First sheath for my second knife

[Almightyox]

Hey guys. I am very new to the whole knife making scene in general (I just started last month) and could use some encouragement, or at least some constructive criticism from you fine folks. What you see below is my first sheath that I made to go along with the second knife I crafted. I know that I mucked some things up, almost to the point where I had to scrap my whole sheath, but a little ingenuity and persistence and I was able to save it an put out a piece that may not be pretty, but is at least usable.
A few questions right off the bat:

1) How do you get your dye to set? I got some Tandy Eco-Flow Leather Dye which is apparently a water based dye. It seems that even after putting a light finish coat of beeswax onto it I still have some dye rubbing off. How should I remedy this? Different finish? Different dye?

2) Whats the best way to punch holes through the area with the welt? For my belt loop I used a simple awl, but with the welt area being so thick I was afraid my holes would end up HUGE on one side and tiny on the other. I tried chucking my needle into my hand drill and my drill press and the chuck was too open on the end to receive something as small as a needle. So I used my smallest possible drillbit in my hand drill and realized I had a hard time keeping it perfectly straight. Almost all my holes had at least a slight angle that was evident when stitching. What process would you suggest for someone in my situation?

3) What is the best finish to both seal in color and give a shine to my work? I have heard several opinions and I am sure there are pluses and minuses to any finish of course.

Those are the three main problems I haven't found solutions to at this point. Most of the things I did wrong were simple "Well, not gonna do that next time" scenarios. I have seen a couple vidoe series, and read Talfuchre (Diomedes Ind.) thread on the basic steps, but I am one who doesn't really learn until I get my hands dirty.

Anyway, take a look, praise, criticize, whatever trips your trigger. I just wanted to share my first, and certainly not last, sheath with you guys.

Stitches on my belt loop, which is too long, are not all double stitched. I missed one . Also slipped with my overstitcher.

Like a fool I grooved and spaced stitches on the BACK of my sheath so when I punched they came out the FRONT slightly cooked (Not gonna do that again)

Knife fits rather nicely.

All in all, it has its flaws but for a first sheath we are just gonna call it character . Good practice on my burnishing and wet forming techniques for certain. Let me know what you guys think.

PS. Gun Tragacanth smell FANTASTIC! Is that weird?

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Funny, my second sheath was for my first knife.

My press is a bench top model and the chuck closes to zero. If I were in your situation I'd try to epoxy the needle in a dowel that would fit the chuck. Others may have a better idea.

Knife looks good. Almost like a traditional Kephart.

On the sheath, I don't particularly like a double row of stitching. I don't feel that it adds strength, but does add complexity and bulk. Some people ask for it, so I'll do it, but I don't otherwise. If you want to do them, try to get them close together.

Clip the excess off the loop after the stitching. I like to stitch a box, or whatever follows the shape of the end of the strap (loop end).

Beeswax is great. I love using it, but it isn't the best finish if dye is transferring. I have 4 or 5 bottles of Eco Flo, but I don't use the stuff for the reason you've discovered. It runs especially bad if you want to do any wet forming. I think the stuff has applications, but not on a sheath. I think Dwayne has tested the stuff more than me and probably has more to share than I could. I really wish Tandy would carry better dyes.

To seal the leather, you can use a product like Super Sheen, or Satin Sheen. I believe both are acrylic and don't let the leather breathe. I've recently switched to Tan Kote and so far so good. Two coats gives you a mellow shine that I like.

Most of the above is subjective. Your work is promising, please continue. There's a lot(!) to learn, but the day I feel I know everything is the day I'll hang up my round knife. Thankfully that's not likely to happen.

What tools do you have? Are you planning on making sheaths (and knives) for yourself, or do you plan to sell them?

 

[Almightyox]

For now my plan is to make sheaths for personal use, but if I am satisfied enough with my product in time my end goal is to sell them.
Currently at my disposal I have a stitch groover, a freehand groover, an edge bevel, an overstitch wheel, a wooden burnisher (planning to craft my own from antler), a utility knife with sharp blades, some eco-flow dye, fiebings edge-kote, gum tragacanth, two stitching needles, and some assorted sandpaper. As far as I can see I have all the basic tools, but some stamps are on the shopping list as soon as I refine my technique a bit. I will have to try the needle in a dowel trick. Sounds very promising and should take some of the inconsistencies out of my stitches. Thanks for all the tips man, I have seen your work around the forums and I am glad you are willing to give me some pointers.

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Definitely a good selection of tools.

Speaking of antlers... I wanted one for months since Tal recommended one. Much like the Coghlan, branded Opinel, I look for them at most stores that I go to. I was never able to find one until I went to a pet store in the local outlet mall 3 days ago. For some reason they are kinda pricy. $10 for a 4" shed, up to $20 for a slightly larger one. The bummer though is that they saw off the tip. Still, I bought one, sanded it and used it right away. Makes a great burnisher, I think, because of the weight and density.

Wonder if my uncle would notice a tine missing from one of the trophies on the wall of his man cave.

 

[Almightyox]

I have many old antler racks laying around and a belt sander that I feel will make quick work of the antler. The wooden burnisher will not get into grooves and is just cumbersome. On my next sheath I am hoping to better my burnishing and stitch alignment most. I received some Fiebings Spirit based dye in the mail today. Will that hold onto the leather a bit better? Also, how do you go about locking in your stitch on high stress areas like your belt loop? Mine seems a little loose to be honest, and now that I have everything glued and stitched there is no going back.

 

[Horsewright]

Good set of tools it looks like. Most here would tell ya to toss the edgekote, I would for sure. Strig mentioned a couple of things I would have and you did yourself. I would encourage you to keep a critical eye and always look on how to improve from project to project. Geez Strig you bought an antler?

 

[Almightyox]

If there is one thing I am for sure it's critical of my work. I notice things that need improving fairly readily, but a lot of the times I come to forums for answers on how to improve those things. I prefer to get my information from craftsmen and not manufacturers . I am confident my next sheath will be an improvement. And yeah, who buys antlers? You know those grow on food right?

 

[Horsewright]

Shoot (pardon the pun). They come to me I don't even have to go get them. I traded a knife and holster for a couple hundred pounds of elk sheds here recently. Gonna be knife handles for the most part.

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Well hell guys share the love!

Yes. I bought a ridiculously priced shed tine. I've only shot birds and rodents, oh and I've shot at coyote, but never hit one. Don't even own a rifle any more. Sold my SKS a few years ago and not a day goes by that I don't miss that little assault rifle.

Dang. Now I feel all girly-man like. Maybe I should go arm wrestle someone or something.

Fiebings will still transfer. They all will in my experience, but nothing so bad as eco blow. Rub the excess pigment off the surface with paper towels and it shouldn't be too bad. I don't dye the interior anymore either. Got a little on my daily carry that has ghost jade scales. Don't want that happening to a customer.

 

[Kansan]

Great questions - I hope you get more answers as I'm interested in what others will say. I've made maybe 20 sheaths and consider myself a rank amateur but I've struggled with the same questions you have. Here's where I'm at now, but I'm sure there are better answers out there:

1. In my opinion, the Eco-Flo is the easiest to work with as it seems to go on consistently and comes out looking nice. However, since it's water based the biggest drawback is that it bleeds more than the spirit based dyes. I've done quite a bit of experimenting with it. If I'm going to use Eco-Flo on something, I'll wait until it dries and then take a damp cloth and rub the piece thoroughly. Some dye will come off. You might do this twice. Then, I seal it with two coats of Resolene, buffing it in between coats. This seems to seal it enough that it won't bleed much (or any at all). I've tried to make it bleed after this point by running test pieces under running water and rubbing it off with a cloth and the color seems to hold fast. Of course, there are probably other concievable scenarios where this method might fail, I don't know. YMMV. Even if you use spirit or oil based dyes, you should still make sure to buff out the excess after application.

2. I think the best way is to get a sharp diamond awl and a stitching pony. You can use a drill press with a tiny bit but that method will actually remove leather and the holes won't close as much as they might if you use an awl (which in theory just diplaces the leather, allowing it to close somewhat on itself naturally after a while). I've also tried using a stitching fid and carefully tapping it through - I can usually make it straight enough that it will hit the groove on the other side. The fid is a little too fat, though, so if you hammer it all the way through, your hole will be huge. I can make it look pretty good if I tap it so that it just pin-pricks the other side and then tap it through the other side a little bit so I can see daylight in the hole. This is obviously not a professional option at all, but it does work. A sharp awl and a stitching pony should allow you to go through 3 layers of leather (counting the welt), but you can help yourself if you use a pricking iron or a diamond hole chisel to get the holes started. Some people punch all the way through with those tools, but allegedly they are not meant for that. A pricking iron is on my short list.

3. There are a million different finishes. Eco-Flo's super sheen is the shiniest I've found, but I've also found that it tends to crack after a while. Tan-Kote is good, as is Resolene. They'll give it a moderate gloss and seem to last. There are also some other wax based finishes which I've gone to almost exclusively just because I like the look and smell. Two that I can recomend are Obenauf's Leather Preservative (LP) and Montana Pitch Blend leather dressing. They will go in nicely and give you a soft sheen. Plus, you can use them on your leather boots. I haven't had good luck with Mink Paste because it leaves a white waxy residue in the cracks or along the threads, but Mink Oil seems to work well and also gives it a soft sheen. I don't think it lasts as long, though. It also smells like WD-40.

As far as the burnishing tool... I've never tried the antler tine, but sounds like it would work well. I use my chap stick case or my bic lighter case to burnish to good effect. The rounded plastic of either seems to work well. If you trim the edges so they are perfectly alligned, it will help a lot. Sand it down with 120 grit or so, burnish with saddle soap, glycerin, or just plain water and a piece of jeans, canvas, baseball hat, or other heavy cloth first. Dye it. Apply gum tragacanth, and burnish it with your bic lighter case and it will come out looking pretty good. Maybe put some finish on there and buff it up. If you cut it right to begin with, you can come out looking like a single piece of leather, shined to a glassy finish.

Well, that's my amateur two cents. I think your sheath looks great for your second try, and of course if it functions as a knife protector / holder that's the most important thing. Be careful continuing, though, as sheath making and leather work can get really expensive! There's always just a few more tools that you need

 

[Almightyox]

Thanks a lot for the reply Kansan. I appreciate you going into such detail about the finishes and burnishing. Dye transfer, drilling stitch holes, and burnishing were probably my biggest concerns with this piece.

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Be careful continuing, though, as sheath making and leather work can get really expensive! There's always just a few more tools that you need

Amen brother. Great reply too. Just goes to show that there are as many ways of doing things as their are craftsmen.