Brooks saddle rivet question.
 

Brooks saddle "repair"? Have a rivet that is protruding a bit above the leather. Anyone have a suggestion procedure on how to reset it??
Thanks

If it's a large style rivet, I have dealt with this with a pair of vise-grips, a small nut taped to one jaw (to fit against the rivet under the frame), and an appropriately sized socket to fit the diameter of the head. Squeeze.

I'd be interested to hear other methods.

The method is going to be different for a copper rivet than a steel one. In general, copper rivets are solid, while steel ones are semi-hollow. If you can post a photo, I can give better advice.

Copper rivets look like this:
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/j64AAO...ti/s-l1600.jpg
If you have copper rivets, you need only to tap down the edges. support the underside of the cantle plate with an anvil of some sort (it has to be kinda pointy; best is a real anvil with a conical hardy; a piece of steel I-beam is excellent. Or embed a pickaxe in the ground so the point is pointing upward, and use that point as your anvil), then beat down the offending rivet with a hammer. Many gentle blows will do the job better than one brutal blow.

More likely you have steel rivets. They look like this:
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/mOsAAO...dm/s-l1600.jpg

If you have steel rivets, your repair is a two stage process.

First, if the offending rivet is really loose, you may be able to pull it all the way out with a pliers. If so, do so, and insert a nail into the hollow end and try to pound the hollow end of the rivet back into a tubular shape. It doesn't have to be perfect, just round enough that you can push it back through the leather and the cantle plate. Push it as far as you can.
Alternately, if the offending rivet is not at all loose, you'll have to pound it down, and to do that, you'll need some kind of a hollow anvil underneath the cantle plate. You need to support the cantle plate on both sides of the rivet, leaving enough room to let the rivet go back to where it belongs.

Second, you need to spread the open end of the rivet out again. There's a tool for that:
https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/...53A/s-l225.jpg
Sorry, that's the biggest photo I can find right now.

If you don't have it, you can do without. Once you're confident the rivet is in the right place (the head should be flush with the leather) hold the saddle upside down and place it so the head of the offending rivet is firmly supported by the anvil. Insert a blunt-pointed conical tool --like a big nail-- and pound it down. Once the hollow part is spread out as far as possible, take a flat punch and pound down as much of that rivet as you can, still working from underneath.

Warning: Brooks rivets really are not made to be reused. You may need to replace the rivet. Brooks sells them:
http://www.brooksengland.com/en_us/6...a-byb-702.html
Niagara Cyclery has them as well.

If you want, I don't mind sending you a handful of used Brooks rivets in hope that you can make one of them work; or I can send you a plain steel rivet that won't match perfectly but at least it'll be new. And I can lend you the tool, which you'll have to return when you're done. If you want to go that route, send me a private message.

Thanks for your reply!
This saddle has the steel rivets. This afternoon I clamped a piece of round bar stock in my vise and positioned the bottom side of the river on it. Then I use a small ball peen hammer on the top side. Seems to have set it below the leather. Maybe I should go with all new copper rivets.