Would you benefit from a custom knife SHEATH?

S

steve white

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I am left handed. Every time I buy a knife, the sheath provided is always for a right handed person, so yes I need one. The belt loop is on the wrong side unless I want the knife facing backwards! If I use it as is, I have to draw the knife with my right hand and place it in my left.

But this is only the beginning...what if I would like a cross draw sheath? Or a sheath that carries at an angle? Same problem.

Also, may I ask your favorite tricks to get the sheath onto your belt....do you have to thread it on the entire belt length if it is mounted on the left side, and then put the belt through the rest of the loops? Sometimes the belt loop on the sheath is impossibly tight to slide very much.
What do you do to put on a belt with the sheath made into the belt itself? Put the buckle through the belt loops to the left and then the end of the belt through the remaining loops to the right?
IOW, what problems/solutions do you have to the knife on the belt carry? How DO you carry? Pictures?
 
Steve,

I share your frustration. I am right handed, but carry a pistol everyday. So belt knives go on the left side. So I either specify left side carry to the knife maker or have one made. Look to see if you have a Kydex holster maker in you area. They can make a nice Kydex sheath, typically for $50 - $75.

Any saddle shop or leather worker should be able to make a sheath for you no big deal. Take them the belt and they will make it fit correctly.

All sheath loops need to fit the belt. My belts are 1.75” wide and very thick. Sheaths are made to fit the belt size specified to the maker.

As for wear, I EDC a large pocket knife clipped to my pocket. Hunting belt knives are worn at the 9 o’clock position or also are carried in the back pack.

Here is a left side carry sheath direct from Bob Dozier for his Professional Guide knife, which is one of my two favorites.

IMG_1861.jpeg
 
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I am right handed , knife you see on my profile picture is made by a guy here that had many years of emergency butcher truck working , going around to farms and such . He liked the sheath on left side not to hang up into trucks doors and equipment and so . Wish more were made that way .
 
I have several custom knife sheaths that I will address in a DM.

As for knives coming with ambidextrous sheathes, it will almost always be a Kydex product. I have two knives from MKC that came with ambi sheathes that can be adjusted for any number of positions and also be slipped over a belt up to 1.75” wide. It could be used on a 2” belt but it would need to be threaded through or the belt would have to be flexible enough to be wedged in.

IMG_1486.jpeg

IMG_1488.jpeg
 
When I make leather sheaths for my knives, I ask what side it will be carried so that you get what you want.

Kydex sheaths I make so that they can be ambidextrous. What's nice with Kydex as well is that the belt clips I use are clip style, so you can take them on and off without removing or undoing your belt.

Unfortunately that's a difficult ask with leather. I have used clips for leather sheaths before, but it looses a lot of that cool leather authenticity and feel to it.

As for sizing, a good sheath should be made for even the widest of belts in my opinion. Nothing worse that a sheath that's a pain to use. The knife should also be nice and snug in the sheath.
 
I just make my own kydex sheath with a universal felt lock system that allows me to mount the knife horizontal, vertical, left, or right side.

I’ll post some pics later when I get into the office and can get some knives out..

The locks are about $8 each the last I checked.. kydex and grommets are maybe $5… time = free… takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish…

I build a sheath like this for all of my knives.. whether they are a knife I made, or one I bought from someone else…
 
I’m right handed, and carry fixed blades on my support (left) side when on a belt. I like a cross draw for comfort when seated, but it also allows me to draw the knife easily with either hand. I find anything longer than a Leatherman to be uncomfortable in the vertical mounting.

IMG_3714.jpeg
 
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When making knife sheath's, the first thing I ask the customer is....are you left or right handed or do you prefer a crossdraw, second is... what belt width do you need it to fit ?
If you are making custom sheaths it must be to what the customer wants.
 
As promised… here’s one I made for my Von Gruff Tahr Hunter

IMG_0386.jpeg

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IMG_0385.jpeg


Just open the belt lock and unscrew the two screws seen inside.. then set the lock on either side of the knife (left or right hand).. and turn the lock whichever direction you like (vertical or horizontal)… can set for strong or weak side draw… there’s also a tab inside the lock that allows you to adjust for anything from a 3/4” - 1.5” belt width…

Literally about 20-30 minutes of my time tops from start to finish to include the 10 minutes needed for the kydex to cool once it’s molded…

I make one of these for every knife I own… simple, effective, inexpensive (if you own the right tools).. and looks nice (I think)…

@steve white if you have a particular knife you would like something like this for, let me know.. you pay for the materials, and I’ll throw the labor in for free..

I’d have to check my stash.. but right now I think I’ve got black, coyote, foliage green, and Tiffany blue kydex on hand (don’t laugh… the wife likes Tiffany blue :) )…
 
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Josh P said:
I’m right handed, and carry fixed blades on my support (left) side when on a belt. I like a cross draw for comfort when seated, but it also allows me to draw the knife easily with either hand. I find anything longer than a Leatherman to be uncomfortable in the vertical mounting.
Click to expand...
Can you post more pictures of the backside, etc? It appears from the picture that it is positioned for cross draw with the left hand, but with blade turned upward?
BTW, how do you draw with either hand if it is cross draw?
 
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mdwest said:
As promised… here’s one I made for my Von Gruff Tahr Hunter

View attachment 785463
View attachment 785464View attachment 785465

Just open the belt lock and unscrew the two screws seen inside.. then set the lock on either side of the knife (left or right hand).. and turn the lock whichever direction you like (vertical or horizontal)… can set for strong or weak side draw… there’s also a tab inside the lock that allows you to adjust for anything from a 3/4” - 1.5” belt width…

Literally about 20-30 minutes of my time tops from start to finish to include the 10 minutes needed for the kydex to cool once it’s molded…

I make one of these for every knife I own… simple, effective, inexpensive (if you own the right tools).. and looks nice (I think)…

@steve white if you have a particular knife you would like something like this for, let me know.. you pay for the materials, and I’ll throw the labor in for free..

I’d have to check my stash.. but right now I think I’ve got black, coyote, foliage green, and Tiffany blue kydex on hand (don’t laugh… the wife likes Tiffany blue :) )…
Click to expand...
So it hinged shut over the belt....hmmm. Think I'll be in touch--thanks!
 
You can open and close the lock to take it on and off… but I generally just leave it locked closed and slide my belt through the loop… either way works…
 
steve white said:
Can you post more pictures of the backside, etc? It appears from the picture that it is positioned for cross draw with the left hand, but with blade turned upward?
BTW, how do you draw with either hand if it is cross draw?
Click to expand...


I was under the weather yesterday and wasn’t able to get any pictures, or form a proper reply.

The belt loop is almost continuous, it’s sewn together at the bottom of the sheath. I wear it edge down, candle forward, about the 10:30 position on my front left side. I can reach it right handed for a blade forward grip, or left handed for a reverse grip which is easy enough to reorient. Having it handle forward in the sheath helps reduce the risk of it snagging on brush and coming out.

Hope that’s clear enough to make sense.
 
I think that is clear. Do you have to the thread almost the whole belt through it each time you wear it? Or is it not on the belt you use to hold up your pants. Also, knives don't bend around waistlines so does it make a big flat spot on the belt? Looks neat though.

Hope you are feeling better. My wife went into the hospital yesterday with pneumonia and sepsis. Needs prayers, folks.
 
Request granted. Lord, have mercy.

It usually goes on my hunting “over belt”, but if I wear it on my pants belt on the left side it does indeed have to have the entire belt go through. For the future, I’ve thought about the same carry, but on my left side in order to make donning and doffing easier.

If it’s on the front, but off center, I don’t find it presses against me uncomfortably.
 
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