My father was alway threatening to 'take my belt off and you'll know what'll happen then?'

NEVER got threatened with "the belt." Daddy was an off-and-on barber and had a BIG razor strop.

[... which was never used in that way except to demonstrate how loud a noise it could make ...]

[[I have a better one now than he had then, but no little kids around to threaten with it.]]

John