In previous research involving the use of shear punch test, it was assumed that the displacement of the punch tip was only slightly different than the crosshead displacement. The present work explores this assumption and its ramifications by simulating the shear punch test with finite element analysis (FEA). The simulations suggest that punch tip displacement is much less than previously assumed, and that for the test frames which have been used, crosshead displacement is over an order of magnitude greater than punch tip displacement. This difference in displacements is thought to be due to test machine and punch compliance, and a simple elasticity calculation of the compliance of the punch, the test machine, and the specimen gives a result which is in agreement with the FEA simulations. Based on this work, it appears that the material-to-material variation in prior correlations between shear yield strength and uniaxial yield strength is due to a combination of large test machine compliance and material-to-material differences in the work hardening exponent.