped to a sturdy bench or it'll flip over when you pull the handle down. There's no return spring so you'll be performing two actions with the CKK press as opposed to one with the 3990, if that matters. You'll also need to buy or make a separate depth stop if you need that option. That said, the arbor press has more oomph to it and a bigger opening. Neither of those really matter for your intended purpose though, other than needing to be more careful of how much force you're using.
As for the CKK dies, I used the eyelet dies for years and they're nice. I prefer the ones from USKnifemaker though and gave my CKK ones away. I also have the CKK snap dies and, for whatever reason, just can't get along with them. Maybe I just used too much pressure and/or didn't use the right length of snap, but my testing didn't go well at all. Obviously they work, as others use them, so I don't know. I should probably do more experimenting. I do know that the same snaps in the same material were absolutely perfect with the Tandy dies.
For reference, both presses use the same 3/8" shank diameter for the dies. Those two options aside, there are cheaper press and die setups similar to Tandy's out there, though they tend to have weird shank setups that tie you to their die selection.
Anyway, of the two, the CKK setup is cheaper overall and may be fine for you. The snap die thing is probably some fault of mine. I like the Tandy style setup better though.