BK 7 sheath options??

M

milani74

Joined
Feb 15, 2009
Messages
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Hello all, I am relitively new to the forums but have read a great deal of the posts...
Problem:
I recently purchased a Kabar Becker BK 7. I am extremely pleased with the blade for what I want to use it for (camping, hunting, survival knife) but the sheath does not satisfy all my requirements. It came with the nylon sheath with plastic (non-molded) insert which causes the blade to wriggle and make a lot of noise when walking. Further, the retaining strap gets cut when I extract the blade and insert it if I am not really careful, and happens even despite my trying to move it out of the way.

Solutions:
The best solutions I have seen is the kydex sheaths offered by some independant sheath makers, but I have to send them the knife which cost me about $20 both ways and then the $45-$50 for the sheath.
Is there a cheaper solution that I am missing? Seems like a better solution might be to just get a new knife that comes stock with a kydex sheath for $60-$100... I would hate to do that due to the fact I like the BK7 so much though.
Thank you for your input in advance.
 
You can Get Eagle Jump Sheath Like Srider Knives Come with for 39.99 or survival sheath Systems are cheaper too.

But I say forget them.

Take the Plastic Insert out, and Get it hot with Whatever means you have, maybe Oven on just 200, or Heat gun, and Mold the sheath around the blade, then it's almost as if you make your own Kydex.

One Other easier thing to do is- Take out the plastic, and find Some material, Like felt. or whatever you like or can find, Even old T-shirt is ok. Cut in Strips and Glue on to the inside of the plastic. This does good things. First it will not rattle anymore. and also Since all the Beckers are Carbon Steel, you are going to want to keep them Oiled(Mineral oil or Remington Gun Oil is Fine, But Mineral Oil Is Food Safe.) The Material Will Hold Oil so you Knife will not get rust when Just sitting in sheath not in use. It's Very Easy to to. And It Smalls Good Like Brand New Shotgun every time you take it out.

Now Cutting you own strap? That I cannot help with. Any sheath will have strap, some sheath have 2 or 3 strap. so Just be careful, Maybe Put Black(or Any Color) Duct Tape to protect you from cutting it.

Thats the Best advise I have for this. I did this same thing to BK9. Older Becker Cammillus BK9. But basically the same problem sheath and same knife.
 
You can glue the kydex in, but if you do, only glue the back, so if the glue soaks through it only stains the back, and doesn't show up on the front. For a camp knife, you may not care about the appearance anyway. I put two screws through mine at the bottom to hold the plastic in. For the rattle, I put a piece of hard rubber in the bottom, before screwing it in. A couple more small pieces at the top keeps it quiet.

One of my first posts here a couple years ago was just like yours - I didn't like the sheath for my BK-7 at all. Some of the options were more expensive than the knife ($40. at CTD), so I decided to work with what I had and see if I could make it work.

thx - cpr
 
You might want to check your local knife/gun/outdoor supplier store and see if anyone associated with it works with Kydex. I'm very fortunate in that the local knife store (River's Edge in Columbus, Ohio) has a young man (Brice) who makes great Kydex sheaths. I've gone there at non-peak business times and he's even made them while I wait and watch, asking me questions about details as he makes it! Trust me, quality kydex is well worth it.

FWIW I have one of the newer KaBar Beckers, and I've had a few of the Camillus Beckkerts, and the KaBar sheaths are much better than the ones Camillus packed with them. I would describe them as "serviceable." I think you could probably tweak it yourself and/or adapt to using it if price is a concern.
 
You can pick up a Kydex holster / sheath kits like those available at Knife Kits. Than you will have the satisfaction of having made your own custom sheath. The Becker BK2 I recently bought, came with a pretty decent molded plastic sheath. Folks in the Becker Knife & Tool forum may have some ideas too
 
Nice ideas. I hadn't thought of taking the plastic out and molding it. I will try that first tonite. 200 degrees F I am assuming?
 
Of course, you could make a sheath out of milk carton plastic, duct tape, and a staple gun. :D :D (I did that once when I was a kid.)

I'm watching this thread to see how it turns out, since I have several fixed blades with no sheaths. If the BK7 kydex sleeve is that simple to work with, I might take a chance on doing a couple myself.

thx - cpr
 
Well, I tried to pull the main insert out and could not do it. I did not want to totally damage the sheath but it is not conected in the front or behind the insert. It must be conected at the bottom where the stiches are. I pulled the smaller sheath out (by force) and molded it to my BK13 but tore the very top of the plastic when I did. No big deal as it still is a much better fit than before.
I tried local (Huntsville, AL atm) gun and knife dealers and no dice on kydex makers.
I am thinking now that I will try to place some rubber down the sheath or some leather/other material and glue it down to prevent the rattling around.
 
Did you consider try making your own. Really pretty simple the kits provide most everything you need except an oven but you should have one of those
 
Not yet to be honest. Not having messed around with Kydex at all, I am very ignorant of what is needed/how to. I looked on that website and noticed that the kit was relatively inexpensive, but then the tools and instructions were not.
 
I sell the Kabar Becker line on my site at LINK REMOVED and I think they are one the best buys in camp/survival knives. I do agree that the sheaths are cheesy. I was on the phone with Kabar and asked about this. The lady I talked with said that they are planning oon fixing this problem sometime this year. They are very reputable and I expect to see an improvement on their current sheath sometime in 2010. Until then I plan on carrying the Kydex sheths made by On Scene Tactical.
 
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I'm sorry, I'm an idiot. I can't imagine how to heat and mold the platic insert to the knife. Can you be a little more explicit in describing how to do this? Do you just put the plastic insert on a cookie sheet and heat it for a few minutes? Do you put it in with the knife? How long do you heat it for? I'm seriously thinking about trying this tonight on my BK7 sheath, but don't want to screw it up. I also like the idea of putting small screws in the bottom to hold the insert in.
 
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Boil the whole sheath for a minute or so. Carefully remove from water, dump water out and insert knife. Then press down with all your weight on something flat like countertop. Protect hands with dish towels, it works. Just did it with my RD7.
 
Im pretty sure that in the 2 years he got it figured out. Maybe not IDK!
 
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