The proper split rivets are hard to find I used to use them a lot yrs ago and you could find them anywhere but can only find in very specific places now
Trooperbay sell the correct ones in a set of six as well as snaps n other things
As for swat the armour is pretty much the same as officer it's more about weathering accessory configuration ie pack pouches weapon
My only advise would be - don't try to take the easy way
You say your not very crafty but it looks like your doin a great job so far bro
Keep it up and enjoy
One more thing you might wanna try is combining your snaps with Velcro there's a lot of poor quality snaps but combined with Velcro never had a problem especially its something you want to really stay together like crotch lol