Discussion: Pin Punch Tweaks

I know that pin punches are no longer the dominant method of marking progress at events. Just getting that out of the way before someone says I should stop using them or something similar. Please just respond to the question below if you have meaningful and helpful insight.

I have several pin punches that are misaligned. By that, I mean the pins do not readily push into the holes in the base of the punch when used. Instead they hang up on the plastic around the holes. Does anyone have advice about ways to fix this?

I'm considering gentle heating (hair dryer?) and then clamping the "arms" of the punch while it cools to maybe change their relative position.

Maybe it's reasonable to take out the pins and fix them somehow?

or slightly enlarging the receiving holes? Or is the misalignment much bigger? And is it one of those with a push-in plate holding the pins in place, where one can change the pattern or is it a fixed one?

How big is the gap between pins and base? Could you just glue a thin strip of foam (or similar) on top of the base, so the pins punch into that instead of into the misaligned holes?

Or, I could send you bunches of punches, if you would like to pay the postage.

I like Valerie's idea (also, see if Swampfox still has a whole bunch), but meanwhile, can you post a picture of this misaligned punch?