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Eyelet pliers buying guide

Updated: 23 October 2026

Amazon.co.uk titles mention tarpaulin, leather and card in the same sentence. An eyelet pliers buying guide splits those jobs before a brand matters. Hole size, metal, and whether a handheld plier can reach the mark are the three checks. The [eyelet pliers comparison](/hub/hand-tools/eyelet-pliers) ranks the ten kits that survived that filter, with prices from 22 October 2026. This page can still send you away from all ten. Peter F. wrote it from those listings and the UK review texts. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. There was no lab test.

Amazon.co.uk titles mention tarpaulin, leather and card in the same sentence. An eyelet pliers buying guide splits those jobs before a brand matters.

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What you are buying

An eyelet plier kit sets a barrel and a washer. You want one named hole, a matching cutter, and one washer per barrel. A Swpeet review says the pieces were different sizes. These ten kits are pliers. A hole in the middle of a wide sheet is the wrong shape, which is the case on the eyelet pliers vs a hammer setter page. None states BS 3102, withdrawn on 15 June 2001. The Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9, is a consumer right, not a certificate on these pliers.

Pick the millimetre before the brand

Measure the hole before you read a bullet. Swpeet and Mygeromon are 5 mm. NCONCO is 3 mm and 5 mm. Guttiuaa is 6 mm. SBGGRL SB06 claims 6 mm and 10 mm. TOWOT, Ecraft, Spurtar and SBGGRL SB05 are 10 mm. HAPDEN alone has 6, 10 and 12 mm. Kuvr specifies 12 mm internal for their screens. A 5 mm kit that lists tarpaulin is still a craft kit. Swpeet is best value for that hobby hole, at about £12.99 with 4.1 from 1,598 in the saved listing. Cover sizes are on the eyelet pliers for tarpaulins page.
TOWOT TOWOT 10 mm eyelet pliers

Testsieger

TOWOT TOWOT 10 mm eyelet pliers
9.2/10about £15.27

Brass, plate, and the word rustproof

Colour is a finish. Hanolex says solid brass does not rust and plated steel can once the plate cracks. Brass appears on HAPDEN and on NCONCO. SBGGRL calls chrome-plated steel rustproof. That word stays a bullet. TOWOT is rust-resistant, not brass. Outdoors, start from a listing that says brass, then check the size.

Reach, thickness, and a box that matches

No listing prints a throat depth. If the mark is further in, use a setter or a press. TOWOT's only thickness number is 3 mm. TOWOT's bullet says 500 eyelets and a sheet-count line says 2. Ecraft's title says 500 and a unit line says 27. Sails and HGV curtains go to a canvas worker. A new eyelet is not a rated tie-down.

Common questions

Are eyelet pliers and grommet pliers the same tool?
On these amazon.co.uk listings they are the same handheld idea: jaws, a die, a cutter and a two-part metal eyelet. Toolbug uses grommet for the heavier eyelet and still describes pliers for the edge of a sheet. The word in the title does not tell you the millimetre. Read the pin-hole line. A 5 mm grommet kit and a 10 mm eyelet kit are different purchases even when both bullets mention tarpaulin.
Is 10 mm the same as 3/8 inch and 9.53 mm?
Yes, on the SBGGRL 10 mm listing. The title says 10 mm and 3/8 inch, and the pin-hole line says 9.53 mm. Hanolex's nearby brass row is 9.53 mm internal. Treat those three figures as one hole. A second size exists only when the title names a second die, as SBGGRL SB06 does with 6 mm and 10 mm, or as HAPDEN does with 6 mm, 10 mm and 12 mm.
Will a 5 mm kit repair a tarpaulin because the bullet says tarp?
The bullet is a use list, not a measurement of your cover. Swpeet and Mygeromon are 5 mm kits. A TOWOT reviewer sent a 6 mm set back because they wanted 10 mm for tarpaulins. House of Tents and Kuvr talk about 10 mm or 12 mm on tent and screen covers. Match the eyelet already in the sheet. If that eyelet is about 10 mm or 12 mm, leave the 5 mm kits on the shelf.
How do I tell brass from gold-coloured steel?
Read the metal word, not the photo. HAPDEN and NCONCO say brass. Gold, silver and chrome on the other titles are finishes. Hanolex says plated steel can rust once the plate cracks, and that colour does not prove the base metal. SBGGRL's rustproof line sits on chrome-plated steel. If the eyelet will live outside, start from a listing that prints the word brass and still check the size.
Why will the pliers not reach the hole I marked?
The frame stops at the edge. Toolbug states that limit, and one HAPDEN review puts it at about an inch. No kit here prints a throat depth, so you cannot shop a longer reach from these ten titles. A hole in the middle of a wide sheet needs a punch, an anvil and a hammer, or a press. Squeezing harder does not lengthen the jaw.
What if two lines on the listing disagree about the count?
Keep both numbers and assume you must count the box. Ecraft prints 500 and 27. SBGGRL SB06 prints 500 and 300. Swpeet prints 300 sets and 100 gold. TOWOT prints 500 and a sheet count of 2. A disagreement is a reason to open the comparison row and the reviews, not a reason to pick the larger figure. The two SBGGRL star lines are one shared review file, so do not add 591 to 591.

Related pages

Sources

Sources for this comparison, last checked on 22 October 2026.

  1. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK, General Product Safety Regulations 2005: Great Britain (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. BS 3102:1959, withdrawn listing (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. Wonkee Donkee Tools, replacing eyelets on a tarpaulin (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. Hanolex, why brass eyelets (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. Hanolex, brass grommet size table (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Toolbug, how to use eyelet pliers (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. Laser Tools, eyelets and grommets for covers and curtains (retrieved 22 October 2026)