t1mpani
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2002
- Messages
- 5,517
Well,
Once upon a time I had some “before” shots of these khuks (both were rusted blems with handle problems and sheaths that were cut through on the inside curve) but now all I have are “after” shots, so the pics will just focus on the sheaths. The thicker boy with the wood handle (really can’t remember the model, it was an unusual one) simply took some refinishing on a scotchbrite belt, epoxy filling around the handle scales and a large bronze bushing to act as a lanyard hole liner, as the plain wood hole with no liner was just asking to break (already had a bit of a crack in it). The BAS was very unevenly ground in terms of primary grind height, was actually a hollow grind out near the belly, and was rusted/pitted pretty severely. I ended up grinding off the original edge, doing a full-height convex grind on it, taking care to back way off as I neared the swords of Shiva up top, and doing my typical rounding off of the top point of the butt of the handle so it didn’t spear my wrist. When all was said and done, both were taken straight from a scotchbrite finish to some phosphoric acid for etching, and then finished off on a loaded leather belt.
As I said, the former sheaths were cut-through, and since I was going to have to re-sheath, I figured I’d part with tradition and step up utility. Brian Wagner (Okuden) makes some of the best kydex sheaths in the business, as far as I’m concerned. He uses thick kydex (harder to mold but keeps its shape and tightness regardless of conditions) and knives never rattle around inside them. To this point, the description wouldn’t be unique to him, and truly there are some other gifted kydex men out there that I’ve had the good fortune of dealing with. The difference is, however, Brian’s sheaths don’t mark your knives. Coated or uncoated, mirror finish or bead blast, high polish gun blued, etc., I’ve YET to have any knife get skinned, scratched, or branded in any way by an Okuden sheath, and currently I have something in the vicinity of four dozen sheaths from him. I don’t know how he does it. I’ve ASKED him how, and he very rightly pointed out that I was asking to see the strings at the puppet show, smiled enigmatically, and left it at that.
He did point out to me, though, when I sent him these two khuks, that there was literally almost nothing for a tension-fit kydex sheath to hold onto on either one of them, due to the round handles and non-existent guards. So, my idea was to borrow shamelessly from the Kenny Rowe (fantastic leather sheath maker) “pin lock” and line up a hole in the sheaths with the cho in either blade, so that a rod could be put through that would lock the blade in place, just in case gravity ended up on the wrong side. He delivered exactly what I wanted, notching the pins so that they actually catch and hold very well in the holes, though I may end up drilling them so that I can put a wire loop in there to attach a lanyard to, as currently they would be lost if they were knocked out while walking around.
The nice thing is, while they’re similar lengths, the wood handled one is an absolute bruiser at ½” thick at the spine, while the BAS is a comparatively light and lively ¼”, so I can actually pick the type of companion I want. Also, worn inside the waistband like I have them set up to be, the weight is hardly noticed at all as compared to what it’s like to have a traditional sheath hanging from your belt. Also, a small pack or jacket will completely hide them, so you don’t have to display your large cutlery to every single person you happen to meet along the trail, while access is still very comfortable. And yes, I CAN sit down without taking it off.
Anyway…
Here are the sheaths. Second shot is me shaking it very hard upside down to show how the pin locks it in place. Last is the two of them flat next to a .357 shell for comparison. Yes, they’re thick—but thinner than the original sheaths were!
Here’s a spine and handle shot of the bruiser. Like my lanyard hold liner? ☺
continued….
Once upon a time I had some “before” shots of these khuks (both were rusted blems with handle problems and sheaths that were cut through on the inside curve) but now all I have are “after” shots, so the pics will just focus on the sheaths. The thicker boy with the wood handle (really can’t remember the model, it was an unusual one) simply took some refinishing on a scotchbrite belt, epoxy filling around the handle scales and a large bronze bushing to act as a lanyard hole liner, as the plain wood hole with no liner was just asking to break (already had a bit of a crack in it). The BAS was very unevenly ground in terms of primary grind height, was actually a hollow grind out near the belly, and was rusted/pitted pretty severely. I ended up grinding off the original edge, doing a full-height convex grind on it, taking care to back way off as I neared the swords of Shiva up top, and doing my typical rounding off of the top point of the butt of the handle so it didn’t spear my wrist. When all was said and done, both were taken straight from a scotchbrite finish to some phosphoric acid for etching, and then finished off on a loaded leather belt.
As I said, the former sheaths were cut-through, and since I was going to have to re-sheath, I figured I’d part with tradition and step up utility. Brian Wagner (Okuden) makes some of the best kydex sheaths in the business, as far as I’m concerned. He uses thick kydex (harder to mold but keeps its shape and tightness regardless of conditions) and knives never rattle around inside them. To this point, the description wouldn’t be unique to him, and truly there are some other gifted kydex men out there that I’ve had the good fortune of dealing with. The difference is, however, Brian’s sheaths don’t mark your knives. Coated or uncoated, mirror finish or bead blast, high polish gun blued, etc., I’ve YET to have any knife get skinned, scratched, or branded in any way by an Okuden sheath, and currently I have something in the vicinity of four dozen sheaths from him. I don’t know how he does it. I’ve ASKED him how, and he very rightly pointed out that I was asking to see the strings at the puppet show, smiled enigmatically, and left it at that.
He did point out to me, though, when I sent him these two khuks, that there was literally almost nothing for a tension-fit kydex sheath to hold onto on either one of them, due to the round handles and non-existent guards. So, my idea was to borrow shamelessly from the Kenny Rowe (fantastic leather sheath maker) “pin lock” and line up a hole in the sheaths with the cho in either blade, so that a rod could be put through that would lock the blade in place, just in case gravity ended up on the wrong side. He delivered exactly what I wanted, notching the pins so that they actually catch and hold very well in the holes, though I may end up drilling them so that I can put a wire loop in there to attach a lanyard to, as currently they would be lost if they were knocked out while walking around.
The nice thing is, while they’re similar lengths, the wood handled one is an absolute bruiser at ½” thick at the spine, while the BAS is a comparatively light and lively ¼”, so I can actually pick the type of companion I want. Also, worn inside the waistband like I have them set up to be, the weight is hardly noticed at all as compared to what it’s like to have a traditional sheath hanging from your belt. Also, a small pack or jacket will completely hide them, so you don’t have to display your large cutlery to every single person you happen to meet along the trail, while access is still very comfortable. And yes, I CAN sit down without taking it off.
Anyway…
Here are the sheaths. Second shot is me shaking it very hard upside down to show how the pin locks it in place. Last is the two of them flat next to a .357 shell for comparison. Yes, they’re thick—but thinner than the original sheaths were!
Here’s a spine and handle shot of the bruiser. Like my lanyard hold liner? ☺
continued….
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