Ok I swear I know how Chicago screws work 
But I’m trying to remove the covered buttons (you know, not conchos but the suede buttons) from my chaps to adjust the waist and I absolutely cannot get the button off!!
I’m turning the screw lefty loosey while holding the button in place. The screw turns, but nothing loosens. Both buttons are doing this so I feel like maybe I’m doing something wrong?
Are you sure they’re Chicago screws and not rivets?
Yes – they have a slot for a flat head screwdriver and the product description on HobbyHorse says Chicago screws.
So probably the back of the Chicago screw (female threaded part) is not firmly attached to the button so holding the button is not keeping the back from moving. You may need to clamp it somehow. Not sure how to do that without seeing it (and maybe not then). Good luck.
Ugh yes that’s what I suspect too. They’re too tight to be able to get a good look at what’s happening, the suede is kind of compacted around there.
Yeah, if they’re Hobby Horse chaps and you’re sure they’re Chicago screws, I agree that the other end is just twirling around, unseen, beneath the suede button cover. This may be a two person job where someone else is viciously clamping onto the button end with some pliers-- they need to truly feel the edge of the screw through the suede to hold it still-- while you turn the other end.
I fought this battle with a halter nameplate. Ended up carefully hacksawing the neck of the screw off.
Yup, that works too. (Been there, done that).
I’m afraid I’ll have to buy new buttons completely if I hacksaw them. Which fine…but at that point I’m not sure if it’s worth it for the waist adjustment.
The Chicago screws are glued into the domed caps, and sometimes they can break loose. Find a pair of needlenose pliers with a long, thin nose and grab the shank of the screw between the button and the chap, then try to unscrew it from the underside. It takes some finagling.
Your buttons will be toast- you won’t want to use them again because the female part of the Chicago screw will continue to spin around and you’ll never get the buttons tight again.
Attaching brass Chicago screws insidethe domed aluminum button shape was a challenge. The two dissimilar metals did not play well together with any glue or welding system we ever tried… and we tried just about everything. Regular old sticky snotty chap glue- a puddle of it inside the button mold- worked better than anything but sometimes if they got over-tightened the glue would let go, and sometimes, after years, they just let go too. We never found a more reliable way to attach those screws.
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